How To: Painted Cookies

Easy and artistic, "painted cookies" are a big hit in our house (even if the Christmas cookie cutters are still in the attic). For this batch, the kids chose their favorite animal shaped cutters, and even mixed up a batch of black frosting for a realistic touch.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups butter, softened
• 2 cups white sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 5 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt

Directions
1. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour (or overnight).
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Roll out dough on floured surface 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into shapes with any cookie cutter. Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.
3. Bake 6 to 8 minutes in preheated oven. Cool completely.

Chill for 1 to 2 hours
OR
Take the freshly made dough and place a chunck between two sheets of parchment paper. Roll it out to the desired thickness then place the dough and paper on a cookie sheet and pop it into the refrigerator. Continue rolling out your dough between sheets of paper until you have used it all. By the time you are finished, the first batch will be completely chilled and ready to cut. Re-roll leftover dough and repeat the process!

Paint
Mix up some milk, powdered sugar, and a bit of food coloring to the consistency of paint. Use a new or very clean paint brush to paint on the frosting. Add sprinkles if necessary.