Give Taobao a Rest, and Offer These Cute Christmas Cookies as Gifts Instead

Nimo Wanjau | Dec 4, 2018 3:50 pm | Add a comment | 8249 reads

Despite what every advertisement, shop, song or movie about the festive season in the world has ever told you, gift giving does not = buying a heap of stuff online. A gift can take many forms, such as doing somebody a favor, spending time together, or making them something from the heart. Homemade Christmas cookies like these ones are an especially wonderful gift to make and receive. Plus, they're simple! Here's how: 
 

Sugar Cookie Recipe (makes approx. 36 cookies)

Ingredients

  • 3 cups all-purpose flour, extra for rolling
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened 
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon milk
  • ¾ tsp baking powder
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 190°C. In a medium-sized bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
  2. Using a large wooden spoon, or a mixer on low speed, cream together the softened butter and sugar in a large bowl until dough appears a light color. Beat in egg, vanilla, and milk. 
  3. Using a mixer on low speed (or hand mixing with a wooden spoon), gradually add dry ingredients, and beat together until mixture pulls away from the side of the bowl.
  4. Refrigerate the dough for two hours.
  5. Sprinkle your working surface with flour to keep the dough from sticking.
  6. Roll half the dough out until about ¼ inch thick and cut it into desired shapes.
  7. Place shapes at least one inch apart on greased baking sheet.
  8. Bake for 8-10 minutes in the preheated oven or until golden. Let stand on cookie sheet two minutes before removing to cool on wire racks.


Icing Sugar Recipe

Ingredients

  • 1 cup confectioner’s or powdered sugar
  • 3-6 tablespoons milk or other liquid
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
  • Food coloring 

Directions

  1. Put the sugar, milk, and vanilla extract into a bowl.
  2. Mix until it forms a thick, creamy paste. If desired, thin the icing into a glaze with additional tablespoons of milk.
  3. Repeat the colored process adding food coloring as desired to create additional icing.
  4. With a tablespoon, add icing to piping bags, creating separate bags for each color.
  5. Decorate the cookies as desired.

This post originally appeared on our sister site beijingkids.

Photo: goodtaste.tv