cook - "art" cookies

These were a lot of fun to make, and were almost a craft as much as they were a baked good. The idea came from (of course) Martha Stewart . They're just a simple sugar cookie, rolled out and cut into rectangles, and then decorated with food coloring. I cringed a bit at the quantity of food coloring required, as I try to limit anything artificial in my children's diet, but this project was a blast and went a long way toward chasing the winter blues away!

As to the decorating, the instructions have you drop a few drops of color on a cookie, then blow the drops of color with a straw to splatter the colors around on the cookies. The six-year-old was able to manage this with no problem, but the three-year-old was a little challenged by it, so I ended up letting him use a paint brush, which was just as fun. I think next time we make them I may try watering down the food color a bit (to relieve my conscience) and just use paint brushes to paint designs or pictures. Definitely lots of possibilities!

Since we were just cooking for our little family, I halved Martha's recipe, and still got a lot of cookies out of it. This is what I did:

In a small bowl stir together with a whisk:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

In the bowl of a mixer, or using a handheld mixer, beat together until fluffy:
1/2 cup butter
1 cup granulated sugar

Then add:
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla

Gently mix flour mixture into butter mixture until well combined. Cover well with plastic-wrap and chill for 30 - 45 minutes.

When you're ready to make the cookies, pre-heat the oven to 325º. Roll out dough on lightly floured countertop until it's about 1/4 inch thick. Using a knife, cut the dough into rectangles or squares, and place cut shapes on lightly greased or parchment paper lined cookie sheets, leaving at least an inch between cookies.

Now you're ready to decorate. To follow Martha's instructions, drip food coloring directly on to a cookie, then blow through a straw to create a cool splatter pattern. Or, to make it easier for littler ones, drip some food coloring onto a little plate and allow them to paint the cookie with a paint brush.

Once the cookies are decorated, place them in the hot oven, and bake for about 15 minutes, or until edges of the cookies turn a golden brown.

This recipe made about 24 cookies, each about 2 x 2 1/2 inches.