Christmas cookies

These are the imfamous Christmas Cookies. Really, it is a basic recipe for a butter cookie. It makes a great dough that can be rolled out and cut with cookie cutters. We have used it for just about any holiday...Valentines Day, St Patricks Day, Graduations and special events have been marked with this recipe.
The recipe comes from our 'Starting Fresh Cookbook'. We called it Gekie's Butter Cookies, but you can just call them Yummy.

Gekie's Butter Cookies

1 cup real butter– that’s 2 sticks
1 1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
4 cups cake flour
pinch salt
2 tsp baking powder
4 tsp vanilla extract
Pre-heat oven to 400°
Cream butter and sugar until smooth. Add beaten eggs and vanilla, and mix till smooth. Sift dry ingredients together then add to butter mixture, stir until smooth.
Roll dough out on a floured surface to 1/4 inch thick and cut with cookie cutters. Bake for 8-12 minutes on an ungreased cookie sheet. Watch them, they burn quickly, they are best when only lightly browned.
Let cool and decorate with store bought icing for the holidays (any holiday!).
Makes about 3 dozen cookies. Store covered, may be frozen for several weeks.

Some of my best memories are of baking these cookies first with my mom, then watching her teach my kids to make them. The kids would spend all day icing cookies, licking fingers, and eating red hots, their little fingers would be stained green for days. The next morning the cookies would look beautiful. Some where along the way I learned her best kept secret. She would hold back enough cookies to re-ice them. (one day I will have to pass this secret on to my daughter!)

I hope you can find the fun in Christmas and take time to bake cookies with someone.
Y'all enjoy!
Sandi