Homemade Sugar Cookies

Sugar cookies are so simple to make, yet easy to dress up with frosting, sparkling colored sugar sprinkles and anything else you can imagine.  Here is a very basic recipe I have used for over 40 years. It belonged to my grandmother who made her cookies on an old cast iron wood stove.  I think the farm fresh butter used as the shortening agent was the special ingredient.  I have since tried to make them with margarine, but the taste and texture were not as good. These homemade cookies were a favorite year-round but especially at Christmas. My siblings and I loved to decorate them.  They did not always look like the cookies in magazines, but we were so proud of our creations. A few even made it to the dessert table. I have included a delicious homemade sugar cookie icing, also. 

Homemade Sugar Cookie Recipe 

Preheat the oven at 350° while you prepare the cookie dough.   Yields 3 – 4 dozen cookies, depending on the size of the cookie cutters.

Ingredients:

1 – ½ cups powdered (confectioners) sugar

½ teaspoon almond or lemon extract (optional)

2-1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon cream of tartar

1 whole egg

1 cup butter (no substitutes)

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon baking soda 

Directions:

• Cream the powdered sugar and butter until thoroughly blended.
• Break the whole egg into a small dish and stir with a fork to blend.  Mix the egg into the batter and beat on high using an electric mixer for 1 – 2  minutes.
• Add almond and vanilla extracts and continue to beat another minute.
• Sift all-purpose flour, cream of tartar and baking soda into a large bowl.
• Add the creamed sugar and butter mixture into the dry ingredients and mix until well blended.
• Place cookie dough on plastic wrap and pat into a circle or log. Wrap tightly.
• Refrigerate cookie dough for at least 2 to 3 hours.
• When ready to bake cookies roll small amounts of dough between two layers of lightly floured waxed paper. The flour will keep the dough from sticking.
• Cut the rolled dough into shapes using cookie cutters dipped in flour.
• Place cookies at least 1 inch apart on buttered cookie sheets. Non-stick coated cookie sheets do not need additional greasing.
• You may add colored sugar sprinkles directly to the cookies or you may make a colored egg wash to brush over tops of unbaked cookies by mixing 1 beaten egg with 1 teaspoon of water or milk and desired food coloring. Colored sugar sprinkles will adhere nicely to the egg washed tops.
• Bake at 375° for 6 to 8 minutes, or until cookies are slightly browned at edges. Be careful not to overbake.
• Carefully remove from cookie sheets to wire racks to cool.
• Decorate with homemade icing, if desired.  

Decorative Homemade Icing for Sugar Cookies 

Ingredients:

4 cups powdered (confectioners) sugar

½ cup lard type shortening (i.e., Crisco)

5 tablespoons milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

food coloring as desired 

Directions:

• Using a large bowl and electric mixer, cream the sugar and shortening until well blended.
• Stir the vanilla extract into the milk.
• Slowly add the milk and vanilla mixture into the cookie dough, and continue to blend for 5 minutes.
• Mixture will be stiff and smooth.
• If the mixture is too stiff,  blend in a little more milk, ½ teaspoon at a time.
• Divide the mixture into smaller bowls and add desired food coloring to each bowl.
• Stir the food coloring into the icing with a spoon until no streaks appear.
• Decorate the cookies, as desired.  May add small candies, nuts, or chocolate chips.