The 12 Posts of Christmas, vol. 4

I am the keeper of the family treasures. It's my lot in life as an archivist. When we were clearing out my parent's house after my mother's death, we came across the Christmas cookie cutters. I had accumulated some of my own as an adult, but there was something about the "family cookie cutters" that made me feel good. I was successful in beating off my older siblings to get the bulk of them.

Recently, Mrs. Brave Astronaut was baking an apple pie, for which she placed some dough stars on the top of the pie crust. Little Brave Astronaut decided that was a fun job (cutting out the stars with the cookie cutter). I pretty much decided right there that I would make sure to have a day with him to make Christmas cookies. I have many memories growing up and sitting at the kitchen table cutting out cookies, putting them on the cookie sheet and then decorating them when they came out of the oven. I want my son to have those same memories.

So here's a recipe for the basic butter cookie and some icing. Get yourself some sprinkles and other holiday-type toppings and have at it.

Basic Butter Cookies

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl.

Beat together butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes in a standing mixer (preferably fitted with paddle attachment) or 6 with a handheld. Beat in egg and vanilla. Reduce speed to low, then add flour mixture and mix until just combined.

Form dough into 2 balls and flattening each into a 6-inch disk. Chill disks, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, at least 1 hour.

Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 375°F. While oven preheats, roll out 1 piece of dough (keep remaining dough chilled) into a 9-inch round (slightly less than 1/4 inch thick) on a well-floured surface with a well-floured rolling pin. (If dough becomes too soft to roll out, chill on a baking sheet until firm.) Cut out as many cookies as possible from dough with cutters and transfer to 2 ungreased large baking sheets, arranging cookies about 1 inch apart. If garnishing, sprinkle cookies with glitter or nonpareils.

Bake cookies, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until edges are pale golden, 8 to 10 minutes total, then transfer with a metal spatula to racks to cool completely.

Gather scraps and chill until firm enough to reroll, 10 to 15 minutes. Make more cookies with remaining dough and scraps (reroll only once) and bake on cooled sheets.

If coloring icing, transfer 1/4 cup icing to a small bowl for each color and tint with food coloring (if using plain white icing, spoon into 1 bag). Spoon each color icing into a bag, pressing out excess air, and snip an 1/8-inch opening in 1 corner of each bag. Twist each bag firmly just above icing, then decoratively pipe icing onto cookies. Let icing dry completely (about 1 hour, depending on humidity) before storing cookies. (Makes about 7 dozen cookies)

Decorating Icing

• 1 (1-lb) box confectioners sugar
• 4 teaspoons powdered egg whites (not reconstituted) such as Just Whites
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Beat together all ingredients in a large bowl with an electric mixer (preferably fitted with whip attachment if using a standing mixer) at medium speed until just combined, about 1 minute. Increase speed to high and continue to beat icing, scraping down side of bowl occasionally with a rubber spatula, until it holds stiff peaks, about 3 minutes in a standing mixer or 10 with a handheld.

If not piping icing immediately, cover surface with a dampened paper towel, then cover bowl with plastic wrap. If you plan to spread cookies with icing (rather than pipe it), stir in more water, 1 teaspoon at a time, to thin to desired consistency. Icing can be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Beat with mixer 1 to 2 minutes before using. (Makes about 3 cups)