Sugar Cookies

Yes it is true Allison Warner is finally posting on the blog! Don't faint. Here is my famous sugar cookie recipe that I got from Robynn Wood.

1c butter

1c shortening

6 eggs

1T vanilla

7c flour

2t soda

1T cream of tartar

1t nutmeg

1/2 t salt

Cream the butter, shortening, and sugar till fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, add vanilla. Mix together flour, soda, cream of tartar, nutmeg, salt. Add to creamed ingredients and mix well but don't beat it to death. The dough will be soft. I split the dough in half and spread it about an inch thick on some aluminum foil and chill it until it is firm. Roll the cookies out about 1/2 in. thick and cut out with a cookie cutter. These cookies spread so I use a 2 in. cookie cutter. Bake at 350 for 12-13 min. Don't let the cookies brown at the edges, Robynn says the cookies sizzle at the end and that' how you know they're done.

Frosting

1 80z package cream cheese

1 cube of butter

1t vanilla

Beat in enough powdered sugar to make it all stick together. (Someday I'll figure out this amount exactly, but you know me....for now I just taste it until I get the little sugar zing in the back of my mouth. You can add any color food coloring you want to make them festive. To frost the cookie I put the frosting in a pastry bag with the plastic coupler in it and pipe the frosting onto the cookie in a swirl. I start in the middle and circle to the out side but you could start at the outside and swirl to the middle. Don't skimp on the frosting!

I think these cookies are better the second day (they get softer) so I always make them a day ahead and put them in the fridge. They stay good for a long time, at least a week or more. Also the dough freezes well so make some ahead and pull it out when ever you need it . Sometimes I cut the cookies out and them freeze them and bake them later.