Marthas Brown Sugar Easter Cookies Food

MARTHA'S BROWN-SUGAR EASTER COOKIES

Steps:

• Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. In another bowl, beat butter with sugars on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Reduce speed to low; gradually beat in flour mixture. Divide dough in half; flatten into disks. Wrap each in plastic and refrigerate until firm, 1 hour or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Let dough stand at room temperature until pliable. Roll out on a lightly floured surface to just under 1/4 inch thick, dusting with flour as needed. Cut out shapes with cutters; transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets. Reroll scraps and repeat. Freeze until firm, about 15 minutes. Bake until golden, rotating sheets once, about 18 minutes. Let cool completely on sheets on wire racks.
• For cookies with white and colored dots: Use a pastry bag fitted with a small round tip (such as #3) to make icing dots (about half as many dots as you want on finished cookies). Sprinkle with sanding sugar and let set, then shake off excess sugar. Pipe additional dots on cookies; let dry.
• To coat cookie surface with icing: Place icing in a shallow dish and carefully dip cookie into icing, leaving a thin border. Transfer to a wire rack and sprinkle with sanding sugar, if desired. Let set and shake off excess sugar. If desired, pipe additional dots on cookies (or pipe a dot for a rabbit's eye). Let dry overnight. Cookies can be stored between layers of parchment up to 1 week.

MARTHA'S EASTER SUGAR COOKIES

Steps:

• Cookies: In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and baking powder. In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter, granulated sugar, and vanilla on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and cognac until well combined. Add flour mixture; beat on low until just combined. On a lightly floured surface, divide dough evenly and shape into 2 disks; wrap each in plastic. Refrigerate until firm, at least 45 minutes and up to 5 days.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough 1/4 inch thick. Refrigerate until very firm, about 30 minutes, or freeze 10 minutes. Stamp out shapes. Transfer cutouts to prepared sheets, about 1 inch apart. Reroll scraps; stamp out more shapes and transfer to sheets. Refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes, or freeze 10 minutes. Bake until set and golden around edges, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer sheets to wire racks; let cool completely.
• Royal Icing: In a bowl, whisk together confectioners' sugar, egg whites, and 2 teaspoons lemon juice until smooth. If necessary, add more lemon juice or confectioners' sugar to reach desired consistency. Divide and tint with gel-paste colors as desired. Pour some into squeeze bottles for detailing.

MARTHA STEWART'S OATMEAL COOKIES OF THE YEAR

Steps:

• Cream the butter, add the white and brown sugar.
• Scrape down the bowl, add egg and vanilla.
• Mix together the flour and the baking soda and add to the creamed mixture.
• Add the oatmeal, cherries, chocolate, and toffee.
• Using plastic wrap, divide into 3 logs and wrap.
• Chill and slice 1/2" thick.
• Bake on parchment (or wax papered) covered baking sheet at 350* for 8-10 mins.
• Cool on rack.

MARTHA'S SOFT-BAKED CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350.
• Whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
• In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat sugar, butter and corn syrup until light and fluffy.
• Beat in eggs and vanilla.
• With mixers on low, gradually add flour mixture, beating just until combined.
• Fold in chocolate chips.
• Drop dough by tablespoons onto two baking sheets, 2 inches apart.
• Bake until cookies are no longer shiny - 10-12 minutes.
• Let cool two minutes and transfer to wire rack.

MARTHA'S BLUE RIBBON SUGAR COOKIES - CHRISTMAS

Steps:

• In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until well mixed.
• Add 2 eggs to the creamed mixture. Mix well.
• In another large bowl, mix sifted flour, baking powder and salt together. Add to creamed butter mixture. Mix well.
• Add in grated orange rind, and mix well.
• Make into a ball, and chill in bowl covered with saran wrap, for at least 2 hours, or overnight in the refrigerator.
• When ready to bake preheat the oven to 350.
• With a floured rolling pin, roll out the dough to about 1/4" thick on a very lightly floured surface.
• Make into desired shapes using cookie cutters. (I dip my cutters in flour before cutting each cookie, so they don't stick). If you don't have cookie cutters, you can use the bottom of a glass instead. Brush off any excess flour before putting them on the cookie sheet, if there is any.
• Place cookies on ungreased cookie sheet about 2" apart. You may use parchment paper if you like.
• Bake for 8 minutes (or you may preheat the oven to 300, and bake for 10 minutes).
• Let cookies cool on wire racks.
• Decorate.
• Store in a covered plastic container, or cookie tin.

MARTHA'S EVERYTHING BUT THE KITCHEN SINK COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with nonstick baking mats or parchment paper.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and both sugars. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until well blended. Stir in vanilla.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. With the mixer on low, gradually add to the butter mixture; continue mixing until well combined. Add the oats, coconut, toffee, chocolate, cherries, pecans, and pretzels and mix on low until just combined.
• Using a 2-inch ice-cream scoop, drop batter onto prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Press tops down with the bottom of a glass, sprayed with nonstick cookie spray, to flatten cookies evenly. Transfer baking sheets to oven and bake until golden, 12 to 14 minutes.
• Let cookies cool on baking sheet for 2 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.