Sugar Cookies

Christmas time is here! And with it brings get-togethers with family, friends and co-workers. It also means there are all sorts of delicious Christmas themed treats being made and shared. This weekend was the weekend I made sugar cookies. I use the recipe my mother uses, which makes delicious sugar cookies, and we top them off with homemade icing. Not only are these cut-out treats scrumptious, they are time consuming...but delicious!  Even though the process takes awhile, I have fond memories baking cookies and decorating them with my mother. Now I usually make them myself and occasionally I help my mom, but lately she's found a new helper: my oldest nephew...and he enjoys making cookies with grandma.

I had been looking forward to making sugar cookies the entire week. It takes awhile to roll out, cut out, bake, cool and decorate all the cookies...after all, the recipe estimates 7-8 dozen cookies to be made. So I planned on spending Saturday morning baking cookies and listening to Christmas music while I worked. I had to do a little prep work on Friday night. The recipe calls for the dough to sit in the fridge for at least 5 hours (usually overnight for 8 hours) I made the dough the night before. I picked up some last minute items needed Friday afternoon. I get home, unpack the items and realize I forgot to pick up eggs. So I head back out to the store to pick up some eggs. At this point I'm planning on running in and out of the store pretty quick...my mistake: going to a grocery store I'm not familiar with its layout. I couldn't find the eggs. EGGS! Eggs should be in the dairy department right? Apparently yes and no at this store. I walk in the store and walk back to the far corner where I see the dairy department sign on the wall. I see the milk, butter, cheese, coffee creamer, juices, yogurt and refrigerated biscuits, but no eggs. Finally I asked a fellow customer, slightly embarrassed, where the eggs were located. And where were they you might be wondering...they were around the corner in the cooler that ran along the same aisle as the frozen food! The frozen food coolers disguised the eggs! So much for a quick trip. Finally I returned home and got all the ingredients out, only to realized I had the wrong size of canned milk. I thought to myself, "Seriously, you have got to be kidding me!" I was not going to go back to the store and I need to make the dough that night so it could rest. So instead of making the full recipe I cut the recipe in half. Problem solved! (Hopefully I would have enough milk for the icing...)

After letting the dough rest over night I got to work. I got everything around: counter space, rolling pin, cookie dough, cookie cutters, cookie baking sheets lined with parchment paper, cooling racks and lots of extra flour. Oh and Christmas music! I listened to one of my favorite Christmas albums: Carols for a Cure, Vol. 8. I purchased this album when I was in NYC during Thanksgiving break one year. Bake to baking! There was flour everywhere. The dough was sticky, so more flour needed to be worked into the dough before it could be rolled out, cut into shapes and baked. After all the dough was used there were about 5 1/2 dozen cookies!

Next the icing needed to be made and used along with sprinkles to decorate. The icing is very simple to make. The amount of the two ingredients involved has never really been measured out by myself or my mom....it's mostly guess work. After the right consistency is established I divided the icing up so I could create red, green and white frosting. I didn't get all the cookies frosted and decorated with sprinkles...I ran out of frosting. These cookies do freeze well so I can freeze them until I have more free time to finish icing the leftover cookies.

The final product - YUM! 

These cookies are addicting and delicious. (I think I've said the cookies are delicious more than once already...) The sugar cookies my mom makes always seem to disappear at holiday get-togethers. My mom and I do make other holiday treats: Snicker bar cookies, chocolate covered peanuts, chocolate covered pretzels, chocolate bark, peanut brittle (dad's speciality), peanut butter fudge and peanut butter blossoms....but the sugar cookies are my favorite.



I hope everyone has a great Christmas season getting together with family and friends. Enjoy spending time with loved ones and enjoying the food prepared...I know I will!

Sugar Cookies - as passed down by my mother

* 5 c. all-purpose flour
* 1 c. shortening
* 4 eggs
* 1 Tbsp. vanilla
* 1/2 tsp. salt
* 4 tsp. baking powder
* 1 c. white sugar
* 1 c. brown sugar
* 1 c. canned milk

1. Mix flour, salt and baking powder together; set aside.

2. Mix shortening and white sugar until well blended. Add the brown sugar. Beat eggs and add to mix. Mix in vanilla and canned milk. Add flour mix a little at a time and mix until blended.

3. Let dough rest in fridge 5-8 hours. (Overnight)

4. Heat oven to 375. Roll out dough (don't forget to use extra flour) and cut with various shaped cookie cutters. Place on cookie sheet and bake for 5-6 minutes depending on cookie thickness.

5. Let cookies cool on wire cooling racks. When cooled, decorate cookies with frosting and sprinkles.

Homemade Frosting - as passed down by my mother

* canned milk
* powdered sugar
* food coloring

1. Mix canned milk and powdered sugar a little at a time until desired thickness is achieved. *Hint: a little milk goes a long way.*

2. Split the mixture and add various food coloring colors.