Buttery Sugar Cookies

Ingredients

• 1 large eggs 
• 2 cups flour all-purpose
• 0.5 teaspoon salt 
• 1 cup sugar 
• 1 cup sugar (see Cooks' Note)
• 1 cup butter unsalted softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract pure

Equipment

• bowl
• baking sheet
• baking paper
• oven
• hand mixer
• stand mixer
• ziploc bags
• wax paper
• spatula

Directions

1. Beat together butter, sugar, and salt in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes in a stand mixer (preferably fitted with paddle attachment) or 6 with a handheld. Beat in egg and vanilla. Reduce speed to low, then mix in flour.
2. Halve dough and form each half into a disk, then wrap in wax paper. Put each disk in a resealable plastic bag and chill until firm enough to roll into balls, about 1 hour.
3. Heat oven to 350°F with rack in middle. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
4. While oven heats, work with 1 piece of dough (keep remaining dough chilled).
5. Roll 1 level tablespoon of dough into a ball, then roll in coarse sugar in a shallow bowl to coat completely. (If dough becomes too soft to roll easily into balls, quick-chill in the freezer or chill in the refrigerator.)
6. Place balls 2 inches apart on a lined baking sheet. With the flat bottom of a glass, flatten balls into 2-inch rounds.
7. Bake cookies, one sheet at time, until bottoms are golden, 12 to 15 minutes total. Cool on sheets 2 minutes, then transfer with a metal spatula to racks to cool completely. Make more cookies with remaining dough on cooled baking sheets.
8. •Coarse sanding sugars come in many different colors and are available at specialty foods stores and New York Cake & Baking Distributor. Use one color or mix up several colors. The most important thing is to have fun.