Easy Almond Sugar Cookies

I'm so excited that I found this recipe because I love it! I'm a big fan of thick, soft, flavorful sugar cookies. However, I'm not a big fan of making them because of the time they take to roll out and the mess. Well my friends, this is an easy, no roll out, recipe. You simply make the dough, roll a spoonful of dough in your hands into a ball, and drop it on the cookie sheet. Easy! I really like the flavor and texture of these ones. I've tried other recipes for drop sugar cookies but this one is definitely my favorite.

Easy Almond Sugar Cookies

by Chelsey W.
1 C butter, softened

1 1/2 C sugar

2 eggs

1 t vanilla

1 t almond extract

3 C flour

2 t baking powder

1 t baking soda

1/2 t salt
Cream together butter and sugar, mixing for 2 min. Add eggs, vanilla, and almond extract. In a separate bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add dry ingredients to creamed mixture, mixing until well combined. The dough will have a "play dough" consistency. Roll dough into 1 1/2 inch balls and drop onto a greased cookie sheet. I press on the top of the ball to flatten it very slightly. They are meant to be thick. Bake at 350 degrees for about 10-12 min. until tops begin to crack. They should not brown very much or they will be crunchy instead of soft. Leave them on the cookie sheet to cool for a few minutes before removing. Once cooled completely, add frosting. 

Perfect Frosting

1/2 c margarine or butter, softened *I prefer flavor of margarine in this

3-4 c powdered sugar

milk as needed, a few tablespoons

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp almond extract (to taste)

food coloring

The frosting is made by taste. Put a stick of margarine in a large mixing bowl. On low speed mix with electric beaters beat margarine slowly adding in about 2 c of powdered sugar. Add a little milk when it gets too thick. Add more powdered sugar, vanilla and almond extract. Continue to mix in powdered sugar until frosting reaches desired thickness and taste. Add a little food coloring and frost cookies.

Cookie Recipe Adapted From: www.jamiecooksitup.blogspot.com

The Best Soft Sugar Cookies

My favorite cookie is a sugar cookie. However, I'll admit I'm a sugar cookie snob and I turn my nose up to most recipes. I've seen beautifully decorated sugar cookies with royal icing but they taste like cardboard, and isn't the point of a cookie to eat it? I've tasted good sugar cookies that don't keep their shape. If I'm going to do all the work of rolling them out they better keep their shape. I've also had cookies that either the cookie is good or the frosting is but not both. This recipe is Wonderful! It makes a thick, soft, sugar cookie with good flavor and keeps its shape. Paired with my favorite frosting it makes the perfect cookie. Okay, now I do sound like a snob but it really is the best recipe I've ever found and I get tons of requests for it. It's a simple recipe too with no weird requirements. I make these for all the different holidays using cute cookie cutters to match it and they are so much fun to make with the kids. Give this one a try.
*I usually double or triple this recipe and give some away or they freeze well

Soft Sugar Cookies
by Chelsey W.

3c flour
1c sugar
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 c butter, margarine, or shortening
2 eggs
1/3 c milk
1 tsp vanilla
Sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut butter into flour mixture until crumbly. In a separate bowl mix together the eggs, milk, and vanilla. Add liquids to flour and stir until moist. Knead in bowl until smooth. If dough is very sticky after kneading add a little more flour but remember the dough will get more flour after being rolled out on flour surface. Roll out the dough on a flour surface with a rolling pin. You may need to sprinkle some flour on the top of the dough and rolling pin so it doesn't stick. Cut out shapes and bake on a greased cookie sheet at 350 degrees for about 12 minutes or until cookies are very light brown on the edge. These cookies should not get very dark or they are burned. Frost after they have cooled.  Makes around 36 cookies.

Frosting
1 cup butter or margarine (room temperature)
*I use margarine, I prefer the flavor
6 cups powdered sugar (I often use the whole 2lb bag)
milk, as needed about 3-4 Tbsp
1 tsp vanilla
a couple drops Almond Extract *A MUST HAVE*
food coloring
The frosting is made by taste. I never measure any of it. Put two sticks of margarine in a large mixing bowl. On low speed mix with electric beaters margarine slowly adding in about 2 c of powdered sugar. Add a little milk when it gets too thick. Add more powdered sugar, vanilla and almond extract. Almond extract is very strong so just a few drops and taste. Continue to mix in powdered sugar until frosting reaches desired thickness and taste. Add a little food coloring and frost cookies (or cake but will only need half recipe).

Special K Treats

Watch out Rice Krispies these Special K cereal treats are delicious! I like to make them when the cereal goes on sale. They have a caramel marshmallow flavor and I love to eat them when they're still a little warm and gooey. Be careful because they are addicting and not so great for the waistline.

Recipe:

1 c butter

1/2 c sugar

1/4 c brown sugar

3 c miniature marshmallows

1 tsp vanilla

6 c original Special K cereal

1/2 c chopped pecans or pecan chips 

On the stove over low heat in a large pot melt and stir together butter, sugar, brown sugar, and marshmallows. Stir constantly while mixture boils at a low temperature for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and add vanilla. Stir in the cereal coating it evenly with marshmallow mixture. Mix in the pecans. Drop spoonfuls on wax paper and let the treats cool.

Cake Mix Cookies

When I make cookies these are the ones I make 90 percent of the time. They are quick, easy and very good. They have a rich flavor because of the cake mix and in my opinion have the perfect cookie texture. They can be a lot of fun because you can mix and match different cake mixes with different chips. I've made them a lot with different variations, but my very favorite and what I recommend for the first time is using a "golden vanilla" cake mix and good chocolate chips like Guittard or Ghirardelli. I got this recipe from my friend Aubree's sister who made them for us in college. My roomates and I devoured them quickly and after that we had a lot of fun mixing different chips and cake mixes.

Recipe:

1 cake mix

1/4 c flour

1/2 c oil

1/4 c water

1 egg

baking chips, any flavor

Mix together all ingredients with a spoon until lumps are gone. Fold in the baking chips last. Drop spoonfuls of dough on a greased baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for about 10-12 minutes until slightly golden brown on the edges.

Homemade Oreo Cookies

To celebrate St. Patricks Day I decided to make green oreo cookies. Everyone loves these cookies and I thought it would be fun to change the frosting color according to the holiday. I made cream cheese frosting for these ones but I'm sure mint frosting would have been great too. If you really want to make these cookies a snap you could just buy your favorite frosting, but homemade is always much better.

Recipe

2 boxes Devils Food Cake mix

2/3 c oil

4 eggs

Mix ingredients together, the dough is thick. Then drop about a teaspoon sized ball of dough on a greased cookie sheet. Slightly flatten the ball of cookie dough down with the backside of your spoon. Cook @ 350 for 8 min. Let them cool completely then frost the flat side of one cookie generously and add another cookie to it to make a sandwich.

Frosting

2 T butter or margarine

8 oz cream cheese at room temperature

2 tsp vanilla

4 c powdered sugar

Whip the cream cheese and margarine together with a mixer. Add the vanilla, and slowly add the powdered sugar. If the frosting is too thick you may need to add a tiny amount of milk. However, too much milk will make it runny. You can also add food coloring if you'd like. I let my frosting sit in the fridge for a few minutes because it seemed slightly runny because of the milk and it thickened up a bit.