Cream butter and confectioners sugar together until light.

Sift flour and salt together and add to creamed mixture. Add vanilla and blend well.

Gather dough into ball or make two logs, and wrap in saran wrap or wax paper. Chill in fridge for 4-6 hours.

Roll out chilled dough to 3/8” thickness on a floured surface with a floured rolling pin. Cut out cookies with your favorite cookie cutter. If you are not icing these sprinkle them with granulated sugar. Place cut out cookies on ungreased cookie sheets and refrigerate for 45 minutes before baking. (If it is cold outside, I just place them on the deck!)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Bake for 15-20 minutes depending on how thick you made your cookies. They should be pale and not brown at all. Makes at least 3 dozen.

Royal Icing

Blend powdered sugar, vanilla extract and egg white with a mini whisk in a 2 c measuring cup. You should not have any lumps. It helps to sift your sugar or to stir it well with a fork. You may dye this or leave it as is. I usually leave it white and then frost each cookie one at a time, dipping into the colored sugars as I go.