Vanilla Cut Out Cookies
Cutout cookies are cute!
They're a lot more time-consuming to make but they're also a lot of
fun. I used the recipe from the special interest publication
of Better Homes and
Gardens : Christmas Cookies. The
recipe's Vanilla Rounds - but I decided shapes would be more fun.
The little black dots on the cookies are there not because my
camera lens is dirty - they're wonderful vanilla seeds from
Nielsen-Massey
Madagascar
Bourbon Pure Vanilla Bean Paste. I had some trouble icing the
cookies because my nozzle kept getting stuck with dried up micro
bits of icing sugar - which was a cause of real pain and
frustration!! So remember to over your icing with a damp cloth when
not in use or the surface will begin to dry and that's what will
clog up the icing cones.
I was lucky my sister-in-law Kresna dropped by for dinner and chipped in to help. We made 100+ cookies and they're really cute and it was well worth the effort and icing frustration. The result was a little too sweet with the royal icing and all... I would cut the amount of sugar back in future batches.
Makes 60+
½ Cup Butter, softened
3oz Cream Cheese, softened
1 Cup Fine Sugar
½ Tsp Baking Soda
¼ Tsp Salt
2 Eggs
1 Tsp Vanilla Bean Paste
2¾ Cup All-Purpose Flour
Royal Icing
500g Icing Powder, sifted
3 Tbsp Meringue Powder
½ Tsp Cream of Tartar
½ Warm Water (less if you want a thicker consistency)
½ Tsp Flavoring Essence (Vanilla/ Peppermint, etc.)
Food Colouring Gel
In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and cream cheese together until smooth and fluffy. Add in the cup of sugar, baking soda and salt, continue to beat until it's well combined. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Fold in as much flour as you can with the mixer, and manually stir in the rest. Divide mixture in half, wrap with plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours or until easy to handle.
While the dough is being chilled, make the royal icing. In a large mixing bowl, combine icing sugar, meringue powder and cream of tartar. Add in water (a little at a time to a consistency you find easy for icing) and flavoring essence. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until combined beat on high speed for 10 minutes or until mixture is stiff. Using a toothpick, mix a small amount of gel paste into icing to desired colour. Cover bowl with a damp paper towel and plastic wrap; refrigerate for up to 2 days. Makes about 5 cups.
Preheat oven at 185C.
After chilling, I found the mixture still too wet and soft, while
rolling it out I used about another ½ - 1 cup of flour for easier
management. Sprinkle a little at a time and roll half of
the dough out between sheets wax or parchment paper until about 3-5
mm thick. Using cookie cutter, cut into desired shapes. Place
cutouts 2 cm apart on wax/ parchment paper lined cookie sheet.
Repeat until dough is used.
Bake for about 8 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned. Cool
on cookie rack completely before frosting.
Lay
paper towels below cooling racks and frost away. Leave to let
frosting set. The towels will absorb frosting that drips off the
cookie and help in cleaning up.
To store, layer cookies between waxed/ parchment paper in an
airtight container. Store at room temperature for up to 3 days or
freeze for up to 1 month.