thanks to an early Christmas present to myself, i can make festive sugar cookies all year round!  the cookies pictured above were decorated at my sister-in-law’s house Christmas eve.  it was a fun way to get into the Christmas spirit!  here are the recipes that you will need:

rolled sugar cookie recipe

• 1 1/2 c butter, softened
• 2 c white sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 5 c all purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt

1. in a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth.  beat in eggs and vanilla.  stir in the flour, baking powder and salt.  cover, and chill dough for at least one hour (or overnight).
2. preheat oven to 400°.  roll out dough on floured surface 1/4-1/2″ thick.  cut into shapes with any cookie cutter.  place cookies 1″ apart on ungreased cookie sheets.
3. bake 6 to 8 minutes in preheated oven.  cool completely.

(courtesy of: allrecipes.com)

after these bad boys are done baking, you’ll want to frost them with something delicious.  because i tend to be on the messy side, i like to make several smaller batches of this frosting and dye it.  i made three batches of this size to frost the aforementioned cookie recipe.  here is what you will need.

buttercream frosting

• 2 c powdered sugar
• 1 tbsp margarine from the tub
• dash of salt
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• a few drops of milk

1. in a small bowl, start by adding the powdered sugar.  add remaining ingredients.
2. beat well with a fork.  if the mixture is runny, add more sugar.  if mixture is too thick, add a few more drops of milk.
3. add food coloring as desired.

frost your cookies and as always,

enjoy!

this pie is one of tom’s favorite desserts, if not his absolute favorite dessert.   it’s frequently served at thanksgiving and Christmas.  but i make it several times during the year, dressing it up with mini pie crust cutters.

it is very simple to make, especially if you use ready-made pie dough.   however, i am not a cheater. here’s the recipe, courtesy of the 1953 edition of “better homes and gardens new cook book”:

plain pastry (for an 8-9 inch double crust pie)

• 1 1/2 cups sifted enriched flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 c shortening
• 4-5 tbsp cold (COLD) water

1. sift together the flour and salt.  cut in half the shortening with a pastry blender until the mixture looks like cornmeal.  then cut in the remaining half until the pieces are sizes of peas.
2. sprinkle water (i use water from the brita in the fridge), a tablespoon at a time, over part of the mixture.  gently mix fork; push to one side of bowl.  sprinkle next tablespoon water over dry part; mix lightly; push to moistened part at side.  repeat until all is moistened.  gather up with fingers; form into ball.  let stand several minutes.  (at this point i put the crust in the fridge for about 15 min.  the cooler the shortening, the flakier the crust becomes because the steam from the shortening makes little pockets in your crust, thus forming flakiness.)
3. divide dough by about 2/3 and 1/3.  form ball.  flatten slightly and roll on lightly floured pastry cloth.  (i use saran wrap.)  roll 2/3 dough in a circle form, if edges split, pinch together.  always roll from the center out to the edge.  use light strokes.  place in pan, cut off excess dough around edge of pie dish.
4. roll remaining 1/3 dough out.  cut shapes from dough, brush with small amount of water, place on edge of crust.  place pie in the fridge while preparing filling.

pecan pie

• 1/2 c sugar
• 1/4 c butter
• 1 c light corn syrup
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3 eggs
• 1 heaping c pecans

1. cream sugar and butter.  add syrup, salt; beat well.
2. beat in eggs, one at a time.  add pecans.
3. pour into a 9-inch pastry-lined pie pan (see above ).
4. bake in a moderate oven (350°) 1 hour and 10 minutes – or till knife comes out clean.

enjoy!

Christmas time is always a wonderful time of the year for me.  after moving to tennessee, it’s a little bit different and even though i’m far away from the majority of my family, i can still hold onto a lot of our traditions.  of course, my mom is an awesome cook and pretty much everything i know about cooking, i picked up from her.  baking is a big part of our Christmases, so of course, i had to bake up a batch of these.  it makes Christmas feel a little bit more like the ones i used to know.

first you need to find a good cookie press.  i’m a fan of the metal ones, they are durable and do not eat up batteries like the plastic ones.  i found this one on target.com and i’m quite a fan.  the barrel is smaller than i would like, but it works like a champ!

now for the recipe:

• 1/2 c butter, softened
• 1/4 c shortening
• 3/4 c granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2 tsp vanilla*
• 2 c flour
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt

1. place butter and shortening in large mixing bowl.  cream together on medium speed.
2. add sugar gradually, beat until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
3. add egg and vanilla; mix well using medium speed.
4. combine flour, baking powder and salt in separate bowl.  add to butter/sugar mixture in 3 additions; mixing well after each addition.  dough will be stiff.  (add desired amount of food coloring at this point.)
5. assemble cookie press and fill with dough, using desired disc.
6. press cookies on un-greased cookie sheet.  decorate.
7. bake at 375° for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges.  do not overbake.

*you can substitute any flavor extract for vanilla, i use orange extract and grate in a bit of orange rind.

enjoy!