When the cookies turned into Patients 

As soon as they came out of the oven the house was filled with the smell of Christmas. I would patiently wait to decorate them. I started out strong with about 10 cookies, then I called my dad in to help me. I would focus on making them the classic gingerbread men or decorating stars and christmas trees. My dad would go the non traditional route, and make wounded gingerbread men or some having an X-ray. This time I decided to take an easier route and not get help for decorating. 

I combined my ingredients in a stand mixer until it turned into my easy sugar cookie dough. I then split my dough in half, one part I left white and the other part I colored red. I left it to rest overnight in the fridge so it wasn’t as soft the next day. To assemble, I created 2 long snakes. One of the red and one of the white. I then twisted them to make the classic candy cane stripes. I put them on the cookies sheet in the shape that I wanted to bake. The hardest part was waiting till they were ready to come out of the oven so I could enjoy them. 

I Found this recipe on Sugars Spun Run

Ingredients:

1 cup unsalted butter softened

1 cup granulated sugar (200g)

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract 

1 large egg

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

¾ teaspoon baking powder

¾ teaspoon table salt

Recipe:

1. Combine butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer (or in a large bowl and use an electric hand mixer) and beat until creamy and well-combined.

2. Add egg and vanilla extract and beat until completely combined.

3. In a separate, medium-sized bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.

4. Gradually stir dry ingredients into wet until dough is smooth and completely combined.

5. Lay out a large piece of plastic wrap and transfer approximately half of the dough onto the wrap (dough will be quite sticky at this point, that’s OK!).

6. Cover dough with clear wrap or wax paper and mold into a flat disk. Wrap tightly. Repeat with remaining cookie dough in another piece of clear wrap. Transfer dough to the refrigerator and chill for at least 2-3 hours and up to 5 days.

7. Once dough has finished chilling, preheat the oven to 350F (175C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper (alternatively bake cookies directly on an ungreased baking sheet). Set aside.

8. Generously dust a clean surface with flour and place one chilled cookie dough disk onto the surface. Lightly flour the dough and roll out to ⅛" (for thinner, crispier cookies) or ¼" (for thicker, softer cookies). Add additional flour as needed both on top of and beneath the dough so that it doesn't stick.

9. Bake on 350F (175C) for 8-10 minutes (this is for cookies that are approximately 3" [7.6cm]; note that smaller cookies will need less time and larger cookies will need more), or until edges just begin to turn lightly golden brown.