Elegant Survival

Christmas Cookie Design ©M-J de Mesterton 2007

Easy-to-Make, Pure and Simple,

American Classic Style Christmas Biscuit Recipe

"Elegant Christmas Cookies", adapted from a 1950s recipe by Antoinette Pope (The Antoinette Pope School of Cookery). I’ve been enjoying these since I was a child. Here are the ingredients:

One half-pound of butter

Two and a half cups of flour

One cup of powdered sugar

One tablespoon of milk (full-fat, of course)

One teaspoon of vanilla (imitation vanilla is just as good as the real thing)

One egg yolk mixed with two tablespoons of cream (to brush on top, as a base for sprinkles–adds nice flavor, believe it or not). If you are going to use icing and a piping bag to decorate these Christmas cookies, skip this decorating step.

Method:

The ingredients, except for the egg yolk and cream, are mixed together and rolled out to a quarter (1/4) inch thickness. Then cookie-cutters are employed; the things are brushed with egg yolk/cream and sprinkled with coloured sugar. I prefer Swedish pärlsokker, or white pearl sugar. Transfer the cut-out cookies to an upside-down cookie-sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes, or until their edges have turned light brown. Allow the cookies ("biscuits") to cool before removing them from the baking sheet.

©2007 M-J de Mesterton