Soft Butter Cookies
If you are looking for a truly tender cookie, this may be it. These cookies are so delicate, they just melt in your mouth!!
The secret ingredient might surprise you. It is oil. Yes, I know I said butter cookies – they also contain butter. But the combination of oil and butter makes them soft and delicate, even days after baking.
They also contain both granulated and powdered sugar. Not your typical cookie recipe, for sure. This just may be my “go to” butter cookie recipe from now on.
You don’t have to chill the dough and they roll very easily, without sticking to your fingers. You could chill the dough, but let it warm up a little before rolling. The dough can also be made ahead and frozen- I tested it.
In class last night we pressed the tops in colored sugars, nonpareils or sprinkles before baking. You can also bake them plain, then dip in melted chocolate and sprinkles or nuts after baking,
Soft Butter Cookies
1 c. butter
1 c. oil, I used avocado oil
1 c. sugar
1 c. powdered sugar
2 eggs
1 T. vanilla
1 t. baking soda
1 t. cream of tartar
½ t. salt
4 ½ c. flour
In mixing bowl, beat together butter, oil, sugars and vanilla. Once well blended, beat in eggs. Stir in the baking soda, cream of tartar and salt, then add the flour, mixing until well combined. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Roll dough into one inch balls and press tops of cookies in sprinkles or colored sugar, if desired. Place one inch apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 12 minutes, or until light golden on bottom. Leave cookies on baking sheets 3 minutes before placing on cooling rack. Makes about 6 dozen cookies.
Snow People Cookies
These cookies are adorable and fun to make. They also taste really good. They are a fun cookie for kids to make. The cookies are made from a rich, cream cheese dough. They stay soft in the middle, with a little crunch on the outside. They are even cuter if you use the candy-striped kisses available this time of year.
Snow People
Dough:
4 c. flour
1 t. baking powder
1 c. butter, softened
1 (8oz.) package cream cheese, softened
2 c. sugar
1 egg
1 t. vanilla
¼ t. almond extract
Decorations:
Mini chocolate chips or mini M&Ms
Kisses, whole, or mini peanut butter cups, halved
Frosting:
2 c. powdered sugar
Few drops green food coloring
Milk
Extra powdered sugar for sprinkling
Mix dry ingredients and set aside. Cream together butter and cream cheese until smooth. Beat in sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and flavorings then stir in dry ingredients. Chill dough overnight. For each snow person rolls out 3 balls of dough, 1-inch, ¾-inch and ½-inch in diameter. Place balls in descending order on ungreased baking sheet. Press together lightly. Use 2 mini chocolate chips for eyes in smallest ball and use either chips or mini M&Ms for buttons (2 on largest ball and 1 in medium). You can also add a tiny dot of frosting once they are cooled for the buttons, too. Bake in a preheated 325-degree oven for about 18 minutes or until edges are firm and bottoms are lightly browned. Cool on baking sheet 1 minute then remove to rack to finish cooling. Combine powdered sugar with green food coloring and just enough milk to make a frosting that can be piped. Use a little dab of frosting to attach either a chocolate kiss (unwrapped) or half of a peanut butter cup as a hat. Pipe a small amount of frosting to form a scarf. Dust cookies with a little extra powdered sugar for snow when finished decorating. Makes about 48 cookies.
Cookie Candies
There are so many cookies I bake this time of year, I could never pick a favorite. There are some cookies that are a MUST bake, however.
These cookie-candies are one of them. They get their name because, once decorated, they look like little pieces of candy.
Under the sprinkles are rich and tasty oatmeal shortbread cookies. Shortbread cookies are always a favorite of mine. I think I make half a dozen varieties of shortbread.
The dough is easy to handle. You just shape small amounts into shapes like circles, squares and ovals. They hold their shape. Like most shortbread, they bake at a lower temperature than other cookies. They also bake a bit longer. They should be a little golden on the bottom when done.
After they are baked and cooled, the cookies are dipped in melted chocolate and then in assorted toppings. You can dip them in sprinkles, finely chopped nuts and coconut. Pretty and tasty.
Cookie-Candies
1 c. butter
¾ c. powdered sugar
1 T. vanilla
2 c. flour
½ c. rolled oats
½ c. chocolate chips
¼ c. milk
finely chopped nuts
assorted sprinkles
shredded coconut
Cream together butter, sugar and vanilla. Stir in flour and oats. Shape teaspoonfuls of the dough into different shapes like rounds, ovals, cones cubes etc. Try to make them look like little candies. They will hold their shape very well while baking. Bake in a 325- degree oven for 20-25 minutes on an ungreased baking sheet. Cool. In microwave safe dish combine chocolate and milk and melt. Dip tops of cookies in chocolate mixture and then in one of the toppings you have. Chocolate topping will harden up after a while. Makes about 4 dozen.
Soft Butter Cookies
If you are looking for a truly tender cookie, this may be it. These cookies are so delicate, they just melt in your mouth!!
The secret ingredient might surprise you. It is oil. Yes, I know I said butter cookies – they also contain butter. But the combination of oil and butter makes them soft and delicate, even days after baking.
They also contain both granulated and powdered sugar. Not your typical cookie recipe, for sure. This just may be my “go to” butter cookie recipe from now on.
I found a sheet of paper with the ingredients written on it. No directions, just ingredients listed and a notation about cooking time and oven temperature. I wish I knew where I got the recipe. I would certainly give the source credit. I did increase the amount of vanilla a little. You don’t have to chill the dough and they roll very easily, without sticking to your fingers. You could chill the dough, but let it warm up a little before rolling. The dough can also be made ahead and frozen- I tested it.
I dipped the tops of the raw cookies in nonpareils, then baked them. I also dipped some in sprinkles. You could leave them plain, then roll in powder sugar, once baked and cooled, or drizzle with melted chocolate.
Soft Butter Cookies
1 c. butter
1 c. oil, I used avocado oil
1 c. sugar
1 c. powdered sugar
2 eggs
1 T. vanilla
1 t. baking soda
1 t. cream of tartar
½ t. salt
4 ½ c. flour
In mixing bowl, beat together butter, oil, sugars and vanilla. Once well blended, beat in eggs. Stir in the baking soda, cream of tartar and salt, then add the flour, mixing until well combined. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Roll dough into one inch balls and press tops of cookies in sprinkles or colored sugar, if desired. Place one inch apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 12 minutes, or until light golden on bottom. Leave cookies on baking sheets 3 minutes before placing on cooling rack. Makes about 6 dozen cookies.
Old-Fashioned Sugar Cookies
These cut-out cookies are a classic, and always part of my holiday cookie baking. I will confess to having an enormous assortment of cookie cutters, so there is almost no end to the shapes I might use. This time of year I am making trees, stars, snowmen and more.
These cookies are crisp and sturdy enough to stand up to frosting, without being too hard. They also hold their shape well when baking.
I use royal icing to frost them, and an assortment of sprinkles and other candies. Royal icing is made with egg whites or powdered egg whites. The advantage over a butter cream, is that royal icing hardens, making the cookies easy to pack and stack. You don’t need much- just a thin layer. Tinting the frosting different colors is a big part of the fun. Depending on how much time you have, you can get really creative with decorating.
Old-Fashioned Sugar Cookies
1 c. butter
1 c. sugar
1 egg
1 t. vanilla
3 c. flour
2 t. baking powder
3 T. milk
Extra sugar for sprinkling, if desired
Beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine dry
ingredients and add to butter mixture. Beat in milk. Heat oven to
375-degrees. Roll dough on lightly floured surface to about 1/3- inch
thickness. Cut out with lightly floured cutters and sprinkle with sugar
or colored sugar if you like and if you are not going to frost them.
Bake on an ungreased baking sheet for 10-12 minutes. Cool on baking
sheet 3 minutes before placing on wire rack to cool completely. Frost
when cooled. Makes about 4 dozen.
Decorating your cookies:
You can use a buttercream frosting, if you like, however the topping I
prefer is royal icing. Because royal icing contains egg whites it gets
hard. Cookies have a smooth appearance and can be stacked. When making
royal icing, use pasteurized egg whites or powdered egg whites. Raw egg
whites pose a risk of salmonella.
You can also use colored sugar and sprinkles and mini chocolate chips for eyes.
Royal Icing
1 lb. powdered sugar
½ t. cream of tartar
5¼ t. egg white powder
6 T. water
½ t. vanilla, optional
Assorted food coloring
In large mixing bowl combine dry ingredients and mix well. Add water and vanilla and beat until light and fluffy, about 10 minutes. Divide into small bowls and tint each batch as needed. Keep bowl covered with a damp towel while waiting to use so frosting will not dry out.
Cookie Candies
Cookie Candies
There are so many cookies I bake this time of year, I could never pick a favorite. There are some cookies that are a MUST bake, however.
These cookie-candies are one of them. They get their name because, once decorated, they look like little pieces of candy.
Under the sprinkles are rich and tasty oatmeal shortbread cookies. Shortbread cookies are always a favorite of mine. I think I make half a dozen varieties of shortbread.
The dough is easy to handle. You just shape small amounts into shapes like circles, squares and ovals. They hold their shape. Like most shortbread, they bake at a lower temperature than other cookies. They also bake a bit longer. They should be a little golden on the bottom when done.
After they are baked and cooled, the cookies are dipped in melted chocolate and then in assorted toppings. You can dip them in sprinkles, finely chopped nuts and coconut. Pretty and tasty.
Cookie-Candies
1 c. butter
¾ c. powdered sugar
1 T. vanilla
2 c. flour
½ c. rolled oats
½ c. chocolate chips
¼ c. milk
finely chopped nuts
assorted sprinkles
shredded coconut
Cream together butter, sugar and vanilla. Stir in flour and oats. Shape teaspoonfuls of the dough into different shapes like rounds, ovals, cones cubes etc. Try to make them look like little candies. They will hold their shape very well while baking. Bake in a 325- degree oven for 20-25 minutes on an ungreased baking sheet. Cool. In microwave safe dish combine chocolate and milk and melt. Dip tops of cookies in chocolate mixture and then in one of the toppings you have. Chocolate topping will harden up after a while. Makes about 4 dozen.
Spritz Cookies
Spritz Cookies
Some cookies are really about the memories for me. I remember making pressed cookies when I was a kid. I loved using the machine to press out dough in all sorts of magical shapes. My mother was so kind- she let me make whatever I wanted. We had one Christmas with a whole plateful of camels. The machine we had required turning a handle- watching carefully, and turning the handle backwards to stop the flow of the dough. There are much easier versions of cookie presses today. Mine has a ratchet which pushes out the right amount of dough with one click. I decided to make some little green trees and red flowers this year. These cookies are light and very crisp. Great for having with coffee. They are also fast to make, once you get used to the cookie press. The fun thing about using a cookie press is that you can crank out a high volume of pretty cookies in no time flat. They taste good, too. I used vanilla extract in the little trees. In the flowers, I added some sweet cherry flavor, which paired well with the vanilla.
Spritz Cookies
1 c. butter
1 c. sugar
1 egg
1 T. vanilla*
½ t. salt
2½ c. flour
In mixing bowl beat together butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg. Stir in vanilla and salt. Tint dough, is desired. Add flour and stir until smooth. Using a cookie press with desired shape press cookies on to ungreased baking sheet. Leave about 1-inch between cookies. Bake in a preheated 375-degree oven for about 10 minutes- cookies should be a light golden color around the edges. Cool on a wire rack. Makes about 3 dozen.
Date Pinwheel Cookies
Date Pinwheel Cookies
I love the sweetness of dates, and really enjoy using that natural sweetness in baking. I always seem to make several dishes with dates around the holidays. These date filled cookies are one of my favorites. Moist and cake-like, with the wonderful flavor of the dates, nuts and citrus zest, these cookies taste even better than they look. The cookie dough, made with brown sugar, has an almost caramel-like flavor. The combination is a winner for sure.
Date Pinwheel Cookies
Date Filling
12 oz. pitted dates, chopped
1/3 c. brown sugar
¼ c. water
Juice of 1 lemon
Zest of 1 lemon
Zest of 1 orange
½ c. finely chopped nuts
Combine dates with all ingredients (except the nuts) in a small saucepan. Cook, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 5-10 minutes. Stir in nuts. Cool.
Dough
½ c. butter, softened
1 c. brown sugar
1 egg
1 t. vanilla
1¾ c. flour
½ t. baking soda
½ t. salt
In bowl combine butter and sugar and beat until fluffy. Add egg and vanilla and beat well. Combine dry ingredients and stir into butter mixture. Divide dough in half. Roll or pat one half of the dough into a rectangle about 7×11- inches in size. Spread with half of the cooled date filling. Starting at long end, roll dough up . Repeat with remaining dough and filling. Wrap rolls in wax paper or plastic wrap and chill in fridge several hours. This dough/roll is pretty soft. I sometimes put the rolls in the freezer for an hour or two before baking to make them easier to slice.
To make the cookies: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Slice the rolls into ¼ -inch slices and place an inch apart on a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake about 12 minutes- or until cookies are a light golden color. Cool on wire rack. Makes about 5 dozen.
Chocolate Shortbread Cookies
Chocolate Shortbread Cookies
I never met a shortbread cookie I didn’t like. These are no exception. With the addition of cocoa, you end up with a cookie that has the traditional delicate texture of shortbread, with the added bonus of a rich chocolate flavor. They are great just plain, dusted with powdered sugar or, my favorite way, brushed with a little melted bittersweet chocolate. Simple, tasty and a nice treat for the chocolate lovers you love.
Chocolate Shortbread
1 c. butter, room temperature
3/4 c. sugar
2 c. flour
1/3 c. cocoa
1/4 t. salt
8 oz. semi-sweet chocolate
Beat together butter and sugar until well blended. Mix together dry ingredients and slowly beat into butter mixture, stirring it in at the end. Roll out dough about 1/4 inch thick and cut out with cookie cutters. Re-roll scraps and cut out the remaining dough. Place on an un-greased baking sheet and bake at 325 degrees until cookies are firm around the edges, about 20 minutes. Cool on baking sheet 5 minutes before transferring to a rack to cool. Melt chocolate and dip cookies in it or use chocolate to hold 2 cookies together. Makes 2-3 dozen, depending on the size.
Chocolate Butter Cookie
Chocolate Butter Cookies
These delicate little cookies are crispy on the outside and tender in the middle. They have a nice chocolate flavor and are not overly sweet. As an added bonus, they are also easy to make. This recipe was an experiment. I was so happy with how the cookies turned out, I wanted to share the recipe with you. I rolled the cookies in demerara sugar when they were raw and then baked them. Demerara is a less refined sugar and looks like coarse brown sugar. It gave the cookies a nice sparkly appearance. You can roll the dough in granulated sugar, if you like. You could also bake them plain and decorate with a drizzle of chocolate when cooled.
Chocolate Butter Cookies
1 c. sugar
1½ c. butter, room temp.
1 egg
2 t. vanilla
3 c. flour
¾ c. cocoa
Combine all ingredients, except flour and cocoa, and beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Stir in flour and cocoa and blend well. Shape rounded teaspoonfuls of dough into balls. Place 1-inch apart on ungreased baking sheet and bake in a preheated 375-degree oven for 7-9 minutes or until set. Cool. Makes about 5 dozen.
Decorate with drizzles of melted chocolate or frosting, powdered sugar, sprinkles (apply before baking) or whatever you have on hand. You can also bake the cookies in rounds with an indent in the middle and add a cherry later. I rolled the raw cookies in demerara sugar. It’s a less refined sugar at looks little coarse brown sugar. Gave the cookies a pretty sparkle.
