Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies Easy Vanilla Frosting Food

OLD FASHIONED SUGAR COOKIES AND FROSTING

Steps:

• Make cookie dough: Cream butter, adding sugar gradually. Cream until soft and fluffy. Then add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Sift dry ingredients together. Alternately add ingredients and cream to egg sugar mixture. Mix well.
• Chill 3 hours or overnight. Roll out on a well-floured board or countertop to 1/4-1/2 inches thickness. Shape with floured cookie cutters. Bake on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet at 350 for 8-10 minutes. (They won't be brown at all when they are done - if the cookie springs back when pressed down lightly, it is done.).
• Make frosting: Whip softened butter and softened cream cheese until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and powdered sugar mixing until well combined. Add milk to bring frosting to desired consistency. When cookies are completely cool, frost. Add sprinkles if desired.

OLD FASHIONED SUGAR COOKIES

Steps:

• Cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer. Beat in the eggs and vanilla.
• Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a second large bowl and mix well. Stir the flour mixture into the butter mixture 1 cup at a time. Chill the dough for 3 to 4 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment. Roll out the dough and cut it into shapes with cookie cutters or a knife. Place the shapes on the prepared cookie sheet. If decorating with colored sugar, brush the cookies with milk and sprinkle with colored sugar (if using royal icing, leave unfinished). Bake until the cookies are just beginning to brown around the edges, 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the size of the cookies.
• Remove the cookies to a rack to cool completely. If using royal icing, decorate the cookies as desired.
• Combine the confectioners' sugar, meringue powder and 3/4 cup water in a large bowl. Mix slowly with an electric mixer until stiff enough to form peaks; the icing should be pure white and thick, but not fluffy and bubbly. If the frosting is over-beaten, it will get aerated which makes it harder to work with. If this happens, let the frosting sit to settle, and then use a rubber spatula to vigorously beat and smooth out the frosting.
• Add up to 1 tablespoon food coloring and mix with a rubber spatula until the color is uniform. Gels are best with royal icing. You don't want to thin them with liquid colors. Be careful of adding too much color, which reduces the sheen of the frosting and can break down the consistency of the frosting over a couple of days. Store the icing at room temperature, covered, with plastic wrap on the surface.
• Yield: 3 1/2 cups icing

OLD FASHIONED SUGAR COOKIES & EASY VANILLA FROSTING RECIPE

Steps:

• In the bowl of a stand mixer (or use a large bowl and hand mixer), cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
• Beat in egg.
• Add vanilla, salt and sifted flour.
• Form dough into a ball and chill 3-4 hours in the refrigerator before rolling.
• Flour surface and rolling pin.
• Divide the dough into halves and turn one half of the dough onto your floured surface.
• Place remaining half of dough back in refrigerator.
• Roll dough out until it is about 1/4 inch thick.
• Flour cookie cutters and cut out cookies.
• Repeat with remaining half of dough.
• Place cookies on an ungreased cookie sheets (I use baking stones) and bake at 350* for 8-10 minutes or until just barely colored.
• Allow cookies to cool on wire racks.
• Stir melted butter, milk, vanilla, lemon juice and powdered sugar together until smooth.
• If desired, divide frosting into small bowls and add gel food coloring until desired colors are reached.
• Frost cookies and add sprinkles, sugars or jimmies.

EASY OLD-FASHION SUGAR COOKIES

Steps:

• Cream margarine; add sugar, beat until fluffy.
• Add egg and vanilla, stir in flour and milk. ( You may need to add a little more milk or flour to get the best consistency to roll out).
• Roll into two logs, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate.
• When ready to bake, just slice into thin slices. Bake at 350' for 5 to 7 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned; tops will be slightly moist.

THE BEST OLD FASHIONED SUGAR COOKIES

Steps:

• Cookies:.
• Beat butter in large bowl with electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add 1 1/2 cups sugar, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. Beat until well mixed, scraping sides of bowl occasionally.
• Beat in eggs and vanilla. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Using a wooden spoon, stir in any remaining flour. Cover & refrigerate 2 to 3 hours or until dough is easy to handle.
• Preheat oven to 375°F Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Roll balls in 1/4 to 1/3 cup sugar. Place balls about 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets.
• Bake for 5-10 minutes depending on how you like them. Cool on baking sheets 1 minute. Remove to wire racks; cool completely.
• Frosting:.
• Beat the butter, add sifted sugar & mix well. Add the vanilla, enough milk to reach the consistency you want & the tint to desired colour.
• Spread the frosting over the cookies using a pallet knife. Allow to sit for a few minutes then add sprinkles. Don't use the sprinkles right after frosting or they will absorb moisture & leach their colour!
• Glaze:.
• Stir confectioners' sugar, milk and extract in small bowl until smooth. Stir in corn syrup until glaze is smooth and glossy. (If glaze is too thick, stir in small amount of additional corn syrup.)
• Stir in 3 to 4 drops food color until evenly distributed and glaze is smooth. Add additional drops of food color until glaze is of desired color.
• To glaze cookies, place cooling rack on foil-lined baking sheet. Holding a cookie by its edge, dip the top of cookie into glaze. (Or spoon the glaze onto cookies using a teaspoon. Cookies can also be glazed using a new small paintbrush.) Place glazed cookies on cooling rack to dry. (The foil-covered baking sheet will catch any drips.)
• Use contrasting glaze colors to decorate glazed cookies, if desired. Place small amount of contrasting glaze in small resealable plastic bag. Snip off tiny piece of the corner of the plastic bag. Create design by squeezing contrasting glaze onto cookies. Allow glazed cookies to dry thoroughly before stacking.
• If you would like more than one color of glaze, divide untinted glaze among separate small bowls. Tint each one a different color by stirring in 1 to 2 drops food color until evenly distributed and glaze is smooth. Add additional drops food color until glaze is of desired color. (.
• If cookie is decorated with contrasting glaze before glazed cookie is allowed to dry, glaze colors will blend slightly, creating a softer, more muted design).
• Allow glaze to dry before storing cookies in airtight containers.
• Note: Use glaze soon after preparing. Do not refrigerate glaze, as it will begin to harden.