sugar cookies with royal frosting

I made this yummy project one weekend with my daughter 'coz i think she needed a little something to put her appetite back on track. She was getting a little bored with the usual meals so I searched for an EASY cookie recipe that I can make with her, and came across this. She had fun rolling out the dough, cookie cutting, and designing her batch of cookies. Its also a pretty good way to boost the confidence in your child's abilities as well. Try his yummy recipe that became an instant favorite in our household - 'coz my mom loves it too :)

Sugar Cookie Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup unsalted butter - I used Dairy Creme Classic for this
1 1/2 cups granulated white sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

-Sifted together flour, salt, and baking powder. Set aside.

-Using a hand mixer, beat butter and sugar just til butter and sugar are well mixed.

-Add the eggs and vanilla extract and beat until combined.

-Add the sifted flour mixture to butter mixture and beat until you have a smooth dough.
-Divide the dough in half and wrap each half in plastic wrap.

-Refrigerate for about one hour or until firm enough to roll.
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven.

-Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

-Remove one half of the chilled dough from the refrigerator and, on a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to a thickness of 1/4 inch. (I floured mine when it gets too sticky so it wont stick to the rolling pin.)

-Cut out desired shapes using a cookie cutter dipped in flour so the dough wont stick to the cookie cutter.

-Transfer cookies to the prepared baking sheet.

-Place the baking sheets with the unbaked cookies in the refrigerator for 10 to 15 minutes to chill the dough which prevents the cookies from spreading and losing their shape while baking.

-Bake cookies for about 10 to 15 minutes or until edges are brown.

-Remove from the oven and let it cool then decorate! decorate! decorate!

Royal Icing Ingredients:

2 large egg whites
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
3 cups confectioners sugar, sifted

-Beat egg whites with the lemon juice (beat mine for a minute or so)

-Add the sifted powdered sugar and beat until combined and smooth.

*This should be stored in an airtight container as it hardens when exposed to air. Placed mine in a plastic container, covered it with plastic wrap then covered with its lid.

*I placed four tablespoons of icing in two containers and mixed each with FERNA red and violet food coloring. Try adding drop by drop to get desired color.

That's it. Happy baking :)