It's no secret that I am a fan of Nigella Lawson's 'how to be a domestic goddess' cookbook. Actually when I first saw this cook book for sale, I had no idea who Nigella was, but the gorgeous cupcake on the cover and the title of the book captured my imagination. Plus, it was a bargain for $20 (!!). I think this cook book is a must-have for every kitchen. It is choc full of fantastic baking recipes (primarily). I have always found her recipes to be easy to follow and a wonderful success, no fuss and delicious! Ok, this isn't really meant to be an ad for the book, and actually what I am about to tell you might sound like a contradiction to what I have just said...There is a kids section in the cook book, and in that section is a recipe for cut out sugar cookies. Every recipe in this book has at least a paragraph introduction where Nigella evocatively describes the recipe, why she loves it, where it came from or how delicious it is to eat. The description for these sugar cookies talked about how she never failed to make these for her children on their birthday. That every year they have cookies in the shape of whichever number they have just turned- 'my children couldn't contemplate a birthday party without them'- she gushes.
Having first read this before Esther turned one, I decided that my children would also not know a birthday without these cookies. I would adopt this tradition. And how lovely to make them at every birthday, not only that- they can help me with them! How fun!
Well... I have to say the recipe is brilliant and tasty and lives up to the promise of not only being a sugar cookie that holds its shape well, but also tastes good (some what of a challenging achievement with said cookies). However, what I didn't realise at the time I naively signed up for a life of sugar cookie making was how tedious I find rolling out and cutting a batch of cookies...
I am definitely in the 'no fuss' camp of home cooks and tend to get bored quite quickly, compared to grabbing balls of dough and plopping them on the tray (which is my usual mode with cookie making) it feels like a bit of a chore to get through. Added to that is the fact you need to refriegerate the dough before using, so it makes it seem somewhat more involved and time consuming. But these are minor irritations compare with trying to involve the children in making them.
The thing is, the whole point of making cut-out cookies is that you want the shape to be recognisable...an obvious point yes. Involving young children and toddlers in the process of rolling out the dough (to just the right thickness) cutting out the shapes, economically to avoid too many re-rolls (working the dough too much results in tougher cookies). Then, picking up the cookies carefully and putting them on the tray without destroying them...
Yes, this is a recipe (pardon the pun haha) for FRUSTRATION! what was meant to be a fun birthday bonding experience quickly becomes an opportunity for mum to learn a new level in patience.
From these experiences I have in recent times decided to make the dough and the cookies on my own in the evening and just involve the kids in the decorating component. But for some reason I forgot about this handy tip when I decdied to make christmas sugar cookies this week with the kids... GARG"HSHSH!! My patience pushed even more considering I am also a sleep - deprived mum who is settling a new born in the wee hours of the morning...WHAT was I thinking?! Shane saw my crazy eyes and assisted by whisking Hudson away, though he howled in protest, I felt bad. But his contribution to the process had been to destroy the rare few, well-formed cookies that made it to the tray. At this point I remembered that I don't usually do this with the kids. Duh. The cookies don't look very presentable and won't be making it as gifts for anyone. The amount of handling and finger licking confirming my decision to keep these cookies in-house.
Also, we forgot to buy icing sugar so they are still sitting on the counter waiting to be iced...getting stale... You don't want to eat one.
So, is anyone feeling inspired? Want to adopt my great tradition?!! Look, despite my frustration this week, it IS a fun tradition for the kids and always exciting to get their cookies on their birthday. :)
So if by some bizarre chance you are still keen, here's the recipe, including her little introduction.
Merry Christmas
| 50 to 60 cookies |
Introduction
It’s not hard to make cookies that hold their shape well while cooking, and it’s not hard to make cookies that taste good and have a melting, buttery texture. What’s hard is to find a cookie that does all of these things together. This one, by way of a wonderful American book, The Family Baker, does, so any time you want to play supermummy in the kitchen, here is where you start.
Like all doughs, this dough freezes well, so it makes sense — in a smug, domestic kind of way — to wrap half of the dough in plastic wrap and stash it in the deep freeze until next needed. It’s hard to specify exactly how much icing you’ll need, but you might end up using more than specified below if you’re using a lot of different colors. I always cut out the newly acquired age of the child on his or her birthday. My children couldn’t contemplate a birthday party without them.
Like all doughs, this dough freezes well, so it makes sense — in a smug, domestic kind of way — to wrap half of the dough in plastic wrap and stash it in the deep freeze until next needed. It’s hard to specify exactly how much icing you’ll need, but you might end up using more than specified below if you’re using a lot of different colors. I always cut out the newly acquired age of the child on his or her birthday. My children couldn’t contemplate a birthday party without them.
Ingredients
Cookies
| ¾ | cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened | |
| ¾ | cup sugar | |
| 2 | large eggs | |
| 1 | tsp. vanilla extract | |
| 2⅔ | cups cake flour, plus more if needed | |
| 1 | tsp. baking powder | |
| 1 | tsp. salt | |
| ~ | Cookie cutters | |
| 2 | baking sheets, greased or lined with parchment or waxed paper |
Frosting
| 2 | Tbsp. hot water | |
| 2 | cups confectioner’s sugar, sifted | |
| ~ | Food coloring as needed |
Steps
- Cream the butter and sugar together until pale and moving toward moussiness, then beat in the eggs and vanilla. In another bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the butter and eggs, and mix gently but surely.
- If you think the finished mixture is too sticky to be rolled out, add more flour, but do so sparingly, as too much will make the dough tough. Halve the dough, form it into 2 fat discs, wrap each half in plastic wrap, and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Sprinkle a suitable surface with flour, place a disc of dough on it (not taking out the other half until you’ve finished with the first), and sprinkle more flour on that. Then roll it out to a thickness of about ¼ inch. Cut into shapes, dipping the cutter into flour as you go, and place the cookies a little apart on the baking sheets.
- Bake for 8 to 12 minutes, by which time the cookies will be lightly golden around the edges. Cool on a rack and continue with the rest of the dough.
- When the cookies are all fully cooled, you can get on with the icing. Put a couple of tablespoons of just-not-boiling water into a large bowl, add the sifted confectioners’ sugar, and mix together, adding more water as you need to form a thick paste. Color as desired; let the artistic spirit within you speak, remembering with gratitude that children have very bad taste.
- Frost the cookies; let the frosting set a bit before coating with sprinkles or other decor.
