Ingredients
1 cup of butter
1/2 cup of icing sugar (confectioner’s sugar - updated 11/21/2012 due to comments & emails rec’d)
1 1/2 cups of unbleached flour
1/2 cup of corn starch
1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract (*)
I cut my butter into thin slices directly from the fridge and then beat it with my stand mixer. Using cold butter prevents having to chill the dough.
Preparation
Beat the butter until smooth but not creamy. You don’t want to over beat it. When smooth, add your icing sugar and cream together. In a smaller bowl I had combined the flour and the cornstarch and whisked them together before adding to the butter and icing sugar mixture. As the beaters are combining the flour mixture with the butter mixture, I added the vanilla. Don’t over mix your dough, just mix on 2nd speed until all combined.
Then I scraped down the bowl and formed a beautiful buttery ball of shortbread cookie dough.
No matter the size of my cookie dough ball, I always cut in quarters and roll out one quarter at a time. I’ve always done that and even though I know it would be a time saver to roll out a larger portion at a time, force of habit and superstition prevents me from doing so
I used two fluted cutters, both 1 3/4″ wide and I roll my dough 5/16″ inches thick. I chilled the cut cookies in the freezer for a few minutes before baking. As you fill one pan, place in the freezer while you cut another pan full.
By the time the second pan is ready, it’s time to remove the one from freezer and bake! I baked each tray of cookies for 12 minutes at 300°
