I love versatile recipes. This one I got from my cousin’s blog – care of the Barefoot Contessa. Today, I made it into three different cookies. Part of it I turned into Emilys. Others into Raspberry Linzers and then just cut out some pretty leaf shapes and did a little chocolate and roasted peanut action on top of the rest.
3/4 pound unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 1/2 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
In the bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and 1 cup of sugar until they are just combined. Add the vanilla. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt; then add them to the butter-and-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a surface dusted with flour and roll shape into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.
Roll the dough 1/2-inch thick and cut with a cookie cutter. Place the cookies on an ungreased sheet pan. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until the edges begin to brown. Allow to cool to room temperature.
Bakerlady 