Holiday Cut-Out Cookies
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Author Notes: This is my mother’s recipe. She’s a stickler for details, which plays to her advantage when it comes to baking. Her cut-out cookies are always the thinnest and prettiest and have the most restrained amount of decoration. Contrary to the plump and pale versions you often see, cut-out cookies should be very thin with browned edges, so they’re crisp and nutty! - Amanda - amanda
Food52 Review: “These cookies really do improve with age, so it’s a smart idea to make them at least 2 weeks before you want to eat them. This is also a healthy challenge. Be strong!” - Amanda - A&M
Makes 80 cookies (depending on the cookie cutter size; you can halve or quarter the recipe)
- 1 1/4 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 4 cups sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 8 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 egg white
- Finely chopped walnuts or sliced almonds (optional)
- Sanding sugar (optional)
- Dried citron or candied cherries, finely chopped (optional)
- A day before baking the cookies: in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or by hand, in a bowl with a wooden spoon), cream together the butter and sugar. Add the eggs one by one, mixing after each addition, then the vanilla. Gradually work in the flour until a dough forms. Wrap the dough in waxed paper or plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
- Heat the oven to 350° F. Whisk together the egg white and 1 tablespoon water in a small bowl. Cut the dough into quarters and keep three-quarters cold while working with the first quarter.
- Generously flour your work surface. Lay down the dough. Flour again. Roll the dough into a large circle, about ⅛-inch thick—and no thicker! Use cookie cutters to cut into shapes. It helps to dip the cutters into flour between every 2 cookies; this will prevent sticking. Place the cookies on ungreased baking sheets. Brush with the egg wash and decorate with chopped nuts, sanding sugar, or diced citron—whatever you like!
- Bake the cookies until they are lightly browned on the edges, 8 to 10 minutes -- I like to turn the baking sheet 180 degrees after 5 minutes to help them bake evenly. Transfer to a rack and let cool completely. (Repeat with the rest of the dough.) Place the cookies in a tin or storage container with a tight lid and let age 1 to 2 weeks to bring out the flavor. (I have eaten them at Easter, 4 months later, and they were still delicious.)
Tags: baking, Christmas, cookies, gifts, holiday cookies
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6 months ago IowaHeirlooms
This is a great recipe, thank you. Perfect for holiday baking. Very forgiving dough (I'm the one who kept it in the fridge for a week before I got back to baking it.) Can be rolled quite thin, holds shape, crisp and sweet and very pretty with crushed nuts on top. I pressed the trimmings together and rolled them into a cylinder, chilled it again, and sliced into thin rounds for the last pan so I didn't have to waste a bit of dough. love it.
6 months ago IowaHeirlooms
oh dear--how long can the dough be kept before baking? this recipe looks great, I made a batch right away, put it in the fridge, and missed my window for baking the next day. It's been in the fridge for a week--can I still bake with it? many thanks
6 months ago amanda
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Thanks to all the butter and sugar, it keeps for a week or two, so I think you're all set.
6 months ago IowaHeirlooms
hooray and thank you. baking tomorrow!
6 months ago Madame Sel
Do you age the cookies in fridge or on the counter? Can you freeze the finished cookie?
6 months ago amanda
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
On the counter, in a tightly sealed container. My mother puts them in a large tin, lined with wax paper. I've never frozen them but I don't see why not. They're a firm cookie so they should hold up. Not sure how the sanding sugar would do, though.
6 months ago RJ Flamingo
Can you provide an approximate baking time? You know - roughly how long should they be in the oven before I start peeking? :D
6 months ago amanda
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Whoops! Sorry about that -- just fixed it. If it's not showing up yet, the time is 8 to 10 minutes, and I turn the baking sheets halfway through to help them bake evenly. Also, the timing depends on how thinly you roll them. 1/8 inch will take 8 to 10 but any thicker can take a minute or two more. Keep an eye on them, they turn quickly!
6 months ago RJ Flamingo
Thanks!
6 months ago Als2317
How well does this dough freeze? I would like to make some this weekend, and then again in a week or two. Can't wait to try them! Thanks.
6 months ago amanda
Amanda is a co-founder of Food52.
Well! The cookies in the photo above were made with dough that was previously frozen. Wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap -- we did 2 layers -- then stick it in the freezer. I let it thaw overnight in the fridge.
6 months ago Angela
the concept of these reminds me a lot of my mother-in-laws Christmas cut-outs! before I made cookies with her, I thought they should be "plump and pale." I'll try these (and the sweet potato latkes) this weekend with our son!
P.S. I love that you admitted to eating Christmas cookies at Easter. Too awesome! :)
6 months ago thirschfeld
I have been looking for a new cut-out cookie recipe. Seems I have tried them all and never been happy with any. This one looks really, really good!