Gail's Oh-So-Fudgy Sugar Cookies (roll and cut to shapes)
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(now THIS is a chocolate sugar cookie!!!My own recipe, because most chocolate sugar cookies dont have much flavor. This has now become by sisters favorite recipie to bake every year also)
Sift together in large bowl:
4 C flour
1 1/4 C unsweetened coaco
1/4 c ground chocolate
1/4 t salt
1/8 t cinnamon
1 1/2 t baking powder
cream together in separate bowl with mixer:
4 sticks room temp butter
2 3/4 c powdered sugar
Then beat into butter mixture:
3 slightly beaten eggs
1 t vanilla extract
1/2 t almond extract
Combine both mixtures. Chill for at least 2 hours.
Heat oven to 350. Roll out on floured surface to a nice one half inch thickness. YES one half inch. Cut with floured cutter and place on UNgreased sheets . Bake 6 minutes for tiny cutters or up to 12 minutes, depending how big the cutters are. I usually bake at 9-10 minutes. * If shapes are spreading too much it means the dough is too warm. Keep dough in fridge between cuttings or place cookie sheet of shapes in fridge for 15 minutes before baking.
Cool on cookie sheets and then carefully remove to a flat surface. Can be baked a day ahead and placed in tupperware flats with wax paper between layers.
Decorate with fudgy icing:
Gails Fudgy Cookie (soft) Icing
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Heat 1 cube of butter and 5T cream or sour cream until melted.
beat/Stir in:
4 c powdered sugar
2 t vanilla
1/4 t almond extract
Separate into bowls and tint with colors. Makes 5 cups. Use as a BASE frosting for cookie.
Use Royal (hardening) icing to pipe details and around the edges or cookies.
Store baked, decorated cookies in covered containers at room temp. ( the nice thickness will help them stay fresh longer).
Uncooked dough can store a week in fridge.
Royal Icing
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Beat in clean large bowl with very clean beaters, until foamy:
4 eggs whites (absolutely no yolk in them)
Gradually add and beat until thick: (could take a while!)
4 c SIFTED powdered sugar
1 t extract (use lemon for vanilla cookies or Almond for fudge cookies)
Keep covered with a damp towel to keep it from hardening while in use, or tint and put into decorator tubes with tips.