A Holiday Cookie Collection - Recipe

Ebony, Nov, 1999 by Charlotte Lyons

Yields about 4 dozen

Pinwheel Cookies

1 cup sugar
1 cup butter or margarine
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Mix sugar, butter, eggs and almond extract. Stir in remaining ingredients. After dough is mixed, divide into halves. Stir 1/2 teaspoon green or red food coloring into one half. Cover both halves and refrigerate for 1 hour. Roll plain dough into rectangle, about 16x9 inches, on lightly floured surface. Repeat with colored dough; place on dough. Roll doughs together about 1/4-inch thick. Roll up tightly, beginning at 16-inch side. Wrap and refrigerate. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cut rolls into 1/8-inch slices. Place about 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 8 to 10 minutes. Immediately remove from sheet.

Yields about 7 dozen

Traditional Sugar Cookies

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 egg
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
  Colored Sugars

Mix powdered sugar, butter, vanilla, almond extract and egg. Stir in remaining ingredients except sugar. Cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Divide dough into halves. Roll each half 1/8-inch thick on lightly floured board. Cut into desired shapes with two 2- to 2 1/2-inch cookie cutters; sprinkle with colored sugars. Place on lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake until edges are light brown, 7 to 8 minutes.

Yields about 5 dozen

Butter Spritz Cookies

1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 1/4 cups sifted, all-purpose flour
  Red and green food coloring

Cream butter in small mixer bowl. Add sugar and beat until fluffy. Beat in egg and almond extract. Blend in flour Divide dough into thirds. Add a few drops of red food coloring to one-third, green coloring to one-third. Leave one-third plain. Fill cookies, press with each color, or combine colors for rainbow effect. Form into desired shapes and decorate. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes.

Cinnamon Pinwheel Cookies

3 1/2 cups unsifted flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed
  milk
3/4 cup butter or margarine
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  Sugar
  Butter

Combine flora, baking powder and salt. Beat sweetened condensed milk, butter, eggs and vanilla in large mixer bowl until well-blended. Add dry ingredients; mix well. Chill for 2 hours. Divide into quarters. Roll each quarter of dough into a 16x8-inch rectangle. Brush with melted butter. Top each with 2 tablespoons of sugar, combined with 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon. Roll up tightly, beginning at 8-inch side. Wrap tightly; freeze until firm, about 20 minutes. Cut into 1/4-inch slices. Place on ungreased baking sheets. Bake in preheated 350-degree oven for 12 to 14 minutes or until lightly browned.

Yields 6 1/2 dozen

Snowball Cookies

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups finely chopped pecans
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup sweet cream butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
  Powdered sugar