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soft pale vanilla cookies with irregular powdered-sugar cracks exposing light yellow centers, arranged casually on a plain plate
Andre Lewis

Vanilla Crinkle Cookies

These are the pale, cakey crinkles in the batch. Cream cheese gives their centers a soft crumb and a little tang. Chill the dough until it can be scooped without coating your fingers. Roll it in granulated sugar before the powdered sugar so the white coating has a dry base to hold onto. The cracks should open around pale yellow dough, without a dark brown rim.
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Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 24 minutes
Chilling and cooling 1 hour 5 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 54 minutes
Servings: 24
Ingredients Method

Ingredients
  

  • 4 tbsp unsalted butter softened
  • 4 oz cream cheese softened
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar for dough
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp fine salt
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar for rolling
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar

Method
 

  1. Beat butter, cream cheese and dough sugar until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla, scraping the bowl well.
  2. Whisk flour, baking powder and salt, then mix into the cream cheese mixture just until combined. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour, additional to the listed active time.
  3. Heat the oven to 350°F and line two baking sheets with parchment. Divide the dough into 24 balls and roll each first in granulated sugar, then heavily in powdered sugar.
  4. Bake one sheet at a time for 11 to 12 minutes, until the tops crack and the edges are set but still pale.
  5. Cool on the sheets for 5 minutes, then move to racks and cool completely before packing.