Dust off your rolling pin and cookie cutters, and remember that cutout cookie success begins with cookie dough made with real butter. Add a little spice with popular holiday flavors such as cardamom or crystallized ginger and finish the cookies with cute, colorful decorations for sure fire holiday hit.
Warm, fragrant cardamom and real butter combine to create an unexpected take on the standard sugar cookie. Natural, raw cane sugar replaces granulated sugar, adding a crisp, crunchy texture. This adult-version of the sugar cookie is still fun for kids to cut out and decorate.
Crystallized or candied ginger punches up the flavor of traditional gingerbread men. Chopped crystallized ginger adds a touch of sweetness to balance the spicy gingerbread dough, and small bits of candied ginger are perfect for adding eyes and buttons to the cutout cookies.
For perfect cookies every time keep the following tips in mind.
• Never use spreads or margarine to replace butter in a recipe. Spreads contain less fat and more water than butter and will not perform in the same predictable way.
• Keep your cookie dough chilled in between baking batches. Only work with one small piece of dough at a time. Always keep remaining dough in the refrigerator.
• Roll cookie dough between two layers of lightly floured parchment or wax paper. Cookie dough will roll evenly and is easily removed from the paper.
• Prevent cookies from sticking to baking sheets by covering the pans with a layer of parchment paper or by greasing the sheet with butter.
• For crisp-looking, well-defined cookie shapes, place cutouts on a cool cookie sheet and refrigerate before baking.
Cardamom cane-sugar cookies
Makes 3 to 4 dozen sugar cookies
Cookies
1 and 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup natural (raw) cane sugar
2 large egg yolks
4 cups all-purpose flour
3 to 4 Tbsp. pre-ground cardamom or 2 to 3 Tbsp. freshly ground cardamom seed
1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. lemon or orange zest (about 1 large lemon or small orange), freshly grated, optional
Decorative icing
6 Tbsp. (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, softened
3 cups confectioners’ sugar
A pinch of salt
3/4 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 to 3 Tbsp. lime, orange or lemon juice, at room temperature
In a medium bowl, combine butter and sugar; cream together until light and fluffy. Beat in egg yolks. Add flour, cardamom, salt and zest; blend until dough is evenly mixed. Adjust cardamom to taste.
Divide dough in four balls on sheets of plastic wrap, and flatten each into a disk. Wrap tightly, and chill for at least 1 hour, or overnight.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment paper or butter them.
Take one ball of dough from refrigerator. Remember to keep the remaining dough chilled.
On a lightly floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin, roll dough out to 1/8- to A?1?4-inch thickness. Cut into shapes and place on prepared baking sheets.
Bake until the bottom of the cookies just begin to brown – usually between 8 and 10 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Continue to roll, cut and bake remaining dough.
For the icing, combine butter, sugar, salt and vanilla in a mixing bowl. Beat at low speed, gradually adding juice to reach desired consistency. Decorate completely cooled cookies as desired.
Crystallized ginger gingerbread people
Makes 3 to 4 dozen cookies
Cookies
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. fine salt
1/4 tsp. ground white pepper
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 cup coarsely chopped crystallized ginger – about 3 oz.
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
2 tsp. freshly grated lime or orange zest, optional
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup molasses
1 large egg
Decorative icing
6 Tbsp. (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, softened
3 cups confectioners’ sugar
Pinch salt
3/4 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 to 3 Tbsp. lime, orange or lemon juice, at room temperature
Crystallized ginger cut into 1/8-in. bits, optional
In a large bowl, whisk together first eight ingredients and set aside. Place crystallized ginger in a food processor with a metal blade. Pulse to coarsely chop. Add brown sugar and zest, and process until ginger is finely chopped and incorporated into the sugar.
Combine butter and sugar-ginger mixture in a bowl; cream together until light and fluffy. Add molasses; beat to combine. Add egg; beat to combine. Add dry ingredients, and mix to combine. Divide dough into two equal portions and drop onto large sheets of plastic wrap. Flatten into disks about 1-inch thick and wrap tightly. Refrigerate at least two hours.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or butter the sheets. Roll out dough on a well-floured surface, one portion at a time, to 1/8- to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut into shapes. Place one inch apart on baking sheets.
Bake 6 to 8 minutes. Cool cookies on pan for about 8 minutes. Transfer directly onto a wire rack to cool completely. Re-roll dough scraps and cut out more cookies.
To make icing, combine butter, sugar, salt and vanilla in a mixer bowl. Beat at low speed, gradually adding juice until the desired consistency. Decorate completely cooled cookies as desired using small bits of candied ginger for eyes and buttons.
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