The Favorite Sugar Cookie Recipe

I guess since the flower shaped sugar cookie gets its own picture I had better include the recipe. It is one I ran across at Christmas time in the America's Test Kitchen Cookbook.

Holiday Cut Out Cookies

2 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup superfine sugar (I just use regular granulated)
3/4 tsp. salt
16 tablespoons (2 sticks) butter cut into 1/2 inch pieces softened (I just stand by the mixer and cut in little pieces as it mixes and it works fine.
2 Tablespoons cream cheese softened
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1. Whisk the flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Beat the butter into the flour mixture one piece at a time with an electric mixer on medium low speed, then continue to beat until mixture looks crumbly and slightly wet, 1-2 minutes. Beat in the cream cheese and vanilla until the dough clumps about 30 seconds.
2. Knead to make dough into a cohesive clump. Divide dough in half and pat into two 4 inch discs. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
3. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Roll out dough and cut out into shapes.
4. Space cookies on cookie sheet about 1 inch apart. Bake for 10 minutes until light golden brown.
5. When cooled decorate with glaze (recipe to follow)


Glaze

3 Tablespoons whole milk (skim works fine)
1 Tablespoon cream cheese
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

Whisk 2 tablespoons of milk and cream cheese until smoothe. Add sugar and whisk until smooth. Add remaining milk until glaze is thin enough to spread easily.

With the glaze I put some in a frosting bag and pipe around the edges of the cookies. I then go back and fill in the cookies with the glaze using a spoon.

To be honest these cookies are a lot like shortbread and are better the next day!

Whatever Dinner

So, I got home from work and wondered what to make for dinner. So I thought spaghetti but it just wasn't quite there. I found some cheese ravioli's in the freezer and had some sun dried tomatoes and thought i could whip something up with that. I put the tomatoes, garlic, and basil in the blender. Just some of everything about a cup of tomatoes, a tsp garlic and dry basil (i think fresh basil would be better!) I also had some spinach I added. After the ravioli were cooked I added the spinach until it wilted then stirred in the blender mixture. It was very very good and quick! I don't usually cook without a recipe but I felt this one was pretty fool proof!

Sunday Dinner

So for dinner tonight the menu is
Barbequed London Broil
Grilled Yams
Homemade Rolls

The roll recipe is a new one so I won't share the recipe until I know if it is good. Here are the others:

Barbequed London Broil
2 pounds London Broil beef
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

Place meat in a dish. Combine the next 5 ingredients and pour over the meat. Marinate 4 to 5 hours at room temperature, turning every 30 minutes. Barbeque over medium heat until cooked to taste. Cut into thin slices and serve.


Grilled Yams
2 1/2 pounds yams
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 green onion chopped
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
Lime wedges

1. Boil yams until soft, rinse in cold water to cool.
2. With a sharp knife peel yams and cut crosswise into 1/2 inch thick slices
3. In a small bowl whisk together oil, salt, and cumin. Brush on both side of yam slices, reserving remaining cumin oil.
4. Grill slices on an oiled rack until golden brown. About 3 minutes on each side.
5. Thinly slice green onion and sprinkle over grilled yams.
6. Whisk lime juice into remaining oil and drizzle over yams.
Serve with lime wedges. ENJOY!

Me Blogging???

Alright, so I swore up and down that I would never have a blog!!! In a moment of weakness while requests for my recipe's were high I decided that a blog was better and easier than putting a recipe book together. At my work I am known as the one who "always brings the really good treats." I love to cook and share what I cook. Everyone always wants the recipes so here they are. Then this morning when I told my husband what I was going to do he said that he had had a conversation yesterday with his mom and sisters. I had made some AMAZING sugar cookie flowers on a stick for my mother-in-laws birthday, they are her favorite. They were discussing them and said we should sell them (just like anything good we create) and call them Cookie Sprout's - so good you'll want to eat the dirt! Well who can turn down a compliment like that!