Holiday cookies to satisfy all tastes

Probably more cookies are made in this month than any other month in the year.  There are recipes that have been handed down from generation to generation and then there are new ones every year.
   If there are children in your family you will probably want to make cookies in the fancy shapes of Christmas.  The most popular cookie for this is a Sugar Cookie.  The important thing to remember about this cookie, to make it easier to handle, is to chill the dough.

   Stir together the flour and salt and set aside. In a large bowl, cream the butter and granulated sugar together until they are light and fluffy.  Beat in the egg and then the vanilla and lemon juice.  Stir in the flour mixture until it is well blended.  Mix well.
   Divide the mixture in half.  Wrap each half-airtight in plastic wrap.  Chill in the refrigerator several hours or overnight.  Roll out to 1/8-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface.  Cut to the desired shapes with 2 and 1/2-inch cookie cutters.  Re-roll the “scraps”. Place the cookies 1/2-inch apart on cookie sheets that have been lightly greased.
   Brush with the egg white/water mixture and sprinkle with the colored sugar.  Bake in a preheated 350’F. oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until they are very lightly browned around the edges.  Remove to wire racks to cool.  When completely cooled store loosely covered in a cool place. This makes about 60, 2 and 1/2-inch cookies.
Noels were popular quite a while ago.  They take a bit of fussing so you might want to use these to add to an assortment of cookies. Actually they are dates stuffed with walnuts and then baked in a cookie dough and then iced.
Really they are worth the effort if only to see the look of surprise on the face of the cookie nibbler.

   Sift together the flour, baking powder and baking soda and set aside.
   In a medium bowl cream the butter or margarine with the brown sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy.  Beat in the egg and vanilla and mix well.  Add the flour mixture, alternately with the sour cream and stir until well blended.
   Stuff the dates with the walnut halves.  Using 2 forks, roll each stuffed date in the dough until well covered.  Drop them 2 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet.
Bake in a preheated 400’F. oven for 10 minutes or until they are golden brown.  The cookies will still be soft to the touch.  Remove, carefully, at once, to wire racks to cool. When they are cool, spread with the Icing and decorate with Sprinkles.  This makes 36.  They should be stored in an airtight container.
Icing: In a small bowl, stir 2 Tablespoon melted butter or margarine with 1 Tablespoon milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla and 1 cup of confectioners sugar until you have a smooth mixture.
I have tried a number of Rolled Chocolate Cookies and this one is the best.  Remember, that with any rolled cookie that you must chill it before rolling, otherwise you will have to use too much flour when rolling and that will give you a tough cookie.

Combine the butter or margarine, sugar and beaten egg and beat thoroughly.  Add the vanilla.  Add the flour that has been sifted with the baking powder and cocoa.  Chill thoroughly.
Roll on a lightly floured surface and cut with a bell or tree or other Christmas shaped cutter.  Brush the tops with the slightly beaten egg white and sprinkle with the chopped blanched almonds and a bit of sugar.  Put on greased cookie sheets and bake in a preheated 375’F. oven for 5 minutes.  This makes about 48 cookies, depending on the size of your cookie cutters.
Gingersnaps are a good cookie to cut into holiday shapes and this one is made with dark corn syrup instead of the usual molasses.  Again, this dough must be well chilled before using.

    Put the butter or margarine and the granulated sugar in a bowl.
In a small saucepan bring the water, dark corn syrup, cinnamon, clove, and ginger to a boil.  Pour this hot mixture over the butter and sugar and beat until well blended.
Combine the flour and baking soda and add this flour mixture to the butter/sugar mixture and stir until well blended and smooth.  Wrap the dough airtight and chill overnight.
Roll out on a lightly floured surface to 1/8-inch in thickness.  Cut in desired shapes.  Reroll the scraps.  Place the cookies 1 /4-inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.
If you are going to decorate the cookies to hang on a tree then you should make a hole in the unbaked cookie, with a toothpick, about 1/2-inch from the edge of the cookie.
Bake in a preheated 375’F. oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until well browned.  Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheets. Decorate the cooled cookies as desired.  This makes about 96 small (2 and 1/2-inch) cookies or about 36 large (4- inch cookies).
I used to have a neighbor who made No-Bake Cocoa-Bourbon Balls every Christmas.  They were a great addition to the holidays and so simple to do.

In a medium bowl, stir together the vanilla cookie crumbs, confectioners’ sugar, pecans, and cocoa.  Add the corn syrup and bourbon and mix well.
With wet hands, shape into 1-inch balls.  Roll the balls in granulated sugar.  Store airtight in a cool place.  This makes about 36.

I have given you several recipes for rolled cookies to cut into fancy shapes.  Those recipes work best with the metal cutters, not the fancy plastic “solid” cutters that seem to be so popular these days.  The problem with the cutters that make the lines and designs is that either the cutters stick to the dough or if you don’t run into that problem and you have a good looking cookie before it is baked, the baking erases the lines of the design.
This recipe for Cookies Using Imprint Cutters really works with those cutters. I truthfully don’t find the cookies “delicious” but if you are only interested in the shapes and in having the designs to decorate you will like this recipe. Also, note that this cookie dough is not chilled.  The dough also really requires a mixer to make it and don’t over bake.

In a mixer bowl, cream the butter or margarine.  Beat in the eggs and vanilla and mix well. Sift together the baking powder and flour.  Add to the creamed mixture, one-cup at a time, beating well after each addition.  The dough will be very stiff.  With some mixers you may have to mix in the last of the flour with a wooden spoon.  Do not chill the dough! Divide the dough into two equal balls.  On a floured surface, roll each ball into a circle 12-inches in diameter.  The dough should be about 1/8-inch thick
Dip the cookie cutters in flour before each use.  Pick up the dough from around the cut cookies.  Place cookies onto ungreased cookie sheets with a spatula that has been dipped in flour.
Bake in a preheated 400’F. oven for 6 to 7 minutes or until they are only light brown.  Remove the cookies from the sheet pan immediately and cool on wire racks.  This makes 20 to 25 cookies.