Chanukah came and went this year in a whirlwind of eight crazy nights. We hosted a little Chanukah party for our nieces where we played dreidel, decorated cookies (recipe below) and ate copious amounts of latkes; we hosted friends on night two for fried chicken and donuts; we missed one night to watch a leafs hockey game; missed another night for N's office holiday party; and spent the last two nights in Montreal en famille. My new festive cookie cutters were put to good use, as was the giant bag of russet potatoes that we bought. All in all, it was a great eight days.
CUT OUT SUGAR COOKIES // makes ~ 3 dozen
Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cups) unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cups white sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
sprinkles, soft frosting (easier for kids) or royal icing, for decorating
What to do:
In a medium bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (~5 minutes). Add the egg and vanilla and beat until just combined.
Slowly add the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. The dough will be soft and sticky. Divide the dough in half, form into 2 discs, and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours.
When ready to make the cookies, preheat the oven to 325.
Remove one dough disc from the fridge. Lightly flour the counter and a rolling pin, and roll dough to 1/4" thick. Cut with cookie cutters and place onto a prepared baking sheet. Once the sheet is full, transfer to the fridge until you've cut all the cookies from the one disc. You can now choose to either decorate the cookies with sprinkles, or hold off for the icing. Bake for about 12-15 minutes, until they are slightly golden brown on the edges, but still milky colour in the middle.
Repeat with second dough disc, remembering to keep the dough cold as you go.
Transfer cookies to a wire rack and let cool before icing.
Recipe adapted from sweetish.co