Plain Cookies Recipes

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in eggs, milk and vanilla. In another bowl, whisk 7-1/2 cups flour, baking powder and salt; gradually beat into creamed mixture, adding more flour if necessary. Divide dough into four 2-cup portions. Refrigerate, covered, until needed., Basic Cookie Dough may be used to prepare the following recipes: Crumb-Topped Date Bars, Cherry Surprise Cookies, Chocolate Mallow Cookies or Jelly Sandwich Cookies.

Steps:

• In large bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, and salt. With an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture; beat until combined. Divide dough in half; flatten into disks. Wrap each in plastic; freeze until firm, at least 20 minutes, or place in a resealable plastic bag, and freeze up to 3 months (thaw in refrigerator overnight).
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment. Remove one dough disk; let stand 5 to 10 minutes. Roll out 1/8 inch thick between two sheets of floured parchment, dusting dough with flour as needed. Cut shapes with cookie cutters. Using a spatula, transfer to prepared baking sheets. (If dough gets soft, chill 10 minutes.) Reroll scraps; cut shapes. Repeat with remaining dough.
• Bake, rotating halfway through, until edges are golden, 10 to 18 minutes (depending on size). Cool completely on wire racks. To ice cookies, spread with the back of a spoon. Let the icing harden, about 20 minutes. Decorate as desired.
• For the icing, sift confectioners' sugar into a small bowl. Whisk in milk, water, or lemon juice, 1 tablespoon at a time, until smooth and thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. If too thin, whisk in more sugar; if too thick, add more liquid. Spread over cookies with back of a spoon. Add other decorations, if desired. Let the icing harden, about 20 minutes.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). In a small bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla. Gradually blend in the dry ingredients. Roll rounded teaspoonfuls of dough into balls, and place onto ungreased cookie sheets.
• Bake 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden. Let stand on cookie sheet two minutes before removing to cool on wire racks.

Steps:

• beat the butter and mix in sugar and salt
• mix in egg and vanilla until it turns light yellow.
• add flour in to the batter and mix it together gently.
• wrap the batter with plastic wrap and put it in to refrigerator for 30 minutes.
• after 30 minutes, roll the batter
• cut the batter with cookie cutters
• bake in 365 degree oven for about 15 minutes.

Steps:

• Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl.
• Beat together butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes in a standing mixer (preferably fitted with paddle attachment) or 6 with a handheld. Beat in egg and vanilla. Reduce speed to low, then add flour mixture and mix until just combined.
• Form dough into a 12-inch log (2 inches in diameter) on a sheet of plastic wrap and roll up dough in plastic wrap. Chill dough on a baking sheet until firm, at least 4 hours. (To roll cookies into balls, see cooks' note, below.)
• Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 375°F.
• Cut enough 1/8- to 1/4-inch-thick slices from log with a heavy knife to fill 2 ungreased large baking sheets, arranging slices about 1 inch apart (chill remainder of log, wrapped in plastic wrap). If garnishing with coarse sugar, sprinkle slices with it.
• Bake cookies, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until edges are golden, 12 to 15 minutes total. Cool on sheets 3 minutes, then transfer with a metal spatula to racks to cool completely. Make more cookies with remaining dough on cooled baking sheets.
• *Available at specialty foods shops and New York Cake & Baking Distributor (800-942-2639).

Steps:

• Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Beat butter and granulated sugar with a mixer on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture, and beat until combined. Proceed with variations:Thumbprints and Ball CookiesShaped Icebox CookiesLayered Icebox CookiesGlazed Spritz CookiesCutout Cookies

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Cream the butter in a large bowl with a wooden spoon or in a stand mixer until it is soft. Add the sugar and keep beating until the mixture is light and fluffy. Sift in the flour and add the optional ingredients, if you're using them. Bring the mixture together with your hands in a figure-of-eight motion until it forms a dough. You can freeze the dough at this point.
• Roll the dough into walnut-sized balls and place them slightly apart from each other on a baking sheet (you don't need to butter or line it). Flatten the balls a little with the palm of your hand and bake them in the oven for around 10-12 mins until they are golden brown and slightly firm on top. Leave the cookies on a cooling rack for around 15 mins before serving.

Steps:

• Cream butter and sugars well.
• Add egg and vanilla.
• Beat well.
• Add flour, salt, powder, soda, mix well.
• Add coconut, oats, cranberries, and krispies, and chipits.
• Combine everthing by hand thouroughly.
• Roll in to round balls.
• Flatten with a fork.
• Place on parchment lined baking sheets.
• Bake 325 degrees F.
• for 15 minutes.