Valentine Vanilla Sugar Cookies with Buttercream

Buttery vanilla sugar cookies with delicious American buttercream that will quickly become your go-to for every holiday.

Keyword: Sugar Cookies

Servings: 2 dozen

Preheat the oven to 400 and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, cream butter, sugar, and salt until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.
Add the eggs, almond extract, and vanilla bean paste. Mix on medium speed until the mixture becomes smooth and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.
In a separate bowl, weigh the flour and give it a quick whisk. Add half of the flour to the mixer bowl and mix on low speed until the flour starts to incoporate. Add remaining flour and mix on low until all the flour is incorporated, scraping the bowl when necessary. Allow dough to rest in the bowl for ten minutes before rolling out.
Drop half of the dough onto a lightly floured piece of parchment, gently shaping it into a flattened rectangle. Lightly flour the surface of the dough before placing a second piece of parchment over it. Roll the dough to about 1/4".
Cut cookies and place on a parchment lined baking sheet about one inch apart. Bake for 7-9 minutes, or until edges start to become golden and the surfaces of the cookies are dry.
Cool on baking sheet for about ten minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.

In the bowl of a stand mixer with a whisk attachment, beat butter and salt until very light and fluffy.
Add half of the powdered sugar and mix on low until nearly combined. Add remaining sugar and mix until combined.
Add the vanilla bean paste and heavy cream and mix on medium-high speed until creamy and fluffy. Adjust cream as needed. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Exchange the whisk attachment for the paddle attachment and continue to mix on low speed for about ten minutes to smooth out the air pockets.
Color buttercream as desired. To decorate, use a butter knife (or palette knife) to spread frosting over cookies or fill piping bags fitted with small tips to pipe frosting on cookies.

American buttercream is a crusting buttercream, so the frosting will develop a light crust but it can still be crushed if too much weight is pressed on them.
Frosted cookies should be stored in an airtight container either in the refrigerator or at room temperature. Kept at room temperature, they are safe to eat for up to three days. Kept in the refrigerator, they are safe to eat for one to two weeks. The frosted cookies can also be frozen in an airtight container for up to three months.
Unfrosted cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. They can also be frozen for up to three months.