Sugar Cookie and Gingerbread Snowflakes - The Foodie Days of Christmas

Like most kids I loved cutting out sugar cookies at Christmas time and decorating them with brightly colored sprinkles. As my love for cooking and baking grew I branched out into various flavorings, such as orange and almond, and started using melted chocolate as an accent. I always made the same recipe which was passed from one Mom in our neighborhood to another and finally on to my Mom. Each year I made dozens upon dozens of cookies; no matter how many we gave away as presents there was always a heaping tray of decorated sugar cookies on Christmas Day. Eventually we had all had too much of a good thing and I stopped making sugar cookies. This year however, inspired by some beautiful snowflake cookie cutters I purchased, I decided to make roll out cookies once more.

Sugar Cookies ~ makes about 3 dozen
minimally adapted from Cooking Light, Dec 2011 p. 116
1.75 cups AP flour
3/4 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
1 large egg
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
dash cinnamon

I reduced the amount of flour in the recipe and increased the amount of vanilla, as well as adding a dash of cinnamon. You use so much flour when rolling out the cookies that the end result has the perfect amount and still yields a tender cookie; even through repeated rolling of scraps.

Combine butter and sugar and cream together. Add egg and vanilla; blend. Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Wrap dough in plastic and chill until firm, about 45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350º F.

Roll out cookies on a floured surface to about 1/4" thickness. Cut into desired shapes. Bake on a cookie sheet 8-9 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. When cool decorate with royal icing, melted chocolate, or sugar sprinkles as desired.

Gingerbread Cookies ~ makes about 3 dozen
adapted from Cooking Light, Dec 2011 p. 116
2 cups AP flour
3/4 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1 large egg
1 Tablespoon ginger
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground clove
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground allspice
dash nutmeg

Combine butter and sugar. Whip until light and fluffy. Add molasses, egg and vanilla; blend. Add dry ingredients and spices and mix until just combined. Wrap dough in plastic and chill until firm, about 45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350º F.

Roll out cookies on a floured surface to about 1/4" thickness. Cut into desired shapes. Bake on a cookie sheet 8-9 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. When cool decorate with royal icing, melted chocolate, or sugar sprinkles as desired.

Enjoy!

Check out all the Foodie Days of Christmas recipes and follow on Twitter with #foodieChristmas:
Orange-Cinnamon Candied Almonds
Chocolate Peppermint Pinwheels
Fruit & Nut Bark
M&M Peppermint Bark - a Family Sunday Recipe
Apple Cranberry Walnut Bread
Sugar Cookies from Cooking Light
Gingerbread Snowflakes
Gingerbread Layer Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting