Easy Holiday Cookies

Sandra Lee is known for her “Semi-Homemade” cooking show on the Food Network. She once said, “Baking cookies is comforting, and cookies are the sweetest little bit of comfort food. They are very bite-sized and personal.”

We think Sandra hit a homerun with this statement. There’s just something about a cookie – especially a Christmas cookie – that can bring out the inner cookie monster in anyone. Keeping this in mind, we’ve pinned a fabulous recipe for cut-out sugar cookies that we just have to share with you.

Give it a try and be creative while decorating. Make sure to send us a picture of your personal, bite-sized creations too. We would love to see your smiling; cookie monster faces enjoying a festive Christmas cookie!

Perfect Sugar Cookies Cut-Outs

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 ¼ cup sugar

1 egg

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

½ teaspoon almond extract

3 cups flour

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

Colored sugars for decorating

BAKING DIRECTIONS

1. In large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add in egg, vanilla extract and almond extract and mix until combined.
2. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Make sure to spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level it off with a knife to ensure accurate measurements. Slowly add the flour mixture and mix until completely combined.
3. Roll the dough between 2 sheets of parchment or wax paper and place on a baking sheet in the refrigerator. Chill for about 20-30 minutes.
4. Cut dough into shapes with cookie cutters and transfer to a baking sheet. Sprinkle with colored sugars and bake at 350 degrees for 8-12 minutes. Cool on baking sheet 5 minutes and then transfer to a baking rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

Makes about 40-50 cookies.

TIPS

• Dough only needs to chill 20-30 minutes in refrigerator since it’s already rolled out.
• Using parchment paper to roll dough eliminates the need to add extra flour to prevent sticking.
• 9 minutes seems to be the perfect cooking time.
• Make sure to let cookies cool on baking sheet for only 5 minutes – any longer will cause the cookies to dry out.

This recipe, along with tons of others, is pinned on our Mr. Appliance® Pinterest page under the Holiday Treats board. Happy cooking!