Weekend Cooking – Cinnamon Sugar Cookies

I spent yesterday, a rainy Saturday, with two of my sisters baking a boatload of Christmas cookies. We came prepared with our dough ready to be baked. Even with that timesaver we baked from 9am to 5pm. I have a newfound respect for professional bakers!! My neck and back were sore and by the time  I arrived home I was ready to call it a day. But it was worth it because my baking is pretty much done. And I’d spent a fun day with my sisters. And Abby the wonder dog 🙂

The cookie I made was a new-to-me recipe. I’d intended to make shortbread cookies but found I was missing an ingredient so I went to my Betty Crocker’s Cookie Book and found a recipe I thought would work. Again, I was missing a key ingredient (I knew I had flaked coconut in the pantry but when I pulled the package from the very back of the shelf I found it had expired in 2007 – yikes!). So I altered the recipe and substituted 1 tsp. cinnamon for the coconut and ended up with a very thin, buttery cinnamon sugar cookie. It earned a thumbs up from the tasters.

Here’s the original recipe:

No-Roll Coconut-Sugar Cookies

2 cups sugar

2 cups butter or margarine, softened (I used butter)

1 cup flaked coconut (I substituted 1 tsp. cinnamon but you could use a little more)

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

Sugar

Heat oven to 350 (F). Beat 2 cups sugar, the butter, coconut (if using) and vanilla in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed, or mix with spoon. Stir in flour, baking soda, (cinnamon if you’re using it) and salt.

Shape dough by rounded teaspoonfuls into balls. Place about 3 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Press bottom of glass into dough to grease, then dip into sugar; press on shaped dough to flatten slightly.

Bake 8-10 minutes or until edges are golden brown. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack.

I sprinkled a little red sugar on after baking

Yields: about 8 dozen cookies

♦

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