Martha Stewart Basic Butter Cookie Dough

Martha Stewart basic butter cookie dough takes 2 hours and just flour, butter and egg yolks to make a soft, tender dough for spritz, cutout and slice-and-bake cookies. This simple recipe for holiday butter cookies fits Christmas cookie swaps, birthday parties and cozy winter baking days.

Chill the dough for at least 1 hour before you shape slice-and-bake or cutout cookies, because cold butter keeps the edges crisp and the shapes sharp. Skip it and the dough turns sticky and the cookies spread into soft blobs in the oven.

Martha mixes this dough in a food processor with confectioners' sugar instead of creaming butter and granulated sugar, which gives a softer, more delicate crumb. The yolk-only dough also stays tender and rich, so one batch works for all three cookie styles.

Martha Stewart Basic Butter Cookie Dough

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Course: DessertCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy

Servings

48

servings

Prep time

30

minutes

Cooking time

30

minutes

Calories

85

kcal

Butter, flour and confectioners' sugar pulse into coarse meal, then egg yolks bring it together into a smooth, rollable dough. Baked until pale and set, the cookies come out buttery and crisp at the edges.

Ingredients

• 3 cups (spooned and leveled) all-purpose flour
  

• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
  

• 1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut in pieces
  

• 1/2 teaspoon salt
  

• 4 large egg yolks
  

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  

• Egg wash, (optional): 1 large egg white, beaten with 2 teaspoons water
  

• Decorating sugar and sprinkles, (optional)
  

Directions

• Pulse the dry mix: Place 3 cups flour, 1 cup confectioners' sugar, 1 cup cold cubed butter and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a food processor. Process until the mixture looks like coarse meal.
• Beat the yolks: Lightly beat 4 egg yolks with 1 teaspoon vanilla in a small bowl. Whisking them first helps them mix in evenly so you don't overwork the dough.
• Form the dough: With the motor running, pour the yolk mixture into the food processor. Process just until a dough forms, then chill it for at least 1 hour before shaping.
• Heat the oven: Preheat your oven to 350°F. Then shape the cookies as you like: slice-and-bake rounds, cutouts or spritz cookies.
• Brush and decorate: Brush the cookies with the beaten egg white, which is 1 egg white whisked with 2 teaspoons water. Then add sanding sugar or sprinkles, or wait and decorate with frosting after they cool.
• Bake the cookies: Bake on the lower-middle and upper-middle racks for 15 minutes, though smaller spritz cookies may bake faster. Move them to a cooling rack as soon as they come out.

Tools for this recipe

• Cuisinart 14-cup food processor, Reynolds unbleached parchment paper, Checkered Chef cooling racks, Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon vanilla extract, 8 oz. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

FAQs

How long do butter cookies keep?

Store them in an airtight container at room temperature for 3 to 5 days. In the fridge they last up to 1 week, and in the freezer up to 3 months.

Can I make the dough ahead of time?

Yes, the dough needs at least 1 hour in the fridge anyway, so you can make it earlier in the day. Wrap it tightly so it doesn't dry out. Spritz cookies are the exception, because that dough should go into the press unchilled.

How do I get nicely round slice-and-bake cookies?

Split two paper-towel rolls lengthwise and wrap them around the dough logs, then tape them closed. Wrap the logs in plastic and chill until firm. The tubes keep the logs from flattening on one side.

Can I make these without a food processor?

You can rub the cold butter into the flour, sugar and salt with your fingertips or a pastry cutter until it looks like coarse meal. Then stir in the yolks and vanilla just until a dough forms. It takes longer, but the result is similar.

What is the best icing for these cookies?

Royal icing works best. Make it with egg whites for a shinier finish or meringue powder for a matte one. To cover a cookie completely, pipe a thin border first, then fill the center and smooth gaps with a toothpick.