I adapted this recipe from The Best Rolled Sugar Cookies.
I don't make simple sugar cookies often, but the are great when you need something pretty and light. If you use cookie cutters or cut them out free-hand/artistically and then paint with frosting you can have a nice accent piece for most any party.
Preheat the oven to 400F.
Cream together the butter and sugar. This means you'll throw the butter into your mixing bowl of your stand mixer or hand mixer. You do not want to try this by hand. Creaming them together means mixing at medium to high speed until the mixture is pretty smooth (maybe a little grainy). What happens is the creaming causes the sugar to cut little air pockets into the butter and that is where the bubbles come from when the cookies rise the bit that they do.
Beat in the eggs and vanilla, until smooth. Stir the flour, baking powder and salt together in a side bowl, then stir into the mixture of eggs, sugar, butter, etc. until uniform in texture. Don't overdo this unless you like tough cookies.
Cover and let the cookie dough sit in the refrigerator for an hour or longer to stiffen up...or even put in the freezer for much later.
Roll the dough out on a floured surface to be about a 1/4 inch thick. Cut into cookies using cookie cutters or a knife or a drinking glass or biscuit cutter or...you get the idea. Place the cookies on a cookie sheet, preferably on parchment paper or a silicone baking sheet.
Bake 6-8 minutes. Cool. Frost. Eat.