I'm Dreaming of a Chocolately Christmas

...but others are not. Bury me alive in layers of chocolate! Dark and milk chocolate - white chocolate need not apply!- baked into brownies, cookies, cakes and I'm yours forever! However, this is the time of year for generosity and yes, sugar cookies.

I'm not a fan of sugar cookies. But they are a holiday staple, so it just seemed very Scrooge-like of me to ignore others' cravings for this Christmas treat. Last year's sugar cookie dough was a crumbly disaster! It also tasted suspiciously like a butter cookie, rather than a sugar cookie.

This year, however, I found a great recipe courtesy of Domino Sugar. After all, who knows sugar better than these folks? The cookie dough was a dream! Soft, yet sturdy. Pliable, yet un-crumbly. I busted out my most festive cookie cutters and topped them with Powdered Sugar Icing, or Confectioner's Sugar Icing. 

Powdered Sugar Icing is perhaps a 2nd or 3rd cousin of Royal Icing, in texture and in working with it. However, Powdered Sugar Icing tastes better than Royal icing and is easier to make. You need to work with these types of icing fairly quickly and make sure to periodically stir the icing so it doesn't set in the bowl. If this happens, it's near impossible to spread it on a cookie or cake. The icing transforms from a smooth, sugary texture to a rough, crumbly texture. I used edible sparkle gel pens, M&Ms, colored sugar and tiny Kisses to decorate the cookies. For those of you on the Sugar Cookie wagon, the recipe follows.

Here's what you need:

Sugar Cookies
1 cup sugar
2 sticks butter, softened
1 egg
1 tbsp vanilla
2 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda


Here's what you do with it:

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.

Blend sugar and butter on low-medium speed in a large bowl. Once combined, beat in egg and vanilla until batter is fluffy. Mix in flour and baking soda.

Divide dough in half. If you're making circular cookies, shape dough into two rolls. If you're making cutout cookies, just divide dough in half and don't worry too much about the form. Wrap in cling wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight. 

Roll out dough onto a heavily floured surface and use cookie cutters to make shapes. The dough should be rolled out to about 1/4 inch in thickness. I usually eyeball-it.

Place onto baking sheet and bake for 10 - 12 minutes or until outside edges are a light golden brown. Cool completely on wire rack before icing.

The cookies should look like this ~>





Icing

2 cups powdered sugar
2 - 4 tbsp milk
a drop of vanilla extract

Combine powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk, making sure not to add too much milk at once. I started out using 2 tbsp milk and gradually added more milk, 1 tbsp at a time. I used 4 tbsp total for one patch of icing.

The consistency should be a bit thick, not runny. If you add too much milk, gradually add a bit more powdered sugar or vice versa until desired consistency is achieved.

Decorate your cookies and make them all pretty, sparkly and festive for the holidays, like this!

While you're baking these cookies, I'm working on mini apple pies - shown here.

Or perhaps I'll just make a batch of chocolate chip brownies so I can celebrate Christmas in my own chocolately way!

Whatever your persuasion for the holidays - have a happy and delicious one!