Halloween "Frosting Cookies"

Yesterday, Wyatt said he wanted to make Frosting Cookies. Of course, he's talking about sugar cookies, because I don't go to the trouble of frosting any other kind of cookies. I figured that then was about as good a time as any, since we really only make sugar cookies at Halloween and Valentines Day. 
Probably everyone has this tradition, I'm guessing.  If not, don't be afraid to try it! 
Here's how we do it:


The recipe I use is from a community mailer I received way back when we were first married.  It's an excellent recipe because:
1. The cookies are thick, soft, and do not taste floury like a lot of sugar cookies do.
2. There's none of that  refrigerating the dough nonsense in it.  You just mix it up, roll it out, cut with cookie cutters, and bake. 


Valentine Sugar Cookies
1 cup butter (soft)
2 cups sugar
2 eggs (unbeaten)
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup sour milk*
6 cups unsifted flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt 


*Since most people don't keep sour milk around the house (I don't anyway), The way to make it sour is really easy.  Pour 1 cup of milk into a measuring cup.  Add 1-2 Tablespoons of white vinegar.  (I use 1% milk because that's what I have around, but the recipe says to use evaporated milk.  I'm sure you could use heavy cream or half-and-half too).  Let it sit for at least a minute before using it.  It will look lumpy and gross, but it makes for good cookies!


Step 1: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Cream the butter, sugar, eggs and vanilla together.  Add the sour milk and stir.  Add the dry ingredients, stirring after each cup of flour is added.


Step 2: Roll out dough to 1/4" thick on a well-floured surface.  The dough will be very soft, but if it is too soft to work with, knead in a small handful of flour until it is workable.  You do not want the dough to become stiff; if it is, then you have too much flour and your cookies will be tough.  Unless you like tough cookies, that is.  


Step 3: Cut out shapes with cookie cutters.  Note: If your young kids help with this part, expect their clothes to look like this:

 Short sleeves and an apron probably would have been a good idea.  But, he had loads of fun and is still talking about it today!  


Step 4: Bake cookies at 400 degrees for 8 minutes.  You may be tempted to leave them in longer.  Don't do it!  They will look like this when they come out: 

Not brown at all, just puffy.  They are done.  If you leave them in longer you'll get crunchy cookies, which is not the point with this recipe.  


How many does it make?  I got 30 cookies yesterday, but they're pretty big.  It really just depends on what size of cookie cutters you use.  


At this point, I took a break to nurse the baby, clean up the toddler (still trying to think of "blog names" for the two of them) and make frosting.


My sister and I once had a conversation where we realized that there is really no point to making regular frosting if you can use cream cheese frosting instead.  Homemade is of course, best, but I've been known to use canned frosting as well.  Just divide the frosting into separate bowls for the different colors you want to use, and stir in food coloring.  If you want black frosting, you'll have to add in some cocoa powder or melted baking chocolate as well.  Otherwise the black food coloring will turn your frosting just gray. 

Ta-Da!
Halloween frosting cookies!  I let Wyatt make faces on some pumpkins with chocolate chips, which he loved.  I think this tradition is one we'll be keeping for years to come. :)


P.S. Get your cookies in an airtight container as soon as you can, or else they will dry out!  (I may or may not have remembered this little tidbit after waking up this morning to a bunch of dry cookies still spread out on the countertop!) Also, if you do use cream cheese frosting (why wouldn't you?), they should probably be refrigerated.  Although *shhhh* I've never done that and we're all still alive.