Christmas Cookies

My little sister loves Alton Brown. I think it’s the geek in her analytical mind that craves his break-down of how the various ingredients effect the chemical reactions during the cooking process. So last year when she said that Alton Brown had a sugar cookie recipe I should try, I thought hey—why not? I can remember Kimberley only being able to cook eggs when she moved out of my parents’ house {and in the MICROWAVE}! If Mr. Brown can teach her to cook, his sugar cookies should be simple ;-)))) {I love you, Kimberley! I tease because I care!}

Simply put, you follow the steps below. I just wanted to recommend a simple recipe for anyone looking and showcase a few of mine completed for gloating purposes. I love a pretty cookie.

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Alton Brown’s Sugar Cookies:

Ingredients

    3 cups all-purpose flour

    3/4 teaspoon baking powder

    1/4 teaspoon salt

    1 cup unsalted butter, softened

    1 cup sugar

    1 egg, beaten

    1 tablespoon milk

    Powdered sugar, for rolling out dough

Directions:

Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. Place butter and sugar in large bowl of electric stand mixer and beat until light in color. Add egg and milk and beat to combine. Put mixer on low speed, gradually add flour, and beat until mixture pulls away from the side of the bowl. Divide the dough in half, wrap in waxed paper, and refrigerate for 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Sprinkle surface where you will roll out dough with powdered sugar. Remove 1 wrapped pack of dough from refrigerator at a time, sprinkle rolling pin with powdered sugar, and roll out dough to 1/4-inch thick. Move the dough around and check underneath frequently to make sure it is not sticking. If dough has warmed during rolling, place cold cookie sheet on top for 10 minutes to chill. Cut into desired shape, place at least 1-inch apart on greased baking sheet, parchment, or silicone baking mat, and bake for 7 to 9 minutes or until cookies are just beginning to turn brown around the edges, rotating cookie sheet halfway through baking time. Let sit on baking sheet for 2 minutes after removal from oven and then move to complete cooling on wire rack. Serve as is or ice as desired. Store in airtight container for up to 1 week.

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Some tips for this recipe: 

• Yes, I do refrigerate the dough after completing it. I don't always wait an entire 2 hours though. Refrigerating the cookie dough ensures that your cookies remain the shape you desire while cooking. For instance, you don't want your "gingerbread boy" to melt and run until it looks like Patrick from Sponge Bob. Believe, it can happen.
• Since I don't have the real-estate in my kitchen to house a stand-alone mixer, I still use a handheld. Anyone who's ever used of these to make anything with flour or other loose powders knows that using a handheld can mean that your entire kitchen gets things flung all over it {flour, icing, batter, etc.} I've found that using a piece of scrap wax paper around the whisks keep down on this by about 90%. You won't have a huge mess to clean up after, I promise!

  

• When I decorate cookies, I pinch a piece of aluminum foil into squares pockets so I don't have to pull out so many different dishes, etc.

 Here's mine:

 Happy Monday!

*MrsG