Festive Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies

1. Whisk Dry Ingredients

Start by whisking together the all-purpose flour, superfine sugar, and salt in the bowl of your stand mixer. This will ensure that the dry ingredients are evenly distributed.

2. Add Butter

Attach the paddle attachment to your stand mixer. Add the softened butter to the bowl, one piece at a time, beating the mixture on medium speed for 1 to 2 minutes. It's important to add the butter gradually to achieve a crumbly and slightly wet dough without air pockets.

3. Add Cream Cheese and Vanilla

Now, add the softened cream cheese and vanilla extract to the mixture. Beat everything together for about 30 seconds, just until the dough starts to form large clumps. You want to see the dough coming together in big, cohesive pieces.

4. Knead the Dough

Use your hands to knead the dough in the bowl until it forms a cohesive mass. This step ensures the dough is well-mixed and ready for rolling.

5. Chill the Dough

Transfer the dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide it into two equal parts. Press each part into a disk shape, wrap them in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. This chilling time allows the dough to become firm yet malleable, making it easier to roll out and cut.

6. Preheat Oven and Roll Out Dough

When you're ready to bake, preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Take the dough disks out of the refrigerator and let them sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes to soften slightly. Roll out the dough between two sheets of parchment paper until it is about ¼-inch thick. Slide the rolled dough, still sandwiched in parchment, onto a baking sheet and refrigerate again for 10 minutes to ensure it holds its shape.

7. Cut Out Cookies

Once the dough is chilled, use cookie cutters to stamp out your desired shapes. Transfer the cut-out cookies onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper, spacing them about 1 inch apart.

8. Bake Cookies

Place the baking sheets in the preheated oven and bake the cookies for about 10 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through to ensure even baking. The cookies are done when they are light golden brown.

9. Cool Cookies

Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for 3 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy your beautifully baked festive cream cheese sugar cookies!