Christmas Cut-Outs

 

Christmas Cut-Outs

2  Cups  Butter, softened
1  8-oz.  Cream Cheese, softened
2  Cups  Sugar
2  Egg Yolks
1  teaspoon  Vanilla
4-1/2  Cups  Flour

In mixing bowl cream together Butter and Cream Cheese until fluffy.  Add Sugar, Egg Yolks and Vanilla; mix well.  Gradually beat in Flour.  Cover and chill 2 hours.  Roll out on floured surface to 1/4-inch thickness.  Cut into shapes.  Bake at 350* for 10-12 minutes, or until set.  Let cool in pan for 5 minutes; transfer to cooling rack.  Frost when cool.  Makes about 7 dozen 3-inch cookies.

Butter Cream Frosting
3-1/2  Cups  Powdered Sugar, divided
4  Tablespoons  Butter, softened
1/2  teaspoon  Vanilla
3 to 4  Tablespoons  Milk, divided.
Food Coloring, if desired

Combine 1-1/2 Cups Powdered Sugar, Butter, Vanilla, and 3 Tablespoons Milk in mixing bowl; beat until smooth.  Gradually add in remaining Powdered Sugar, Milk, and Food Coloring, if desired; mix until frosting reaches desired consistancy.  Frost and decorate cookies.

"And Mary gave birth to her Son, her first-born,

and she laid Him in a manger,

because there was no room or place for them in the inn."

Luke 2:7  Amplified Bible

It's that time of year again.

 

The one time of the year that I actually make cut-out cookies.

 

And because I so dislike making cut-out cookies, I make a double recipe to make sure we have enough.  This recipe makes 7 dozen.  Double it, and it's 14 dozen.  That's about 168 cookies.  The final cookies to get decorated are, well, unique--to put it mildly.  And no, I don't limit the shapes to just 'Christmas' shapes.  We use 'em all.  Even the frog and the fish and the piggy-toes.

This recipe is a favorite of our family's, but then, who doesn't like a cooky with cream cheese in the dough?  (Don't you just love the old-fashioned way of spelling 'cooky'?  I sure do!  This recipe is from Far Above Rubies, page 324.

These photos are from three years ago

--I miss my wittle dirlies!--

 

That orange cooky right there?

That would be a 'happy lion'