Cookie Dough for Cutters

I have much to be grateful for, and have had a very exciting week. It’s time to celebrate with some cookies that you can cut and will keep their shape in the oven when baking.

On Friday last I discovered that I was on the shortlist of the Best Food/Drink Blog category for the Blog Awards Ireland 2012.  I’ll know at the end of the month whether or not I make the final list.  Either way it’s a huge honour so thank you once again to those who nominated me.

Tuesday; Glenisk selected me as their blogalicious blogger of the month in their Moosletter.  I just love that they call it a moosletter, I’m easily amused I know!

Wednesday evening I found out that not just 1, but 2 of my recipes had been chosen for the Goodalls Modern Irish Cookbook which will be published next month.  I can’t wait to see my recipes in print and I hope it raises loads of funds for the 2 selected charities.

Cook With Avonmore today chose one of my recipes to feature on their website.  I’ve tweaked on of my most popular recipes to be made with their products and you can find out more about it, and the other recently featured bloggers here.

Finally, the blog celebrated its 6 month anniversary in the past week.  Not only has it surpassed all my expectations, I can’t even begin to describe how excited I am for the future.  Thank you all so much for reading, returning and chatting with me from the bottom of my heart.  I’m just a stay at home mother who hates housework but loves cooking!

Right to celebrate I’m sharing with you my secret for crisp cookies that keep their shape after cutting out.  It’s a recipe I’m often asked for, particularly around Halloween.  It takes 10 mins to make, then a further 10 mins to bake.  The dough can be chilled for up to 2 days in advance but you can also freeze it for a month ahead.

This recipe makes approximately 15 large cookies but over 30 medium ones.

Ingredients

• 300g plain flour
• 90g of caster sugar
• 85g of butter at room temperature
• 2 medium eggs
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract (or the seeds from 1 vanilla pod)

Equipment

• Weighing scales
• Sieve
• Large bowl & wooden spoon (a handheld mixer or a stand mixer are even better)
• 2 Flat baking trays
• Baking parchment (greaseproof variety)
• Scissors
• Rolling Pin
• Cookie Cutters
• A handful of flour for dusting your worksurface
• A clean, smooth worksurface

Method

1. Cut a large piece of baking parchment.  Fold it in half, then open back out so that your sheet has a crease in it.
2. Put the paper directly onto the scales and weigh out the flour and baking powder onto it.
3. Move the sheet of paper carefully to a safe place where it won’t get spilt.
4. Place your mixing bowl onto the scales and weigh out the sugar and butter.
5. Beat well until soft and fluffy.
6. Add the eggs one by one and beat until they are well mixed into the batter.
7. Add the vanilla extract or seeds from a pod.
8. Pour the flour and baking powder slowly into the bowl and beat until mixed with the eggs, sugar and butter.
9. Beat until everything becomes a tight dough ball.
10. Cut a large piece of cling film and turn out the dough onto the cling film.
11. Wrap well and place into the fridge for at least 1 hour before rolling and baking.
12. At this point you can put the dough into the freezer to keep for up to a month.  Just remember to take it out to defrost in the fridge until you are ready to cut it to size and bake.
13. After at least an hour heat your (fan) oven to 180 degrees Celcius.
14. Cut out more baking parchment to line the baking trays.
15. Dust your worksurface and rolling pin with flour.
16. Roll the dough to approximately 0.5-1cm thick.
17. Cut as you please with whatever shape cutters you like.  I used a variety of different cutters this time.
18. If you want to do an interior cut out, then cut out the main shape on the worksurface. Transfer the dough to the baking tray, then cut the inside part out before baking.
19. Place onto the lined baking tray and into the oven.
20. The amount of time the cookies will take to cook depends on their size.  A medium (palm of your hand) sized cookie takes approximately 10 mins.  Adjust your cooking time up if they are bigger or thicker, down if they are thinner or smaller.
21. Remove your cookies from the oven after they are cooked, leave to stand on the baking tray for 2 mins, then remove from the parchment and place them directly onto a wire rack to cool.
22. Decorate them with icing or eat them as they are.
23. If you’re a chocolate biscuit fan then add 2 teaspoons of cocoa powder along with the vanilla extract and cover them with chocolate.