Christmas Cookies

Sometimes baking is about the food, and sometimes it's about the experience.  Christmas cookies are firmly in the second camp. In fact, they're so far into the second camp that I don't even think it's necessary to put down a recipe. Christmas cookies transcend recipes. There are good sugar cookie recipes, and there are better sugar cookie recipes and there are even great sugar cookie recipes. You can even buy sugar cookie dough in a can, and just this one time, I'd approve. You need cookie cutters, but don't worry too much about having a lot. If you have the basic Christmas tree and snowman and candy cane you're set. Pick up a few more at summer garage sales for cheap. It's pretty easy to get more shapes than you know what to do with before long. Roll your cookies, cut them out, bake them and let them cool. Buy frosting or make it. I will say that homemade butter cream frosting is much better than anything you can buy, so I do think it's worth the few minutes to make it. And you need sprinkles, so many sprinkles. You can't have too many sprinkles.

Butter Cream Frosting, for everything, but especially for Christmas Cookies.
From Betty Crocker's New Cookbook
3 cups powdered sugar (sifted before measuring for super smooth frosting)
1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 to 2 tablespoons milk
Mix powdered sugar and butter in a medium bowl. Stir in vanilla and milk. The more you mix it and the more air you add, the smoother it is to spread. Divide into smaller bowls and add food coloring for your blues and greens and what not. This recipe is also for frosting for cakes. It will frost a basic single cake or a round double cake. It's the best frosting for everything. You could frost your cat with this and it would be delicious.

We had 8 children between the ages of 3 and 11 making cookies in the kitchen this past Sunday. We frosted a double batch of cookies with a double batch of frosting. It was sugar fueled artistic chaos. It's as much fun as coloring Easter eggs but the payoff is greater, cookies are even better than egg salad. Christmas cookies are about the tradition, the gathering, the sending cookies to friends and loved ones. Co-workers of my wife's always love cookies that are clearly hand made by children, even if it means picking more hair out of the frosting than you typically have to with store bought cookies. Quite frankly, Christmas cookies are one to the best parts of Christmas.
I'm the Scroogiest person in our family and even I love Christmas cookies. Make them, eat them, love them, remember them always.