The Kitchen Witch
Heirloom Holiday Cutout Cookies
I have been studying and practicing the skills associated with the Pagan and Wiccan religions for over thirty years now. My Book of Shadows, once a small spiral notebook, has grown to three large notebook binders, organized by subject and carefully maintained. Much of my information was copied from library books but nowadays I am more likely to print directly from the internet.
I am a fairly eclectic witch – I live with the seasons and work to develop my divinatory skills – as a solitary, my rituals are very quiet and quite Zen-like in their simplicity. I am also unapologetically Dianic and see no reason to invoke a male god.
Like my BOS, my personal culinary notebook has grown from a slender binder to two large binders with pockets for recipe cards. I collect cookbooks and read cooking magazines and have more subscriptions to cooking blogs than I really have time to read. Like so many of us magical people, I am a kitchen witch – I grown my own herbs and I enjoy my time in the kitchen.
The holidays are my favorite time of the year. Starting with Samhain and ending with Twelfth Night, it is a time to feast with family and friends. Many of us have specialty recipes that we only cook this time of year.
“Heirloom Holiday Cutout Cookies” are what I call a recipe that has been in my family for generations. In my personal cookbook, the name is “Christmas Cutouts” but I have been changing names of cookies to reflect a more multicultural bias. Anyway, these cookies are a rich butter cookie – the very best cookie of its kind. I insist that you only use butter – not margarine and not shortening. And use whole milk. And real vanilla. It makes a big difference. Also, make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature before you start mixing them together and that your butter is truly soft.
Heirloom Holiday Cutout Cookies
1 cup soft butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
½ cup milk
Cream together butter & sugar until smooth. Add eggs & beat well. Add vanilla.
Mix together dry ingredients in another bowl. Add to creamed mixture alternately with milk.
Chill dough several hours. Roll out to desired thickness & cut, using cookie cutters. The fatter the dough, the more cake-like the cookie. Also, the fewer cookies produced.
Bake at 375 until lightly browned.
Frost cookies with Buttercream Frosting (below) & decorate as desired.
Buttercream Frosting:
½ cup soft butter
3 cups confectioners sugar
Enough milk to make it spreadable
1 tsp vanilla