MAKES ABOUT 72 SMALL COOKIES
If using a pastry bag, use a star tip to create the various shapes. For stars, a ½- to ⅝-inch tip (measure the diameter of the tip at the smallest point) works best, but for rosettes and S shapes, use a ⅜-inch tip. To create stars, hold the bag at a 90-degree angle to the baking sheet and pipe the dough straight down, about 1 inch in diameter. To create rosettes, pipe the dough while moving the bag in a circular motion, ending at the center of the rosette; rosettes should be about 1¼ inches in diameter. To create S shapes, pipe the dough into compact Ss; they should be about 2 inches long and 1 inch wide. If you make an error while piping, the dough can be scraped off the baking sheet and repiped. See the sidebars that follow the recipe.
|
1 |
large egg yolk |
|
1 |
tablespoon heavy cream |
|
1 |
teaspoon vanilla extract |
|
16 |
tablespoons unsalted butter, softened but still cool |
|
⅔ |
cup (4⅔ ounces) granulated sugar |
|
¼ |
teaspoon salt |
|
2 |
cups (10 ounces) all-purpose flour |
1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk egg yolk, cream, and vanilla in small bowl until combined; set aside.
2. Using stand mixer fitted with paddle, beat butter, sugar, and salt at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping down bowl and beater as needed. With mixer running at medium speed, add yolk mixture and beat until incorporated, about 30 seconds. With mixer running at low speed, gradually beat in flour until combined, scraping down bowl and beater as needed. Give dough final stir to ensure that no flour pockets remain. (Dough can be wrapped in plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to 4 days; before using, let it stand at room temperature until softened, about 45 minutes.)
3. If using cookie press to form cookies, follow manufacturer’s instructions to fill press. If using pastry bag, fit it with star tip and fill bag with half of dough. Press or pipe cookies onto prepared sheet, spacing them about 1½ inches apart, refilling cookie press or pastry bag as needed. Bake 1 sheet at a time until cookies are light golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through baking. Let cookies cool on sheet for 10 to 15 minutes; transfer cookies to wire rack and let cool to room temperature before serving.