Recipe: Easter Cookies

By Nancy Caivano

Easter Cookies

Makes about 2-3 dozen,
depending on size

Ingredients:

4 cups flour
3 tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cup shortening
3/4 cup sugar
6 eggs
1 tbsp. vanilla
1 cup powdered sugar
Food coloring
Milk

Method:

Combine flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.

In an electric mixer, combine shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating between each addition. When all eggs are added, add vanilla, and beat for 5 minutes longer, until a soft dough forms.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Remove dough by tablespoons, roll each piece between your hands to form a string. (Roll each tablespoon of dough between your hands until the string is long and slender enough to tie into a knot, roughly about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick, and maybe a little longer than the width of your hands. I'm not being very technical about this, because I learned from watching and I finally put this recipe on paper so I wouldn't forget it when it came time to pass it down!) Form each string into a knot, or wreath.

Place on a greased cookie sheet. Bake until golden brown. Cool completely.

Combine powdered sugar with desired food color (I normally make a yellow batch or a pink batch). The icing should be a pale shade of either color, or you can make separate batches of both for more variety. Add enough milk to make icing of a thick drizzling consistency. Drop cookies topside down into icing, then pull out, allowing excess to drip back into icing bowl. Top cookies with confetti sprinkles or colored sugar, and let dry. Store in an airtight container.