This recipe is my mother Maggie’s and is dedicated to her memory. She would make these cookies during the holiday season and let my brother and I decorate them with colored frosting and sprinkles. It was usually quite messy but is a very fond memory! I am keeping this tradition alive by making them with my children. These cookies aren’t just for the holiday season, use other types of cookie cutters to make them for other seasons. Add sprinkles to cookies before baking instead of using icing. New paint brushes work well for children to “paint” the frosting on the cookies. I highly recommend placing a plastic tablecloth on the table for ease in clean up. Newspapers on the floor are great too!
Ingredients
Cookies
1 cup of butter at room temperature
1 cup of sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups of flour
1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
Dash of salt
Icing
2 cups of powder sugar
4 tablespoons of cream
1 teaspoon of vanilla
Food coloring (optional)
Garnish (optional)
Sprinkles
Melted chocolate to drizzle
Mini M & M or other type of candy for decorating
Technique
In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar using a mixer. Fully incorporate eggs one at a time. Add vanilla and incorporate. Slowly add dry ingredients. Remove dough and shape into a ball and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for about an hour. In batches, roll a quarter of the dough on a floured surface to abut a half inch thickness. Leave the rest of the dough in the fridge. Using cookie cutters, cut into shapes. Place on a baking sheet sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Bake in a preheated oven at 375 degrees for about 10-15 minutes or until lightly golden. Cooking time will depend on the size of the cookie. If frosting, wait until cookies have cooled. To make icing, place all ingredients, except for food coloring, in a medium bowl and whisk well. Whisk in food coloring to the desired color. If using several colors, use separate bowls for each color and repeat process with the icing ingredient amounts. Decorate with garnishes if desired and enjoy!
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