Grandma's NO CHILL Sugar Cookie dough

These were a family favorite growing up, and are a family favorite with my kids - they are SO YUMMY!!! Soft and chewy and sweet. It's taken a while for me to get close to as good as my mom in making them, but I'm almost there. Always a hit, and no waiting for the dough to chill!

Ingredients:

1 c. butter or margarine

2 c. sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

6 c. flour

1 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 c. milk

Sift together flour, salt and baking soda and set aside. Cream butter and sugar - mixture should still be grainy. Add eggs and vanilla, scrape down sides of bowl, and mix until eggs are blended in. DO NOT OVERMIX.

Combine flour mixture and milk in small quantities (about a cup a flour at a time) to butter mixture. Add ONLY enough milk to keep things moist - dough should remain firm enough to handle and roll out, but not stiff. You may not use all the milk.

It's best to divide into 4-5 'balls' and work with it that way. Knead each ball for a bit to make it a little more pliable. Roll out dough to about 1/4" thickness (maybe a little less, but NOT too thin) and cut into desired shapes, dusting the counter surface and top of dough ball with flour as needed.

Bake in a pre-heated 325 degree oven for 10 minutes. I have the baking time down for my oven, it may vary by oven. They should be taken out just before they begin to brown around the edges, so it may take a tray or two to get the timing just right. Transfer immediately to cooling racks.

FROSTING:

My mom always used this frosting, and it just makes the cookies!

2 c. confectioners sugar

1 tsp vanilla

milk

food coloring.

Mix first three ingredients, adding just enough milk to make mixture thin enough to dip cookie fronts in and have it stick and run off, but not so runny that it doesn't leave a good coating of frosting. It should NOT be runny! You can divide and add food coloring until you have the colors you want. Place frosted cookies back on cooling racks until frosting is set, at least an hour. You may want to put wax paper under the racks to catch any dripping. Enjoy!

5-2-11: So my friend Cassidy is hooked on these cookies, and asked me to try putting a stick on them so she could make cookie bouquets for her daughter London's first birthday. It worked - they turned out sooo cute! Now my mind is thinking of all sorts of things I can do with these - thanks for the idea Cassidy!!

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