Sugar Cookies

My oldest was born on St. Patrick's Day, so every year we make Shamrock Cookies for his class. This recipe is the best sugar cookie I've ever had. The cookies are buttery and soft. Because there is so much butter in the recipe, the dough is a little finicky to work with, but it's worth it!

1 C. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into slices 

1 C. granulated sugar

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 egg

1 egg yolk

2 1/2 C. AP flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

colored sugar for sprinkling, if desired

Mix butter, sugar, and vanilla until smooth and creamy. Add egg and egg yolk, one at a time, mixing well between additions. Add flour, baking powder and salt and mix until well incorporated.

Form dough into a ball and refrigerate for several hours (I wrap it in parchment paper.)

Remove dough from refrigerator and divide into 4 or 5 pieces. Roll each piece until flat - I wrap a piece of parchment paper around the dough and roll on top of that, to prevent the dough from sticking - I don't have to use extra flour this way. Work quickly, as the butter in the dough will begin to soften and make the dough sticky. If this happens, put the dough back into the fridge to firm up.

Use a cookie cutter to cut-out shapes and place them onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. 

Sprinkle with colored sugar, if desired. If you have a little helper like me, pour a little sugar into a small bowl so that it is sprinkled on via the fingers, rather than dumped all over the tray...

Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes, until the edges are light brown. Cool for about 5 minutes on the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Makes about 2 dozen cookies (more if you use a smaller cutter).