Mrs. Fields Sugar Cookies

Are mail-order book clubs still a thing? I belonged to several back in the 90s. You would get five books for $5, and have to buy a book every so often after that. Also they would send you catalogs forever. For a kid living in small towns and cities where there was no decent bookstore, this didn't seem like a bad deal, and even after I moved to Boston, those initial offers successfully tempted me.

One of the books I got this way was the Mrs. Fields Cookies Book: 100 Recipes from the Kitchen of Mrs. Fields. Come to think of it, are Mrs. Fields cookies still a thing? I have used this book so much that the pages are falling out, and I know this particular recipe by heart. I often double it, and every year during the holidays end up making six batches of these easy cookies. These days that means decorating them with the kids.

Note that this calls for salted butter, unlike most baking recipes. 

Ingredients
2 c AP flour
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 c granulated sugar
3/4 salted butter
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Mix the dry ingredients and set aside. 
2. Cream the butter and the sugar together. 
3. Add the egg and vanilla and mix thoroughly. 
4. At low speed, add the dry ingredients and mix just until combined. 
5. Gather the dough, flatten into a disk, and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least one hour until firm (you can keep it like this for a couple of days, but it may need to sit out for a bit to soften before rolling). 
6. Preheat the oven to 325 F.
7. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to about 1/4 inch thickness. Cut into shapes and transfer to a baking sheet. 
8. Bake for 13-15 minutes (don't let them brown - I start checking at 11 min). Let them cool on the sheet for a couple of minutes (otherwise they'll break when moved), then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. 

I use a simple icing of milk and confectioners sugar to decorate these, but you can get all fancy if you like.