Sugar Cookies

This is the prefect recipe for beautiful cookies, no matter how detailed your cutters are, all the fine details are retained during the baking process. I have used other cookie recipes in the past and to my utter fustraition, the cookies either bubble up, become misshapen or spread during the cooking process, so all my cookies look slightly strange and wonky!!
This recipe will not cause such fustration and your details will remain in place, so you can ice in any of the details, giving a very professional finish to your cookies.

Recipe complements of Cake Decorating Issue 1 (March 2012)

Makes 18 -20 Cookies (depending on the size of cutter)

Ingredients
125g Unsalted butter
125g Caster sugar
1 Medium egg
1tsp Vanilla extract
250g Plain flour

Method
In a bowl or electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar together until light and creamy. Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix together. Sift half of the flour into the bowl and mix it in, then sift in the other half and mix again.

Knead the dough until smooth, then wrap in clingfilm and let it rest in the fridge for half an hour.

Preheat your even to Gas mark 4/180C/350F. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to around 4mm thick.

Use your cutters ( I used a drinking glass) to cut it out.

Place on a baking tray lined with baking parchment and bake for 10 to 15 minutes until light golden brown. Allow to cool completely before decorating.

I decorated these cookies with a daisy embosser and then with a small amount of lemon sugarpaste cut out small discs for the centre. Royal icing "stuck" everything together.

For a simpler and quicker design, emboss a round of sugarpaste with the daisy and fix the lemon discs with royal icing.

Have fun with shapes and colour.