My first place to turn would be to Julia Child, who proscribes a classic
pâte sucrée. The recipe is given here as a crust for a sweet tart, but it can be rolled and cut for cookies as well. Bake at 325°. In my experience, you'll need a little extra flour for the rolling, as this is a delicate and somewhat sticky dough.
Julia Child's Pâte Sablée
(Sweet Pastry Dough)
from The Way to Cook
by Julia Child, 1989, Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
For a 9- to 10-inch tart shell [make at least double for cookies, I should think]
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plain bleached cake flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 ounces (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter,
cut into 16 pieces
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 tablespoon cold water, plus droplets
more water, if needed
Measure the flours, salt and butter into the container of a food processor and process about a minute, until the butter is thoroughly blended. Add and process in the sugar, then the egg yolk, vanilla and water. Continue processing for several seconds, until the dough masses. Turn it out onto your work surface, form into a rough ball, then push out 2-tablespoon bits with the heel of your hand in 6-inch smears. Gather together into a cake, enclose in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until cold and hard - 2 hours at least. (The dough will keep 2 to 3 days in the refrigerator before it may turn grayish, but will keep perfectly for weeks in the freezer.)
[Roll out as needed. If doubling the recipe, I would divide the dough and chill in two balls.]
An alternative:
http://www.thecooksatelier.com/Site_1/pate_sucree.html
This onegets good reviews at Epicurious. It does use baking powder, so it will lift more than a standard
pâte sucrée.
My other option would be to see what's in one of the Silver Palate cookbooks, but no one seems to have uploaded those to the internets.
David