COOKIES: This is a versatile recipe that can produce a variety of cookie shapes for festive occasions, or plain & easy-to-make cookies for everyday enjoyment.

VIENNESE SHORTBREAD COOKIES:

 

 

 

2 cups all purpose flour

 

1 cup butter                                             

½ cup sugar

2 drops vanilla extract                                                

1 egg yolk

 

 

 

 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Put flour in the oven, while it is heating up, to warm slightly.

 

Use a hand-held electric beater to cream butter with sugar until fluffy and light. Beat in egg yolk and vanilla extract. Add half the flour into butter mixture, mixing until thoroughly combined with a wooden spoon. Add remaining flour and mix it well. Knead dough slightly together. Form dough into balls of desirable size, and place them on greased and floured baking sheets. Press and flatten out each ball with a fork dipped in flour, making criss-cross patterns. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly golden.

 

 

VARIATIONS: Put pastry into a pastry bag with a ½-inch star nozzle fitted to make various shapes of cookies.

 

To make rosettes:  Pipe 1 1/2-inch round rosettes of dough on a greased baking sheet. Half a candied or Maraschino cherry may be added in the center of some of the rosettes. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until light golden brown. Remove from baking sheet and cool on rack.  They may be left plain, sprinkled with confectioners’ sugar, or sandwiched together with raspberry jam.

 

To make chocolate covered fingers:  Pipe dough unto 2 ½ to 3-inch lengths. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Cool on racks until cold; then dip both ends in melted chocolate; and allowed to set.

 

To make rings:  Mark a greased and floured baking sheet with a 2-inch round cutter. Pipe pastry to fill in the marked rings. Bake 10 to 12 minutes. Cool. These rings may be lightly sprinkled with toasted slivered almonds before baking, or partly dipped in chocolate after they cool.