Grandma's Secret Butter Cookies (Printer-friendly)

Tender, buttery cookies that melt in your mouth. Rich, delicately sweet treats perfect with tea.

# What you'll need:

01 - 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

02 - 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

03 - 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

04 - 3/4 cup granulated sugar

05 - 1 large egg yolk

06 - 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

07 - 1/4 cup powdered sugar, for dusting

01 - Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

02 - In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and salt until evenly blended.

03 - In a large bowl, beat the butter and granulated sugar together until light and fluffy, approximately 3 minutes.

04 - Add the egg yolk and vanilla extract to the butter mixture. Mix until fully incorporated.

05 - Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients, mixing just until the dough comes together. Do not overmix.

06 - Roll tablespoonfuls of dough into balls and place them 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.

07 - Gently press each ball with the tines of a fork or the bottom of a glass to flatten slightly.

08 - Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges are just turning golden. Do not overbake.

09 - Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

10 - Dust cooled cookies lightly with powdered sugar, if desired.

01 -

These cookies disappear faster than you can bake them, so I always double the batch
The texture is incredibly tender, almost like a shortbread but with more delicate crumb
They're absurdly simple, yet everyone assumes you spent hours perfecting them

02 -

I once baked these at 375°F by accident and they spread too much. Temperature precision matters.
Underbaking slightly produces the most tender cookie. They continue cooking on the hot baking sheet.
The dough firms up in the fridge, but I've found room temperature dough bakes up more tender.

03 -