Shortbread Cookies

This is Marie's recipe and Cory's favourite Christmas cookie.

1 lb butter
1 cup icing sugar
4 cups flour, less 8 tsp
8 tsp cornstarch

Cream butter until very light.  Add icing sugar and cream well.  Add remaining ingredients.  Knead for 5 - 10 minutes until dough does not stick to counter top.  Roll out and cut with cookie cutters or roll into small balls and squash with a floured fork.

Bake at 350F for 8 - 10 minutes for cut outs and 10 - 12 for the ball shapes.

Chocolate-Striped Cookies

When I worked at Southern Stationers, several Christmases in a row, three of us would get together and bake for 6 hours straight.  Each of us would take home a third of a batch of 10 or more holiday treats.  One year, I tried out a new recipe.  It was a hit.

Beat until smooth:
½ cup butter
½ cup margarine
1 cup sugar
½ t baking soda

Add:
1 egg
2 T milk
1 t vanilla

Mix or Knead in:
3 cups all purpose flour

Divide dough in half.
To one half knead in :
1/3 cup semisweet chocolate, melted
½ cup pecans

To other half knead in:
½ cup mini chocolate chips
¼ t almond extract

Divide both doughs in half again.  Line the bottom and sides of a loaf pan with plastic wrap.  Press one half of the chocolate dough evenly into the bottom of the pan.  Layer in the vanilla, the other chocolate and the last vanilla to form four flat even layers.  Invert pan to remove dough and peel off plastic wrap.  Cut dough in half or thirds lengthwise depending on how big a cookie you want then slice into ¼ inch strips.  Place cookies on a sheet and bake for 375F for about 10 minutes.


This is a freezer-friendly dough.