It's day 5 of my week of Christmas cookies. My pants are fitting a bit tighter, but I'm still smiling. I love cookies. :)
These cookies are just fun and festive. You can let your imagination run wild as you make these cookies. Red and green swirls, white and green swirls with multi-colored sprinkles, plain white swirls with sprinkles in between... my mind is racing with the possibilities. Keep in mind you could also change the colors up for pretty much any holiday.
Another great thing about these cookies is that you can make a roll, keep it tightly wrapped in the freezer and pull it out if you have unexpected company and need a quick dessert. Another typically store-bought convenience item made from scratch. I love it!
On top of all of that, you can also use a variety of mix-ins. Deb, from Smitten Kitchen, has a list of different mix-ins you can try. I wanted to keep mine simple and festive, so I left out the mix-ins and went for a strong almond flavor.
Slice and Bake Almond Flavored Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
2 large egg yolks, at room temperature
Pinch of salt
1 tsp almond extract
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
Food coloring, as desired
Sprinkles, as desired
Directions
In the bowl of a standing mixer, beat butter until light and smooth. Add the sifted confectioners' sugar and beat until smooth. Add the egg yolks, salt, and extracts and mix until combined. Add the flour and mix just until combined, be very careful to not over mix.
To make a 2 color swirl, divide the dough in 2 and color each half as desired. Shape each half of the dough into a ball, wrap in saran wrap and chill for 20-30 minutes. After chilling roll half of the dough, on top of a piece of parchment paper, to 1/8-1/4-inch thick. Roll the other half of the dough the same way. Carefully flip the dough you want on the inside of the swirl on top of the dough you want on the outside of the cookie (option to sprinkle the first layer with sprinkles before placing the second layer). Remove the top sheet of parchment paper. Roll the stacked dough into a log, using the bottom sheet of parchment paper to keep the log even. Once it's shaped, you can roll the outside of the log in your choice of sprinkles. Wrap the log in saran wrap and place in the fridge for 2 hours or overnight. You can also double wrap it with aluminum foil and freeze it for up to a month.
While the dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Remove the log from the fridge and use a sharp knife to cut into 1/3-inch cookies. Place the cookies on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes.
Slightly adapted from Smitten Kitchen, originally from Dorie Greenspan