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| Decorated cookies I made for the FRG meeting. |
Out of the hundreds of these I do each year, I may eat one or two, but that's it. I've gotten to the point where the sweet smell of sugar makes my nose curl and my stomach starts to do 360's saying, "please don't do this again!" Don't get me wrong, they are amazing cookies, I've just eaten a few too many dozen in my childhood. ;)
Ingredients:
1/3 C Unsalted Butter
Cream together butter, shortening, and sugar until well combined. Mix in eggs, milk and vanilla. Blend in the salt, baking powder, and flour. Chill dough in fridge for at least 2 hours before rolling out (for best results, store overnight) or store in freezer for up to 1 month. (If storing in freezer, allow the dough to thaw for at least 30 minutes at room temperature before rolling) Roll dough out to 3/8 of an inch. Cut out with cookie cutters and bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes, or until the edges just start to brown and the center of the cookie is no longer glossy looking. Let the cookies cool for at least an hour before decorating.
Put the powdered sugar, meringue powder, and about 1/4 cup of the warm water in a mixer. On the lowest setting possible start combining the ingredients. Add water until until your icing is glossy, but still has stiff peaks. Beat the mixture on med/high for 2 minutes. Add more water if your icing is too stiff, and beat for 20 more seconds. This makes a good icing for decorating and for piping borders, for a flow-style icing, add more water until it just reaches a pourable consistency.
These cookies are not for the feint at heart, if done correctly, the dough will not spread during cooking, and you will have some pretty incredible delicacies awaiting decorations. It's taken me months to perfect this dough and figure out exactly what I need to do in this wonderfully humid, Virginia weather. (Not a fan, I'll take dry California summers anyday!)
I have been very hesitant about sharing this recipe, it's been used by my mother for years, and I've even made a few of my own modifications to it. So sharing this special recipe is like giving you a piece of my soul. (OK, maybe not that serious, but you get the point!) Anyways, here's the recipe you have all been looking for, enjoy, and good luck!
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| I use wooden dowels to get my dough to roll out evenly. |
1/3 C Unsalted Butter
1/3 C Salted Butter
2/3 C shortening
1 1/2 C Sugar
2 eggs
2 T Whole Milk
2 t vanilla extract
2 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
4 C Flour
Cream together butter, shortening, and sugar until well combined. Mix in eggs, milk and vanilla. Blend in the salt, baking powder, and flour. Chill dough in fridge for at least 2 hours before rolling out (for best results, store overnight) or store in freezer for up to 1 month. (If storing in freezer, allow the dough to thaw for at least 30 minutes at room temperature before rolling) Roll dough out to 3/8 of an inch. Cut out with cookie cutters and bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes, or until the edges just start to brown and the center of the cookie is no longer glossy looking. Let the cookies cool for at least an hour before decorating.
I use the following royal icing recipe:
Ingredients:
One 2lb bag of good quality powdered sugar
6 tablespoons of meringue powder
warm water
Put the powdered sugar, meringue powder, and about 1/4 cup of the warm water in a mixer. On the lowest setting possible start combining the ingredients. Add water until until your icing is glossy, but still has stiff peaks. Beat the mixture on med/high for 2 minutes. Add more water if your icing is too stiff, and beat for 20 more seconds. This makes a good icing for decorating and for piping borders, for a flow-style icing, add more water until it just reaches a pourable consistency.
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