“Childhood means simplicity. Look at the world with the child’s eye-it is very beautiful.”- Kailash

Baking is something that has been a part of my life since I was a child. The majority of my favorite memories revolve around baking and what it taught me. As a child I was easily bored, and not always the most patient of people. Baking has taught me to be patient and to adapt. Baking is an art, and like art it isn’t always what you picture when you start. As you bake, your creation takes shape and often chooses its own path. There are so many factors that go into the final creation; how you mix the ingredients, the ingredients you used, the heat distribution in your oven, the temperature of the room you are working in, how long you allow it to settle and cool, the delicate nature of the decorations or accents, and your own patience and expectations. I have found that the things I make change depending on the climate in which I live. Where I grew up it was perfect for baking, and things usually turned out the way I wanted. Now, I live in a foreign country, without a traditional American oven and a very humid climate. Needless to say, things don’t always turn out picture perfect, but as long as they taste good, then it isn’t a total failure.

I think that to begin, I will choose a simple classic with a new age twist. The sugar cookie is something that I made hundreds of times with my mom and her best friend (Aunt Nancy). Aunt Nancy was my favorite person for a very long time, and she remains so to this day. Aunt Nancy was the kindest person I had met in my short life, and baking was a passion of hers, and she taught me this. This recipe is for her and everything she means to me.

Sugar cookies are sweet and simple, and a hit with most people. Aunt Nancy, in particular, liked to make them, and I liked the mess that went along with them; rolling out the dough, cutting shapes and getting crazy with decorations of frosting and sprinkles. The table always looked like a rainbow exploded on it, and no matter how messy it got, Aunt Nancy always had a smile. It was these cookies and her that first taught me that it was ok for life to be messy. It was the messes that made it worthwhile, and in these times there was laughter to be had. Aunt Nancy taught me that no matter how messy things got, you could always wipe it up with a cloth and wash it away with a hug.

For Aunt Nancy, the first recipe had to be sugar cookies with something more. I decided to make Almond sugar cookies with cherry frosting and crushed almonds as sprinkles. Aunt Nancy was famous for her cherry frosting, and hopefully this one does her justice!

Recipe: Aunt Nancy’s Almond/Cherry Cookies

Almond Sugar cookies

Ingredients:

1.5 cup butter-softened

2 cups white sugar

4 eggs

3 tsp almond extract

5 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsps. Baking powder

In large bowl mix the butter and sugar until smooth, then add in the eggs and almond. Mix in the flour, and baking powder. Chill the dough for at least an hour, but if you have the time overnight works best.

When you are ready to bake the actual dough, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F, or if you are in Japan and using a convection oven that will be 200 degrees Celsius! Roll the dough out to .25 to .5 inches thick and cut into shapes.

Bake for about 6-8 minutes or _10-15 in convection oven!

In a large bowl, beat softened butter until smooth and fluffy, mix in heavy cream. Gradually add in about one cup of powdered sugar. Beat in extract and cherry juice until combined. Then add in remainder of powdered sugar, one cup at a time. If too thick add in juice and heavy cream about 1 tsp at a time.

In a large bowl, beat softened butter until smooth and fluffy, mix in heavy cream. Gradually add in about one cup of powdered sugar. Beat in extract and cherry juice until combined. Then add in remainder of powdered sugar, one cup at a time. If too thick add in juice and heavy cream about 1 tsp at a time.

Ingredients:

.5 cup butter- soft

3 tsp heavy cream

4 cups- powdered sugar

1 tsp almond extract

3 tsps. Maraschino cherry juice (add extra to taste)

*Baker’s Notes:

If you are using a power mixer, remember to use the right attachment. Cookies require this attachment

while buttercream uses the whisk attachment.

The longer you chill the dough the better it works, so if you can give it 2-12 hours you will get better results than with just an hour. When you are ready to roll out the dough you can dust the counter with either flour or confectioners’ sugar. I find that flour works better, but sugar makes it sweeter. Don’t forget to grease your cookie sheets before use. I didn’t use cookie cutters for my cookies; I rolled out the dough into a long snake and then cut it into circles from there. You can also roll the dough in your hand and press it into a circle about the size of your palm.

When the cookies are done remove them from the hot sheet, with a solid spatula, and let cool on a flat surface or cooling rack. For me the flat surface worked best to help prevent the cookies attempting an escape through the racks!

Additionally, I am using a convection oven, which is kind of an overstatement of its abilities. It is more like a convection microwave that wishes it were an oven. The problem I face with this lower form of technology is that it does not cook evenly and therefore it is difficult to determine when the cookies are done. The best way to tell is to look at the bottom of the cookie. It should turn a light golden brown when it has baked sufficiently.

I wanted to be fancy for my Aunt Nancy’s cookies, so I got the brilliant idea to pipe the buttercream onto the cookies. I have included the two cookies that I determined to be worthy of my favorite person. Let’s just say that piping bags, frosting tips and weak hands led to me ditching the piping for a good old fashion butter knife. Which, when all was said and done, worked out fabulously and the cookies tasted fantastic! Overall, the cookies didn’t turn out the way I imagined they would. There was crumbling, falling through cooling racks, burst piping bags and a general mess when I was done. As I write this I realize I should have taken some pictures so you could share in the laughter this caused, but alas I will have to become more mindful with capturing the process.

I then used this recipe with a child that I work with. She has trouble with sensory integration, and this interferes with her eating new foods. For her I brought the cookies and the frosting and let her crumble them and paint herself with frosting.

#baking #recipes