Christmas Recipes
Holiday Cutouts
These pretty sugar cookies are a classic addition to the holiday cookie tray. They make great decorations, too!
Yield: 5 dozen 2-inch cookies
Ingredients
Cookies
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 cup butter or margarine, softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 egg
- 2 1/2 cups Gold Medal all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
- Colored sugars, candy sprinkles and nonpareils, if desired
Frosting
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons milk or half-and-half
Instructions
- In large bowl, mix 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, the butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, almond extract and egg until well blended.
- Stir in flour, baking soda and cream of tartar.
- Cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours.
- Heat oven to 375 degrees F.
- Divide dough in half. On lightly floured, cloth covered surface, roll each half of dough 3/16 inch thick. Cut into assorted shapes with cookie cutters, or cut around patterns traced from storybook illustrations. If cookies are to be hung as decorations, make a hole in each 1/4 inch from top with end of plastic straw. Place on ungreased cookie sheet.
- Bake 7 to 8 minutes or until light brown.
- Remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack.
- Cool completely, about 30 minutes.
- In medium bowl, beat all frosting ingredients until smooth and spreadable. Tint with food color if desired.
- Frost and decorate cookies as desired with frosting and colored sugars.
Notes
For melt-in-your-mouth treats, be sure to mix cookies just enough—but not too much. Too much mixing can result in
tough cookies.
Time Saver: Skip the decorator frosting and use part of a container of ready-to-spread frosting instead. The frosting layer will be a bit thicker this way, but it will be equally delicious!
Nutrition
Per serving: Calories 65 (Calories from Fat 25); Total Fat 3g (Saturated Fat 2g); Cholesterol 10mg; Sodium 40mg; Total Carbohydrate 9g (Dietary Fiber 0g); Protein 1g
Percent Daily Value*: Vitamin A 2%; Vitamin C 0%; Calcium 0%; Iron 0%
Exchanges: 1/2 Starch; 1/2 Fat
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.
Attribution
Recipe and photo used with permission from:
Betty Crocker Kitchens
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