Sugar Cookies

Sugar Cookies

Dorcas Annette Walker

There are times as a parent while raising children that you wonder what they will remember when they are grown. You try to instill the right principles, make sure they are fed and clothed, and give them all the opportunities possible in hopes that they will emerge as a responsible adult. Then one day you look around and they are gone leaving behind a huge empty spot. It was years of past memories they helped me adjust after my daughter got married and started a home of her own.

When Dawn was expecting her first child she confided to me that she wanted to always keep homemade cookies on hand. I was rather shocked as growing up store bought cookies were what my kids went wild over. Especially so after finding out that during the school years my homemade cookies were traded and exchanged for more modern delights. Dawn said, “I could always count on homemade cookies and milk as a snack every day after school.”

And my mind went back to a little girl, who always begged to help every time I baked. During those days I watched a preschooler concentrate to get the right amount of dough on the spoon, carefully space the cookies, and then count how many were on a tray. In a few more years she was measuring and beating the batter with a large spoon, reluctantly letting me stir at the end to make sure that all the ingredients were mixed. What a day of triumph when Dawn made her first batch of cookies by herself. I still smile every time I think of the teenage, who tended to burn the cookies due to her nose being stuck in a book.

Every holiday was celebrated with some kind of cookie. At Christmas we went into high gear turning out dozens of cookies. I’d always make up a decorative plateful to give to the neighbors and we’d take cookies to church holiday functions. I made plenty as everyone loved to sample whatever was baking. Gingerbread men cookies quickly became a Christmas tradition and are something that today Dawn makes every year at her house. My Gingerbread recipe is already on my Creative Mountain Cookin blog that can be accessed through my website at: http://www.dorcasannettewalker.com/ Another Christmas cookie standard is an old Sugar Cookie recipe that has been in our family for years. This recipe makes six dozen cookies.

Sugar Cookies

1 c shortening
2 c sugar
2 eggs
½ c milk
1 tsp vanilla
5 c self-rising flour
Stir the dough until well mixed. The dough will be stiff. Roll out thin like pie crust on a floured surface and cut into fancy shapes. Place on a greased cookies sheets and sprinkle with colored sugar. Bake for ten minutes at 350º. Cool and store in an enclosed container!

Weekly tip: Cookie tips: Dip the cookie cutter into flour before cutting into the dough. After pressing into the cookie dough, hold the cookie cutter firmly and wiggle gently to ensure a sharp cut. To keep baked cookies soft always add a piece of bread with the cookies!

Dorcas Annette Walker is a published author, columnist, speaker, freelance magazine writer, and photographer from Jamestown, Tennessee. Contact her at: dorcaswalker@twlakes.net. For more recipes check out her Creative Mountain Cookin page at: www.dorcasannettewalker.com