I am not big on baking, but I love making Christmas cookies. It’s the one time of the year I get out the rolling pin and the wax paper and go to town. I love the sprinkles and the powdered sugar, but mostly I love the shapes.
Those who make cut-out cookies know that not just any cookie cutter will do. The dough, made mostly of butter, gets tricky to work with quickly. It doesn’t like small, tight spaces. Also, you don’t want to make a couple of giant cookies (which are likely to crumble). You want to maximize your cookies so you can put out a tray and everyone chooses more
or less equal-size cookies, right?
These are my favorite shapes for Christmas. Easy to recognize, easy to lay out on the pan, easy to cut and come up with the whole cookie. I make my gingerbread cookies mostly in the shape of trees, because that’s what the recipe called for, but I also make some gingerbread men with red hots like buttons…
This year I did branch out to some non-traditional shapes. There is a Sur la Table store next to the movie theater in Edina, Minn., where we sometimes go to see art films. I can’t resist nor can I afford to buy things there. However, this summer they had a big sale on cookie cutters and I picked up a few. I added some squirrels and ice cream cones to the mix– I do love the ice cream cones, which suggest their own decorations– who can resist an ice cream cone with sprinkles (we called them “jimmies” growing up)?
I also picked up a crescent shaped cutter, which has been fabulous. I always make walnut crescents each year and in the past I’ve just formed the crescent shapes from cut triangles. They always look quite homely– but this year they almost look professional!
I have to admit, I lost my nerve when faced with the octopus cutter. But I might do one more batch, just for fun, using these more dramatic, less reliable cutters… (it will be gingerbread, which is the easiest dough to manage).
Butter Cookies c/o Moosewood Restaurant Book of Desserts
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature (the cookies are only as good as the butter)
1 cup sugar
2 egg yolks
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
3 cups unbleached white flour
1/2 tsp salt
Cream together the butter and sugar with an electric or standing mixer. Beat in the egg yolks one at a time, then add the vanilla and beat until smooth. Gradually add the flour and salt, mixing just until the dough is uniformly smooth. Form it into two disks, wrap with plastic wrap and chill for a few hours until hard enough to roll. Roll and cut out shapes and bake on a greased cookie sheet at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Note: because of the butter, the cookies will stay pale.