Description
Classic Christmas Vanilla Biscuits, also known as Sugar Cookies, offer a buttery, tender texture with a delicate vanilla flavor. Perfectly crisp on the edges and soft in the middle, these festive cookies can be decorated with icing, chocolate, or simply enjoyed plain, making them an ideal treat for holiday celebrations.
Ingredients
Scale
Cookie Dough
- 225g / 1 cup unsalted butter, softened (or use salted butter and skip added salt)
- 1 cup caster/superfine sugar (granulated/ordinary white sugar can be used too)
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 large egg (55-60g / 1.9-2oz)
- 3 cups plain / all-purpose flour
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp salt
Optional Icing and Decorations
- Icing (see separate Icing for Christmas Cookies recipe)
- Melted chocolate (for dipping)
- Silver balls (for decorating)
- Icing sugar (for dusting)
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 180°C / 350°F (160°C fan). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper to prevent sticking.
- Mix Butter and Sugar: In a large bowl, beat the softened butter and sugar together until creamy, about 1 minute on medium speed.
- Add Egg and Vanilla: Beat in the egg and vanilla extract until fully combined, ensuring a smooth, fluffy mixture.
- Incorporate Dry Ingredients: Add the flour, baking powder, and salt to the wet mixture. Start mixing slowly to avoid flour flying, then increase speed until the flour is incorporated; the dough will look clumpy.
- Prepare Dough for Rolling: Lightly dust your work surface with flour. Scrape the dough out of the bowl and pat it together. Divide into two halves and shape each into a disc.
- Roll Out Dough: Roll each disc out with a rolling pin to 0.3cm / 1/8 inch for thinner, crispier cookies or 0.6cm / 1/4 inch for thicker, softer cookies. Sprinkle flour under and over the dough to prevent sticking.
- Cut Shapes: Use cookie cutters to press out festive shapes. Use a knife or spatula to transfer the cut shapes to the prepared baking sheets. Keep leftover dough refrigerated until ready to bake.
- Bake Cookies: Bake for about 10 minutes, swapping the trays halfway through to ensure even baking. Cookies are done when the surface is pale golden and edges just start to turn light golden.
- Cool Cookies: Allow the cookies to cool completely on the baking sheets. They will continue cooking slightly on the hot trays.
- Decorate: Choose your decorating style: ice with sugar cookie icing, dip the surface in melted chocolate, dot with icing sugar and silver balls, dust with icing sugar, or simply serve plain to enjoy the classic vanilla flavor.
Notes
- Using salted butter allows you to skip adding salt to the dough.
- Swapping baking trays halfway ensures even heat distribution and uniform baking.
- Rolling the dough thinner produces crispier cookies, while thicker dough yields softer cookies.
- Keep unused dough refrigerated to maintain firmness and ease of handling.
- Decorations are optional and can be customized according to taste or festive themes.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American / Western
Keywords: Christmas cookies, vanilla biscuits, sugar cookies, holiday baking, festive cookies, buttery cookies, vanilla sugar cookies
