Bunny Cookies

Why not? I had the cookie cutters. And we do like a good sugar cookie. I find to my surprise, that I haven't published my favorite sugar cookie recipe here (that link above takes you to a Fruit Pizza variation), so I will be pleased to remedy that omission now.

I do warn you, however, that we prize taste above all else, and ease-of-use next to that. So these are not the lovely, artistic, non-puffed cookies you see on Sugar Cookie Experts' sites. (Which may indeed also be delicious, of course!) These grow a bit in the oven, but they are easy to make, and SOFT and DELICIOUS. (For less cookie distortion, put the pan of cut-out cookies in the fridge for 10 minutes or so, to chill the dough before baking the cookies.) This recipe makes about 4 or 5 dozen cookies, depending on what shapes you are cutting out.

Sugar Cookies

1 C. shortening
1 C. butter
2 1/4 C. sugar
3 eggs
5 1/4 C. flour, or so
1 tbsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. vanilla

Cream shortening, butter, and sugar. Add eggs and beat until well-blended. Add dry ingredients, starting with 5 cups of flour and then adding more as needed to make a dough that forms a ball in the mixer and is not sticky to the touch. Roll out on a lightly floured surface and cut with cookie cutters. Bake at 350 for 11 minutes (don't overcook), until the bottoms of the cookies are a very pale brown. Dough will still be light on top, and it may puff up, but it will sink down again as the cookies cool.

Frost the cookies when cool. On Sugar Cookies, we like cream-cheese frosting (recipe here---we also made a chocolate cream-cheese frosting this time, just by stirring in some melted chocolate chips, and it was quite yummy), or else this simple frosting (we like this much better than traditional buttercream):

Easy, Yummy Frosting

1. Pour a big pile of powdered sugar in a bowl (about 1 lb. or half a bag)
2. Melt 2-3 tbsp of butter and stir it into the powdered sugar
3. Add 1 tsp. of flavoring (vanilla, almond, lemon, mint, orange, etc.)
4. Add some milk slowly, a couple teaspoons at a time. Stir after each addition, and stop adding milk when the frosting is a nice, smooth, spreadable consistency.
5. Add food coloring if desired.

These bunnies were cute . . . and delicious!