Candy Cane Cookies (Or Cutouts!)

Lizzymommy's Note:

My best friend in college gave me this recipe from her mom's collection. They're wonderful as written, however, add a little extra flour to the dough, skip tinting half red, and you have the most delicious sugar cookie dough for cookie cutouts I've ever had! I've used this dough for Xmas Cutouts for over a decade now. I use the icing from Kittencal's Buttery Cut-Out Sugar Cookies W/ Icing That Hardens.

• Total Time: 24 mins
• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 9 mins

Ingredients:

Yield: 24 cookies ...

• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 egg
• ½ teaspoon almond extract
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 ½ cups flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon red food coloring

Directions:

1. Beat together butter, powdered sugar, egg, almond extract and vanilla.
2. Mix together flour and salt, and add to the wet ingredients, stirring until well-combined.
3. Divide dough in half. Add red food coloring to half the dough. Roll even logs 1/2" wide of red dough, then white dough. Twist together and bend top to form cane shape.
4. Bake on ungreased sheet for 9 minute at 375 deg. Can be sprinkled with a crushed candy cane and sugar mixture while still warm.

Reviews

[tlchemist]

Had a great time making these and was festive *yummy too*
Thank you

[sareet taylor]

unfortunately, despite following directions exactly (other than swapping the quantities of almond and vanilla extracts, as we wanted almond-y cookies), these were the greasiest, weirdest, most tasteless cookies I've ever made. I'm sorry to say it, but I don't understand what happened. They looked pretty decent, but tasted badly enough that I had to toss the whole batch.

[lunarloom]

Like the other reviewer, I used to make these all the time as a child and they were always my favorite. Great recipe to have young hands help with, as it's just like playing with play dough and is a fun way to participate in the holidays -- for both kids AND adults. Also, as the other reviewer states, the almond extract really makes the difference in this recipe and I usually add a touch extra, but that's just personal preference.