Basic Cookie Dough

This simple dough, which is the starting point for the following cookie recipes or for cutout cookies. These holiday cookie recipe, calls for butter (no substitutions) because butter not only gives the best flavor in baked goods, but also makes the dough much more manageable to work with.

Follow directions for your choice of cookie. Choose from: Fig-Filled Moons, Chocolate Pinwheels, Chewy Fruit Bars, Butter Cookie Cutouts, Hazelnut-Chocolate Sandwich Cookies, Cranberry-Orange Spice Cookies, Gingerbread Cutouts, Mexican Wedding Cookies, Chocolate-Dipped Peppermint Sticks, Chocolate Raspberry Thumbprints,

INGREDIENTS

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoons salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter (no substitutions), softened
3/4 cups granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoons vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

On waxed paper, combine flour, baking soda, and salt.
In large bowl, with mixer on medium speed, beat butter and sugar 1 minute or until creamy, occasionally scraping bowl with rubber spatula. Add egg and vanilla; beat until well mixed. Reduce speed to low; gradually beat in flour mixture just until blended, occasionally scraping bowl.
Prepare Basic Cookie Dough; divide into 3 equal pieces. Flatten each piece into a disk, and wrap each in plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 2 hours or overnight, until firm enough to roll.
Between 2 sheets of waxed paper, roll 1 disk of dough 1/8 inch thick. Remove top sheet of waxed paper. With floured 3- to 4-inch holiday-shaped cookie cutters, cut dough into as many cookies as possible; wrap and refrigerate trimmings. Place cookies, 1 inch apart, on ungreased large cookie sheet. Sprinkle with colored sugar if you like.
Bake cookies 11 to 13 minutes or until golden-brown. Transfer cookies to wire rack to cool. Repeat with remaining dough and trimmings.
When cookies are cool, prepare Ornamental Frosting if you like; use to decorate cookies. Set cookies aside to allow frosting to dry, about 1 hour.
Store cookies (putting sheets of waxed paper between layers if decorated) in tightly sealed container at room temperature up to 2 weeks or in freezer.