Decorated Party Cookies

Great fun for your child's birthday party. Kids love decorating their own cookies. This activity should keep them busy a good half hour!

Ingredients:

Cookie Batter:

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 tsp. vanilla
• 3 1/2 cups flour
• extra flour to roll dough
• shortening to grease cookie sheets

Icing:

• 2 egg whites
• 1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
• 3 cups sifted confectioner's sugar
• food coloring: red, blue, green and yellow

Directions:

Cookie Batter: Beat butter in mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in cream cheese a little at a time. Add sugar and vanilla. Add flour and continue to stir until mixture is completely combined. It should be fairly stiff. Roll the dough out to 1/4 inch thickness on a lightly floured surface.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Cut circles or other shapes at least 5 inches in diameter, one for each child who will be at the party. Gingerbread men shapes work well. Perhaps give each child one circle and one gingerbread shape.

Place 1 inch apart on greased cookie sheets. Bake 10-15 minutes or until lightly browned. Allow cookies to cool. Give one or two cookies to each child. Let them ice their cookies and decorate with mini M and M's, nuts, raisins, colored sugar, chocolate or rainbow sprinkles, etc.

Icing: In medium bowl, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar until very foamy. Beat in confectioner's sugar gradually, until the icing stands in firm peaks and is stiff enough to hold a sharp line when cut through with a knife. Divide the icing among 5 small bowls. Leave one plain (white); tint the remaining icing with the 4 different colors of food coloring.

Let the children ice their cookies using toothpicks dipped in the different colored icings. To keep the icing from drying out until they work with it, cover bowls with damp paper towels. Icing recipe may be doubled if there will be many cookies decorated.

Cookie recipe makes about 2 dozen nice sized cookies, icing makes about 1 1/4 cups.

By Myst from Muncie, IN