Sugar Cookies

Look at what Alisa (aka Mother Teresa on speed) sent!  Metropolitan cookie cutters!  Big Ben, Sydney Opera House, Pyramids, Statue of Liberty, Leaning Tower of Pisa and Eiffel Tower.  Seems like the perfect time to try two sugar cookies recipes.

The recipes?  Grandma Clark's (an old standby) and a copy cat recipe from Granny B's  (Our cute friend, Heather, brought us Valentine cookies made with the recipe and it was delicious.  Niall was out of town so he didn't get any.)

I halved both recipes and used pink frosting.  (I love pink frosted sugar cookies.) 

Grandma Clark's Sugar Cookies

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup shortening (Grandma used Crisco, I use butter)
1/4 cup milk
1 well-beaten egg
1 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
1 1/2 cups flour or enough to form a soft dough

Cream sugar, shortening and eggs together.  Mix in milk.  Add lemon and vanilla.  Add baking powder and flour.  Here's a photo of the dough.  I don't always refrigerate it, but did refrigerate it this time.

Roll dough out, cut in shapes.  I love the cookie cutters!  Bake at 350 degrees F for 15 minutes or until lightly browned (I cooked about 12 minutes).  Cool.  

Frost and decorate.  If the kids help, you know you'll have to clean the whole house later.

Heather's Sugar Cookies

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 cups of flour

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 cup sour cream

Cream Butter and sugar together, then slowly add eggs, and vanilla.  Sift dry ingredients together, then add dry mixture to the butter and sugar.  Add the sour cream, mix until smooth.

Chill: 2 to 3 hours.  Roll out to 1/4 inch thick cut into shapes.  Bake at 375 degrees F for 6 to 8 minutes (I baked for 8) or until golden brown on bottom.  Remove and cool.

Here's the dough from Heather's recipe.

And here are the cookies side by side.  (Grandma Clark's recipe on the left, Heather's on the right.)  They look pretty similar, but Niall did a taste test and said he preferred Heather's.  I'm happy with either.

For the frosting I used an old standby. (4 ounces cream cheese, 1/2 pound powdered/icing sugar, 1 teaspoon almond extract.)   I frosted about half the cookies.  Too bad I'm not good at decorating because Alisa's cookie cutters would make darling cookies in the right hands.  The rest of the cooks I left unfrosted and put in the freezer for later.