Butter Cookies & Season Greetings!

 
I wanted to bake some cookies for Christmas, something fun to look at for kids and delicious to eat of course.  I wanted a basic butter cookies and I found the recipe at Joy of Baking website.  Then, I just used my figure cookie cutter and started creating.  I enlisted both my girls to help me to decorate as this was the fun part of making Christmas cookies.  Needless to say, both of them were so happy that they got to help.  Edda did the buttons, Evy did the red sprinkles and I drew the eyes and mouth. :-)

This butter cookies were buttery and crispy when you baked until the edges were brown.  If you take it out too early, the cookies would be soft.   They couldn't wait for the cookies to be cool completely before trying.  Got to say, we all loved it and had fun making it!  We loved the fragrant of the butter!

Hereby wishing all my readers a Merry Christmas and a Happy and Safe New Year 2011!!!

Before baking

Recipe adapted from Joy of Baking, with slight changes.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (226 grams) or two sticks salted butter, room temperature
• 2/3 cup (135 grams) granulated white sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups (295 grams) all purpose flour, sift

Method:

1.  In a large bowl, add in butter and sugar, beat until combine.  Add in egg and vanilla extract, beat until blended.  Add in sifted flour in batches and beat until combine.

2.  Place the dough on plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or til harden.  Take it out, cut into half, keep the other in the refrigerator and roll the other dough into sheet and use a figure cookie cutter and cut out the shape and move into parchment lined baking sheet.  Use a scraper to help remove the cookie (as this is a soft dough, I turned out having some fat and thin man, hahaha...).  Finish all the dough.

3.  Preheat oven to 350'F.

4.  Decorate the figure cookies as desired.  I used gel for eyes and mouth, mini Reese's peanut butter for baking for buttons and red sugar sprinkles for cloth.

5.  Bake for 15 minutes or until edges are slightly brown.  Cool on wire rack completely before storing in an air-tight container.