Sugar Cookies!

I made it my goal to find that "one" sugar cookie recipe that would be fit for all my needs.  I'd tried many recipes in the past, and never could find just the right one.  There were ones that I found easy to cut out but lacking in taste.  Others were delicious but would never look beautiful.  I did come across some recipes  that both had a good taste and look, but they still didn't seem just perfect.

Alas!  I have come upon the most perfectest of perfect sugar cookies recipe.  If you like cookies that are thick and moist, this recipe is for you!  These are not thin and crispy, so if those are the kind of cookies you like.... well, you should change your taste. These cookies are far superior to your thin and crispy biscuits.

I came across this sugar cookie recipe at allrecipes.com, but many of the reviewers thought the cookie was too bland.  I liked the sound of the recipe, but wanted to fix the taste issue.  There were a couple of ideas on the site, but I had made cookies weeks ago that used almond paste and loved the result.  I still had half the can left, so I decided to add it to the recipe at allrecipes.com.  The result?  FANTASTIC!

The cookies were super easy to cut out (almond paste makes a helpful glue) and puffed up just right in the oven.  They also tasted GREAT!  They were delicious with or without icing.  The perfect sugar cookie.

My three year old even helped with the decorating.  I put icing on the cookies and he added decorations on top.  It was so easy and he loved it.  And when he wanted to be artistic with the icing, I put a little pile on the plate and gave him a toothpick.  He used the toothpick like a paintbrush and went wild.  So, go ahead!  Make something delicious at your house, and get everyone involved!  The creative process is fun, and so is the consumption process when you're done!


Here's what the recipe looks like when you add the almond paste:

Ingredients

• 3 cups sifted all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup butter
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• about 1/2 c. almond paste

Directions

1. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt. Cream butter with sugar, beat in egg, then stir in sour cream and vanilla.  Add almond paste.   Stir in flour mixture 1/3 at a time.
2. Wrap dough in wax paper and chill for 2 to 3 hours.
3. Roll out 1/4 inch thick. Cut out cookies with your favorite cookie cutters. Put on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 10 minutes.

This is my son putting M&M wheels on his train.

This train was a cooperative effort--the engine was made by our 15 year old neighbor, the first car by my 3 year old son, and the last car by our 14 year old neighbor.

I joined in the fun too, though, not until everyone else had gone.  I made a cookie to look like my husband--he's holding it here. :)