.

.

July 9th was National Sugar Cookie Day, and it inspired me to dig out my favorite recipe for sugar cookies. I was a little late in celebrating (I think I baked these July 11th) but my husband enjoyed them all the same.

Sugar cookies remind me of the holidays, and though I find it strange that I am thinking of Christmas cookies in July, I am sure that these will be my main attraction this season.

They are fluffy, sugary and uncomplicated, everything a good sugar cookie should be. This recipe takes about 10 minutes to whip together, and another 22 minutes to bake (11 minutes per sheet). From start to finish you looking at a total of 40 minutes, and you will receive about 2 dozen fantastic cookies for your effort. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 1/2 cups sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 14 tablespoons of butter, softened
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

Supplies:

• 2 mixing bowls
• Whisk
• Measuring cups/spoons
• Cookie sheet
• Wax paper/Non stick baking spray/Crisco
• Electric mixer
• Pie dish or other shallow dish

Making and Baking the Sugar Cookies:

1. First preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Set aside 1 cup of sugar in the shallow dish.
3. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together in one mixing bowl.
4. In the other mixing bowl, beat the remaining sugar and the butter together for 5 minutes (this is important!).
5. Beat the vanilla and the eggs into the sugar and butter until combined.
6. Slowly mix in the flour.
7. Roll the dough into golf sized balls, and roll through the sugar, coating the dough completely.
8. Place the balls on a cookie sheet that has been either greased or lined with wax paper, at least 2 inches apart.
9. Press the palm of your hand onto the cookies to flatten them a little.
10. Bake them for about 11 minutes, one sheet at a time.
11. When the edges start to brown they are done.
12. Let them sit for a few minutes on a cooling rack before serving.

Additional tips:

• For really fantastic cookies, roll the dough in coarse sugar instead of granulated.
• Every oven is different, so watch your cookies carefully.
• These will stay soft for about 7 days if stored in a plastic zipper bag. We usually eat them much more quickly though
• Rolling the sugar cookies in colored sugar is a great way to add a little pizazz.

Create a great play list for your Christmas Party with my list of classic Christmas music. A great mix will add to the enjoyment of your guests at your holiday gathering.

42 Fantastic Songs to play at a Christmas Party:

1. A Holly Jolly Christmas – Burl Ives
2. White Christmas – Bing Crosby
3. The Christmas Song – Nat King Cole
4. Here Comes Santa Claus – Gene Autry
5. Greensleeves – Vince Guaraldi Trio
6. Carol Of The Bells – The Mormon Tabernacle Choir
7. Santa Baby – Eartha Kitt
8. Santa Claus Is Coming to Town – Burl Ives
9. Winter Wonderland – Louis Armstrong
10. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas – Judy Garland
11. Sleigh Ride – Boston Pops Orchestra (instrumental) or Johnny Mathis with Percy Faith & His Orchestra
12. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer – Burl Ives (or Gene Autry)
13. Cantique De Noel (O Holy Night) – Luciano Pavarotti
14. (There’s No Place Like) Home for the Holidays – Perry Como
15. I’ll Be Home for Christmas – Bing Crosby
16. Happy Xmas (War Is Over) – John Lennon and Yoko Ono
17. Silver Bells – Dean Martin
18. Mistletoe and Holly – Frank Sinatra
19. You’re a Mean One, Mr Grinch – Thurl Ravenscroft
20. Jingle Bell Rock – Bobby Helms
21. Blue Christmas – Elvis Presley
22. Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow – Vaughn Monroe (1945 original) or Doris Day
23. Feliz Navidad – Jose Feliciano
24. Rockin Around the Christmas Tree – Brenda Lee
25. ‘Zat You, Santa Claus? – Louis Armstrong
26. Frosty the Snowman – Jimmy Durante
27. I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus – The Ronettes
28. Jingle Bells – Frank Sinatra
29. It’s The Most Wonderful Time of the Year – Andy Williams
30. It’s Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas – Perry Como and The Fontaine Sisters
31. Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don’t Be Late) – Alvin and the Chipmunks
32. We Need A Little Christmas – The Muppets (my favorite!)
33. Merry Christmas Baby – B.B. King
34. Run Rudolph Run – Chuck Berry
35. O come, O come, Emmanuel – The Mormon Tabernacle Choir
36. Christmas Time Is Here – Vince Guaraldi Trio
37. Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree – Brenda Lee
38. Jingle Bell Rock – Bobby Helms
39. Adeste Fideles (O, Come All Ye Faithful) – Frank Sinatra
40. Christmas Canon – Trans-Siberian Orchestra
41. Baby, It’s Cold Outside – Dean Martin
42. Little Drummer Boy – Bing Crosby

If you would rather just pop in a few CDs instead, here are a few recommendations:

Dinner Music

• A Charlie Brown Christmas
• Christmas Songs – Diana Krall
• Rocky Mountain Christmas – John Denver

Party Music

• White Christmas – Bing Crosby
• Christmas with the Rat Pack
• The Best of Burl Ives – The Christmas Collection
• Time-Life Music: Treasury of Christmas
• Now That’s What I Call Christmas!

Have a wonderful Christmas Party!

.

Add the scent of cinnamon to your holiday with homemade cinnamon Christmas ornaments. These ornaments can be hung from the Christmas tree, used to decorate packages, strung together to make a beautifully scented garland, or as great holiday gifts. Since the recipe is simple these are a great Christmas craft project to do with kids!

This recipe makes 12 – 14 medium sized Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments. It takes about 15 minutes to make and knead the dough, and 2 1/2 hours to bake, for a total time of 2 hours, 45 minutes.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup cinnamon
• 1 tbsp. ground cloves
• 1 tbsp. nutmeg
• 3/4 cup applesauce

Making the Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments:

1. Preheat oven to 150°.
2. In medium bowl, combine cinnamon, cloves & nutmeg.
3. Add applesauce, stir to combine.
4. Work the dough with your hands for 3 or 4 minutes until dough is smooth and ingredients are thoroughly mixed.
5. If the dough is a little crumbly, add a tablespoon of applesause at a time to it until it is smooth and a bit sticky.
6. Roll out dough to 1/3 inch thickness. It will be sticky, so be careful with it. You can use cinnamon like flour on your pin and rolling surface to stop it from sticking.
7. Cut dough with cookie cutters. Simple shapes like hearts, bells, trees and gingermen are easier to work with than cutters with complicated shapes.
8. Using straw make small hole in top of ornament.
9. Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet at 150 degrees for 2 1/2 hours
10. Remove from the cookie sheet and cool on a wire rack.
11. Loop a ribbon through the top.

Additional tips:

• You can dry ornaments without the oven. Set them on the wire rack at room temperature, and let them stand 2 days or until completely dry. Turn them a few times throughout the process so they dry even and flat.
• If you have a food dehydrator you could also dry them in that.
• You can use acrylic paints to decorate the ornaments once they are dry.