We have been cooking over a year with Jameson and today was our first lesson with a friend. Our next door neighbor and Sawyer play all the time. They have become quiet good friends. She is a strong, independent little girl who rolls with the boys and is up for anything. She did not hesitate one bit to jump in on the lesson. After running it by her dad we quickly pulled together a cooking lesson before she had to go home.

Prep Time: 10 mins

Total Time:  30-40 mins

Servings: approx. 2 dozen

Ingredients:

• 1  cups butter (softened)

• 3/4 cup sugar

• 1 egg

• 1 Teaspoon vanilla

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

PREHEAT OVEN TO 375 DEGREES

STEP ONE:

Blend the butter and sugar with an electric mixer (or in a large bowl with a hand mixer).  

STEP TWO:

Beat in the egg.

She looked at me with all the confidence in the world and told me she knew how to crack an egg. She did great until it fell all over the counter. Jameson looked at her and said “it’s ok we all make mistakes in the kitchen!” It was an awesome moment! Then they laughed and played in the egg.

STEP THREE:

Slowly mix in the flour and mix until a soft dough forms.  We added all the flour at once by mistake and the flour puffed out at us.

STEP FOUR:

Add the vanilla.

Oh wait this was supposed to be done at the same time as the egg in Step Two!! I think I was thrown off by adding in a friend, that the steps got a little mixed up. It’s all good, we made it work!

Jameson was a little nervous after the egg incident, but Evie was a rock star!

STEP FIVE:

Spill the dough out onto the counter and pat/roll into two balls.  Once separated flatten each ball into a disc and wrap it in plastic wrap.  Chill in the fridge for at least half an hour, but per the directions it can sit for up to four days.

STEP SIX:

Pat or roll the disc out to about 1/8 inch thick.  We find this measurement is always hard to make perfect, so decide how thick you want your cookies and do your best.

Cut out the cookies with cookie cutters and place on an ungreased cookie sheet.  (Most recipes will say ungreased cookie sheet, but we always use spray as a precaution)

Kelly made a guest appearance to check out how they were doing!

STEP SEVEN:

Bake in the oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned.  

STEP EIGHT:

After the cookies cool on the cookie sheet for a few minutes, transfer them over to the cooling rack.  Once they are cool to touch, start decorating.  Be creative with the glaze; mixing colors and adding sprinkles.  This is their canvas so let them be free.

We used pre-made glaze today due to time constraints. It was getting dark and Jameson’s little buddy had to get home.

STEP NINE:

Plate up and serve. They couldn’t wait to try one! They did a great job and it was a blast to have a guest today.