Christmas Sugar Cookies

We have been making these cookies for years. The dough is very easy. It is always challenge rolling the dough at the right temperature so that the shapes come out easily without sticking and falling apart. When the dough starts to get warm and gummy it’s time to refrigerate it again until it hardens a bit and you can re-roll it. It’s also a little challenging to get them all the same thickness so they cook evenly. Of course my kids like to over decorate. Which means they may not look as professional as we'd like. But we’ve learned to let go. We prefer a light glaze with just a touch of green and red sugar sprinkle.

For cookies

- 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (optional)

For frosting

- 4 cups (or more) powdered sugar
- 4 tablespoons (or more) whole milk
- Assorted colored sugars and sprinkles
- 2 (or more) small disposable pastry bags with round metal tips (1/16 to 1/8 inch in diameter; optional)

Using electric mixer or stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar in large bowl until fluffy about two minutes. Beat in egg and vanilla. Gradually add flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg over; stir to blend well.

Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface and knead gently 1 minute. Shape dough into 1/2-inch-thick rectangle. Cut into 4 equal pieces; wrap in plastic and refrigerate at least 3 hours and up to 2 days. Let dough soften slightly at room temperature before rolling out.

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Working with one dough piece at a time, roll out dough on lightly floured surface to 1/8-inch thickness, lifting and turning dough often and dusting surface very lightly with flour to prevent sticking. Using cutters in various shapes, cut out cookies. Pull away excess dough from around cookies.

Transfer cookies to prepared baking sheet, spacing 1 inch apart (cookies will not spread).Gently reroll dough scraps; cut out more cookies. Transfer to same sheet.

Bake cookies until light brown, about 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes on sheet. Transfer cookies to rack to further cool.

Repeat with remaining cutouts, baking a single sheet of cookies at a time.

Make frosting:

Whisk sugar and milk. If necessary, whisk in more milk by teaspoonfuls or more sugar by tablespoonfuls until frosting is slightly thick and very smooth. We usually then dip each cookie top into white frosting and then sprinkle with red and green sugar. You can also spoon some frosting into smaller bowls and add drops of food coloring to frosting then load the colorful frosting into pastry bags to decorate more intricately.

(Can be prepared up to 5 days ahead. Place cookies in single layer between sheets of waxed paper in airtight container; store at room temperature.