Frosted Holiday Cut Outs Recipes

Steps:

• In large bowl, mix 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, the butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla, almond extract and egg until well blended. Stir in flour, baking soda and cream of tartar. Cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours.
• Heat oven to 375°F. Divide dough in half. On lightly floured surface, roll each half of dough 3/16 inch thick. Cut into assorted shapes with cookie cutters, or cut around patterns traced from storybook illustrations. If cookies are to be hung as decorations, make a hole in each 1/4 inch from top with end of plastic straw. Place on ungreased cookie sheet.
• Bake 7 to 8 minutes or until light brown. Remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.
• In medium bowl, beat all frosting ingredients until smooth and spreadable. Tint with food color if desired. Frost and decorate cookies as desired with frosting and colored sugars.

Steps:

• For cookies:
• Sift first 3 ingredients into medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter and 1 cup sugar in large bowl to blend well. Add egg, sour cream, and vanilla; beat 1 minute. Beat in dry ingredients in 2 additions until just blended. Gather dough together; divide in half. Flatten each half into disk; wrap in plastic and chill 1 hour. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep chilled. Soften dough slightly at room temperature before rolling out.)
• Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Sprinkle work surface and top of dough disks with additional sugar. Working with 1 disk at a time, roll out dough to 1/4-inch thickness (dough will be very soft). Using assorted 2- to 3-inch cookie cutters, cut out cookies. Transfer to prepared sheets, spacing 1 inch apart. Gather scraps and roll out on sugared surface; cut out more cookies. Repeat until all dough is used. Chill all cookies on baking sheets at least 15 minutes and up to 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake cookies, 1 sheet at a time, until light golden at edges, about 12 minutes. Transfer cookies to racks and cool completely.
• For icing:
• Combine 4 cups powdered sugar, 3 tablespoons milk, and vanilla in medium bowl. Stir until icing is well blended, smooth, and spreadable, adding more milk by teaspoonfuls if too thick or more sugar by tablespoonfuls if too thin. Using small icing spatula or table knife, spread thin layer of icing atop each cookie. If using colored sugar crystals, sprinkle over cookies before icing sets. If using food-safe colored markers, let icing dry about 30 minutes; decorate cookies as desired. (Can be made 3 days ahead. Store airtight between sheets of waxed paper at room temperature.)
• *The Bon Appetit test-kitchen staff used food-safe colored markers, called FooDoodler pens, to decorate these cookies. The markers are available at Sur La Table stores or can be ordered from King Arthur Flour (800-827-6836) or bakerscatalogue.com.

Steps:

• In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in vanilla, then beat in egg.
• Add flour mixture and beat until just combined. Divide the dough in half, pat into flat rectangles, wrap in plastic and chill for at least 2 hours.
• Divide each dough parcel in half, and roll out to 1/8-inch thickness between two sheets of parchment paper or plastic wrap. Repeat with remaining dough. Chill until firm, about 20 minutes.
• Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line four cookie sheets with parchment paper, sprinkling with a little flour if the dough seems sticky. Cut out shapes from the rolled and chilled dough and place on prepared sheets 1-inch apart. Bake until golden around the edges, 8 to 13 minutes. Let cool.
• Meanwhile, prepare the royal icing: in the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the sugar, egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt. Whisk until stiff and glossy.
• To tint the frosting, divide into small bowls. Cover the ones you aren't using with plastic wrap; the frosting dries out very quickly. Use a rubber spatula to stir in desired food coloring. Though not necessary, it makes life easier if you make two versions of each color - one that is thick to pipe the outline on the cookie, and one that is thinned out slightly with a little water to flood the outline. Transfer frosting to piping bags fitted with very small round tips (sizes 1 to 2 work best).
• Pipe frosting onto cooled cookies and let set, at least 2 hours. Or use a pastry of paint brush to decorate cookies with the frosting.

Steps:

• Cookies:
• COMBINE sugar and shortening in bowl of electric mixer; beat at medium speed until well blended. Add eggs, corn syrup and vanilla; beat until well blended and fluffy.
• COMBINE 3 cups flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large bowl; gradually add to shortening mixture, beating at low speed until well blended.
• DIVIDE dough into 4 equal pieces; shape each into disk. Wrap with plastic wrap. Refrigerate 1 hour or until firm.
• HEAT oven to 375 degrees F.
• SPRINKLE about 1 tablespoon flour on large sheet of waxed paper. Place disk of dough on floured paper; flatten slightly with hands. Turn dough over; cover with another large sheet of waxed paper. Roll dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Remove top sheet of waxed paper. Cut into desired shapes with floured cookie cutter. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough.
• BAKE 5 to 7 minutes or until edges of cookies are lightly browned. Cool 2 minutes on baking sheet; transfer to cooling rack to cool completely.
• Frosting:
• COMBINE powdered sugar and milk in small bowl; stir until smooth. Add food coloring, if desired. Stir until blended. Spread on cookies; let stand until frosting is set. Decorate as desired with decorator frosting.

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter, shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, milk and extracts. In another bowl, whisk flour, baking soda and salt; gradually beat into creamed mixture. Divide dough into four portions. Shape each into a disk; wrap in plastic. Refrigerate, covered, overnight or until firm enough to roll., Preheat oven to 400°. On a lightly floured surface, roll each portion of dough to 1/8-in. thickness. Cut with floured 3-in. holiday cookie cutters. Place 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets., Bake until edges are lightly brown, 5-7 minutes. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool completely., In a large bowl, beat confectioners' sugar, vanilla and enough cream to reach a spreading consistency. If desired, beat in food coloring. Frost and decorate cookies as desired.

Steps:

• Combine the first five ingredients. Whisk together remaining ingredients; add to molasses mixture and mix well. Refrigerate, covered, 3 hours or overnight., Preheat oven to 375°. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/8-in. thickness. Cut into desired shapes with floured 2-in. cookie cutters; place 1 in. apart on greased baking sheets. Bake until set, 10-12 minutes. Remove to wire racks to cool.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350˚F (180˚C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
• In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix with a fork.
• In a separate large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar with an electric hand mixer for 3-5 minutes, until the butter and sugar are fully combined, but before the mixture becomes fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat to incorporate.
• Add the flour mixture and mix until just combined, but crumbly. Finish mixing with your hands until the dough comes together in a ball.
• Transfer the dough to a floured surface. Lightly flour the top of the dough and roll out to about ¼-inch thick. Use cookie cutters of your choice to punch out cookies. Place the cookie cut-outs on the prepared baking sheets.
• Bake for 8-10 minutes, until lightly browned around the edges. Let cool completely.
• To make the royal icing: In a medium bowl, add the meringue powder to the powdered sugar. Whisk to combine. Add the vanilla and 4-6 tablespoons of water (depending on how runny or thick you'd like your icing.) Whisk until completely combined.
• Divide the icing into smaller bowls and add any desired gel food colors. Immediately transfer to piping bags, or cover with plastic wrap. Do not leave the icing uncovered, as it will develop a film. If this happens, add a small amount of water and whisk to incorporate.
• Decorate the cookies with royal icing as desired and let dry completely, at least 3-4 hours or overnight.
• Enjoy!

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each. Add almond extract and beat until just combined. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt; stir into the sugar mixture. Cover dough and chill for at least 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment or baking sheet liners. On a floured surface, roll the dough out to 1/2-inch-thick and cut into desired shapes using cookie cutters. Place 2-inches apart on to the prepared baking sheets. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. To make the frosting, mix together the confectioners' sugar, oil, and 1 teaspoon vanilla until smooth. Gradually add enough hot water to achieve a spreadable consistency. Once cookies have completely cool, frost, and serve.