- Yields: 32 cookies
- Preparation: 4 hours
Ingredients
Cookies
- 2 1/4 cups (560mL) flour
- 1/2 tsp (2mL) baking powder
- 1/2 tsp (2mL) salt
- 3/4 cup (175mL) GAY LEA - Unsalted Butter, softened
- ¾ cup (175mL) sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 1/2 tsp (8mL) vanilla
Icing
- 2 egg whites
- 2 cups (500mL) icing sugar
- 1/2 tsp (2mL) vanilla
- 1/4 tsp (1mL) almond extract
- pinch salt, fine
- food colouring, optional
Instructions
For cookies:- Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl.
- Beat together butter and white sugar in a large bowl with a hand mixer on high until lightened in colour, about 2 minutes. Add egg and vanilla; mix to combine. Add flour mixture and stir until mixed. Divide dough in half and wrap both in plastic wrap. Flatten each into an inch thick disc and refrigerate for 1 hour.
- Heat oven to 350F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment and set aside.
- Turn one dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll to ¼-inch thickness. Cut into desired shapes and transfer to the prepared pan, an inch apart. Bake until lightly golden around edges, about 12 to 14 minutes. Cool for 2 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
- Repeat with remaining dough baking and cooling as directed.
- Place egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Whisk over medium-high until foamy. Add icing sugar, a spoonful at a time, until mixture is glossy and thick. Add vanilla and almond extracts and salt, whisk for 1 minute.
- Colour icing, if desired (if using more than one colour, spoon the icing into separate bowls and colour accordingly). Cover the surface of any icing you are not using with a wet paper towel and cover tightly with plastic wrap until ready to use.
- Spoon icing into a piping bag fitted with a small writing tip. Pipe desired designs onto cookie shapes and decorate with sprinkles, if desired. Set aside to dry
- Spoon a small amount of the icing into a piping bag fitted with a small writing tip. Pipe border around cookie shapes and allow to dry. When ready to fill, loosen remaining icing with a small amount of water until a thick pourable consistency (if piping designs over filled cookies, set some thick icing aside). Use a small spoon to portion the icing into piped border. Using a toothpick, gently move the icing to the border until filled and flat. Set aside to dry.
- To pipe designs over filled cookies, spoon remaining thick icing into a piping bag fitted with a small writing tip. Pipe designs onto cookies and set aside to dry.
Tips:
