Recipes

So tasty they may not even make it onto the tree!

3 cups sifted cake flour

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 cup sugar

1 egg

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

In a mixing bowl (you can use a mixer or work by hand), cream the butter and sugar together.  Add the egg and vanilla and mix until combined.  Add the dry ingredients and mix until the dough just comes together.  Do not over-mix.  Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead gently 4-5 times.  Divide the dough into 4 quarters, form the quarters into a balls, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes or up to 3 days.

When you are ready to bake the cookies, preheat your oven to 350°F and prepare 2 baking sheets lined with parchment paper.  Working on a lightly floured surface (a pastry cloth works great for this) roll the dough to about 1/8 inch.  Cut with cookie cutters and transfer shapes to the baking sheets. Bake cookies for 15 minutes.  When they are done, transfer them to a cooling rack.

*For making your cookies into ornaments make sure to make a small hole in each cookie before baking.  This will be to string a ribbon through when it is hard.

Frost when completely cool.

Royal Icing

2 egg whites

2 tsp lemon juice

3 cups confectioners sugar, sifted

In the bowl of your electric mixer, fitted with a whip attachment, beat the egg whites with the lemon juice until combined. Add the sifted powdered sugar and beat on low speed until combined and smooth. The icing needs to be used immediately or transferred to an airtight container as royal icing hardens when exposed to air. Cover with plastic wrap when not in use.