Instructions

1. Place the butter and sugar into the bowl of an electric stand mixer.
2. Using the flat paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar for about 10 minutes on medium-high speed until the mixture is a very pale and creamy.
3. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
4. Add the remaining ingredients.
5. Beat until you have a soft, smooth dough.
6. Divide the dough into two.
7. Roll each ball of dough between two sheets of baking paper until about 4mm thick.
8. Place the sheets of rolled-out dough into the fridge for about 1 hour to firm up.
9. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) (without fan).
10. Cut out shapes from the dough. If the dough is still quite soft, I sometimes find it easier to stamp out all of the shapes, and to then carefully remove the excess pastry with a small palette knife, leaving the cut out shapes intact on the baking paper.
11. Re-roll and chill the pastry as needed.
12. Bake the cookies for 8 to 10 minutes, depending on how large your cookies are. They should be ready when they are lightly golden, and they will continue to crisp as they cool. If you bake them for too long, they will become too hard to eat once they have cooled.
13. Leave the cookies on the hot baking tray for about 2 minutes before removing them to a wire rack to cool completely.