Sweets: No Fail Cut-Out Cookies Preheat Oven: 375 degrees
1/2 lb. Butter
1 c. Sugar
1 large Egg
5 large Egg yolks
4 c. All purpose flour, sifted
In a large bowl, combine butter and sugar. With electric mixer cream until light and fluffy. Add whole egg and beat until thoroughly mixed. Add yolks one at a time and blend well between each one. Add flour one cup at a time until thoroughly incorporated. Gather dough into a ball, cover and refrigerate for 20-30 minutes to firm up.
Take 1/4 of the dough and roll onto a well floured surface to approximately 1/4 thickness. Use your favorite cookie cutters, or cut into any shape with a sharp knife. Place onto an ungreased cookie sheet and bake in a 375 degree oven for 8-10 minutes until golden brown. Remove immediately from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before removing from baking sheet to cooling rack or other covered surface. Ice and decorate as you like.
TIPS:
Parchment Paper - Not just for Martha Stewart anymore! One piece of parchment paper can be recycled for 4-5 trips through the oven. I use 3 sheets per double recipe - 1 for cooling my cookies and one for each of my cookie sheets. I don't miss cleaning up cookie sheets one bit! Most grocery stores now carry it, but you can find it at any cake decorating store for about $3 per roll. Gather up the scraps left over from cutting each group of cookies and re-roll them with the next group. This dough is very forgiving This dough can be made in large batches and stored in the freezer for later use. Be sure to wrap it tightly to avoid freezer burn. These cookies store well in the freezer, but I recommend freezing them without frosting or decorations. They defrost in about 30 minutes so it's not difficult to get a batch ready on short notice.