Red Wine Icing

I recently placed an order at a specialty cookie cutter shop. My cutters arrived along with a sugar cookie recipe that I couldn't help but try despite having had difficulty with cookies in the past. The cookies turned out great, but they were of the "crisp" variety rather than the soft and gooey variety and they needed a topping. This idea flickered into my head and I had to give it a try. I think it may be at least close to original as I can't find anything other than mentions of similar ideas online, let alone at Zaar! Even if it's not really "mine" I think it's special and unique enough to earn a few points. For most desserts I would recommend doubling the recipe; I only had a couple dozen small cookies to frost when I portioned mine out.

• Ready In: 10 mins
• Serves: 1
• Yields: 2 cups

Ingredients

• 1  cup butter, softened
• 1  cup powdered sugar
• 1  teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1⁄4 cup red wine

Directions

1. In a mixing bowl, beat the butter on low speed with a hand mixer until it becomes light and fluffy.
2. Add the red wine and vanilla and mix until combined.
3. Add the powdered sugar in batches and mix until fully combined.
4. Frost your dessert and enjoy!
5. If you are not eating your dessert immediately, you can either pre-frost your dessert and place it in the fridge, or place the frosting in an airtight container and place that in the fridge instead. Either way you will need to leave the dessert/frosting out for about an hour in order to allow the frosting to return to room temperature before serving. I was very disappointed to discover that mine had returned to a butter-like consistency after a few hours in the fridge, but a little research clued me in to letting it sit and soften, and it's great again!