The Artisanal Kitchen: Holiday Cookies

Basic Butter Cookies

Makes about forty-eight 2-inch cookies

Magnificently plain, tender, crunchy cookies celebrate the taste of butter without being too rich or greasy. These are my go-to cookies for holiday decorating—bring on the icing or pure melted chocolate for piping and set out the silver shot, colorful sugar, sprinkles, and more.

Ingredients

14 tablespoons (1¾ sticks) unsalted butter, softened

¾ cup (5.25 ounces) sugar

¼ teaspoon salt

1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 large egg yolk (optional)

2 cups (9 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour

Equipment

Cookie sheets, ungreased or lined with foil, dull side up

2-inch cookie cutter, round or other shape (optional)

Handheld mixer or stand mixer with paddle attachment

With the back of a large spoon or with a handheld mixer in a medium mixing bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter with the sugar, salt, and vanilla until smooth and creamy but not fluffy, about 1 minute with the mixer. Beat in the egg yolk, if using. Add the flour and mix just until incorporated. Scrape the dough into a mass and knead it with your hands a few times just to be sure the flour is completely incorporated.

For slice-and-bake cookies, form a 12-by-2-inch log. For roll-and-cut cookies, form 2 flat patties. Wrap and refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours and preferably overnight. The dough may be frozen for up to 3 months.

Preheat the oven to 350°F (or 325°F if using the egg yolk). Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven.

To slice and bake cookies: Use a sharp knife to cut the cold dough log into slices ¼ inch thick. Place cookies at least 1½ inches apart on the ungreased or lined cookie sheets.

To roll and cut cookies: Remove 1 patty from the refrigerator and let it sit at room temperature until supple enough to roll but still quite firm, about 20 minutes. It will continue to soften as you work. Roll the dough to a thickness of ¼ inch between two sheets of wax paper or between heavy plastic sheets cut from a resealable plastic bag. Turn the dough over once or twice while you are rolling it out to check for deep wrinkles; if necessary, peel off and smooth the paper or plastic over the dough before continuing to roll it. When the dough is thin enough, peel off the top sheet of paper or plastic and keep it in front of you. Invert the dough onto that sheet and peel off the second sheet. Cut cookie shapes as close together as possible to minimize scraps, dipping the edges of the cookie cutters in flour as necessary to prevent sticking. Use the point of a paring knife to lift and remove scraps as you transfer cookies to cookie sheets. Place the cookies at least 1½ inches apart on the ungreased or lined cookie sheets. If the dough gets too soft at any time—while you are rolling, cutting, removing scraps between cookies, or transferring cookies—slide a cookie sheet underneath the paper or plastic and refrigerate the dough for a few minutes, until firm. Repeat with the second patty of dough. Gently press all of the dough scraps together (don't overwork them with too much kneading) and reroll.

Bake for 12 to 14 minutes (a bit longer if using the egg yolk dough) or until light golden brown at the edges. Rotate the cookie sheets from top to bottom and from front to back halfway through the baking time to ensure even baking. Repeat until all the cookies are baked.

For lined pans, set the pans or just the liners on racks to cool. For unlined pans, let the cookies firm up on the pans for about 1 minute, then transfer them to a rack with a metal spatula. Cool completely before stacking or storing. The cookies are delicious fresh but even better the next day. They may be kept in an airtight container for at least 1 month.

Upgrades

Bourbon Pecan Butter Cookies: Add 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon bourbon with the vanilla extract. Mix in 1 cup (4 ounces) chopped toasted pecans (see here) before adding the flour.

Eggnog Cookies: Use the egg yolk dough and add 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon rum or brandy and ¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg with the vanilla.

Ultrathin Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Makes fifteen 5-inch cookies

A theatrical departure from mainstream chocolate chip cookies, these are large and decidedly flat. They shatter dramatically when you bite into them, releasing loads of caramel brown sugar flavor and bursts of bittersweet chocolate.

Ingredients

1⅓ cups (6 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking soda

10 tablespoons (1¼ sticks) unsalted butter, melted

½ cup (1.5 ounces) quick rolled oats

½ cup (3.5 ounces) granulated sugar

¼ cup (1.75 ounces) packed dark brown sugar

2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon (2 ounces) light corn syrup

2 tablespoons whole milk

½ teaspoon salt

7 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped into chunks, or 1 generous cup chocolate chips or chunks

Equipment

Cookie sheets, lined with foil, dull side up

Preheat the oven to 325°F. Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven.

Combine the flour and baking soda in a small bowl and mix together thoroughly with a whisk or fork.

In a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter, oats, sugars, corn syrup, milk, and salt. Mix in the flour mixture. If the batter is warm from the butter, let it cool before adding the chocolate. Stir in the chocolate chunks. If possible, let the dough rest for at least several hours at room temperature or (better still) overnight in the fridge. The rest makes for an especially crisp and extra-flavorful cookie!

Divide the dough into 15 equal pieces (each a scant ¼ cup or about 1.75 ounces). Lay out three sheets of aluminum foil, cut to fit your cookie sheets, on the counter. Arrange 5 pieces of dough (4 in a square and 1 in the center) well apart on each sheet of foil, remembering that the cookies will spread to 5 inches. Flatten each piece of dough until it is about 3½ inches in diameter. Slide two of the sheets onto baking sheets.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the cookies are thin and very brown. If they are too pale, they will not be crisp. Rotate the pans from top to bottom and front to back halfway through the baking time to ensure even baking. Slide the foil with cookies onto racks to cool completely before removing the cookies from the foil. Repeat with the third batch—you can even slide the next foil and cookie dough onto a hot baking sheet as long as you put the pan in the oven immediately. Cool the cookies completely before stacking or storing. They may be kept in an airtight container for at least 3 days.

Great Grahams

Makes about thirty-six 2-inch grahams

Real (homemade) grahams are normally hearty and healthy and delicious. A little oat flour softens that mildly bitter whole wheat edge by adding a compelling nuance of sweet oat flavor and an extra-tender crunch. The result is an extra-good graham that is still 100 percent whole grain.

Ingredients

1¾cups (8 ounces) graham flour

½ cup plus 1 tablespoon (2 ounces) oat flour

¼ cup (1.75 ounces) sugar, plus extra for sprinkling

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon baking soda

6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes

3 tablespoons milk

3 tablespoons honey

½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Equipment

Cookie sheet

2 sheets of parchment paper cut to fit the pan

Food processor

In a food processor, combine the flours, the ¼ cup sugar, the salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Pulse to mix thoroughly. Sprinkle the butter cubes over the flour mixture. Pulse until the mixture resembles cornmeal. In a small cup, stir the milk, honey, and vanilla together until the honey is dissolved. Drizzle the honey mixture into the bowl. Process just until the mixture gathers into a single mass.

Shape the dough into a flat 8- or 9-inch-square patty. Wrap and refrigerate it until very firm but supple enough to roll out, 20 to 30 minutes. Or keep it refrigerated for up to 2 days and then let soften slightly at room temperature before rolling.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Position a rack in the center of the oven.

Roll the dough between the sheets of parchment paper until it is about ⅛ inch thick and as even as possible from the center to the edges. Flip the paper and dough over once or twice to check for deep wrinkles; if necessary, peel off the parchment and smooth it over the dough before continuing. Peel off the top sheet of parchment. Sprinkle the dough evenly with 2 to 3 teaspoons sugar. Prick the dough all over with a fork. Slide the parchment with dough attached onto the pan. With a sharp knife, even up the edges of the dough and score it into squares or rectangles. Leave edge scraps in place (for nibbling and to protect the rest of the grahams from burnt edges).