thumbprint cookies

regular or chocolate...you can't eat just one.

(note: always assume oven racks are on the middle shelves)

regular: (makes appx 50)

1/2 c shortening

1/2 c butter

1/2 c brown sugar

-beat well

2 c flour

2 egg yolks (no need to keep whites)

1 t vanilla

-add one of these items at a time

-roll into balls appx 1 inch in diameter (if you have a small ice cream scoop/melon scoop...pampered chef works great!...use that)

-place on greased sheet

-bake at 375 for appx 5 min...take out and press in the center GENTLY (a bottle/lid of a food coloring container works well). try not to press so hard/deep that the edges crack.

-flip cookie sheets (opposite oven racks) and bake for appx 7 more minutes

-don't let them get brown on top

chocolate: (makes appx 25)

1/2 c butter

1/2 c sugar

1 egg yolk (save the white seperately)

1/2 t vanilla

-mix together

1 T cocoa

1 c flour

1/4 t salt

-sift together and add to wet mixture

-make into 1 in diameter balls

-roll in slightly beaten egg white

-may also roll in chopped nuts, if desired

-place on greased cookie sheet

-for the chocolate cookies, wait until the very end when you take them out of the oven to press the center. for some reason, they're different than the regular thumbprints in that way.

-bake at 375 for appx 10-12 minutes

-try to NOT let them get brown on top or bottom. on the chocolate it will be harder to tell. but if you let the egg white get brown, it will have a burnt taste. :/

icing: (the original...runny)

3 oz cream cheese

2 1/2 c powdered sugar

1 t vanilla

1/4 c milk

food coloring

....

now the way i do it makes a huge batch of icing. but it's always nice to have on hand; it goes with anything! (great to drizzle on cinnamon rolls, etc.) it's just easier to do it all at once.

1 pkg (8 oz) cream cheese -whip

1-2 t vanilla

1 lrg bag of powdered sugar (appx 6 cups)

enough milk to keep the powdered sugar from flying everywhere...alternate the two

i like to keep my icing thicker. it's prettier to use it in a decorating tip, and it keeps its shape in the cookies better.

for the chocolate cookies, i usually take out about a cup of white icing and add about 1 T of cocoa. it's awesome!!!