Koko's Kitchen: Soft Sugar Cookies with Buttery Frosting

Because I teach baking classes a lot, and therefore am in the kitchen testing sweet recipes all the time, I am not always in the mood to taste-test my new recipes. I love baking them and am so happy when others enjoy eating them, but I sometimes feel like my sweet tooth has disappeared. I guess I shouldn't be so concerned though, because just yesterday, only a couple days after teaching a gf cakes and cake decorating class in the city, I was craving sugar cookies. But not your ordinary sugar cookies. A thick, soft sugar cookie with sweet frosting. Something like those disgusting frozen packaged cookies I used to put on the shelf when I worked in a "bakery" at a grocery store in Michigan oh so many years ago. So, I searched and searched for some good recipes and came up with one that was for thick, soft delicious sugar cookies, not vegan of course. So with a little tweaking, it easily became vegan and when they came out of the oven and had that delicious thick icing spread on top, oh god were they amazing. I actually ate two of them right in a row, which rarely rarely happens. When hubbs came home from work, he devoured three of them and then chugged an ice cold glass of filtered water. I ended up packing two of them in his lunch for today too. He also got a nice fresh blueberry muffin I have been testing too. Nice day for snacks for him. He's very lucky his wifey is on vacation now, because there is so much I am overdue on.

So many things I have been needing to do but just not able to really spend a lot of time to do them. Yesterday and today I have been working on reorganizing my spice and baking cabinet, which really needs some reworking. I've changed over all of the containers the spices go in and have to go pick up a label machine (I have one in Michigan, but that really doesn't help me here!) to keep things nice and organized. I also did 4 loads of laundry yesterday, hung it out to dry and have to put it away today. So not fun stuff. Now though I get to start testing some recipes I have had listed for the longest time. Hopefully I can get started today, but I'm sure I'll be in the kitchen all day tomorrow. I have also been asked to make a vegan wedding cake for a close friend. No stress there. So I have to start testing the cake flavors she and her fiance are thinking about having. So hopefully coming up, you'll be seeing some of the interesting things I am going to be up to in the next couple days. Until then, enjoy these super tasty cookies!

Delicious soft sugar cookie with sweet frosting!

Yields 20 Cookies

1 cup earth balance

1 cup organic sugar

4 tablespoons flax eggs

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

3 cups organic unbleached flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking trays with parchment paper and set aside until ready to use.

2. In the bowl of a mixer, place the earth balance, sugar, vanilla extract and flax eggs. Whip until light and fluffy and the sugar has incorporated well.

3. In a separate bowl add the dry ingredients: the flour, baking powder and sea salt. Whisk well to combine. Stop the mixer and add the flour mix. Turn the mixer on slow and whip until a thick dough forms.

4. Place the dough in a clean bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes, or until the dough firms up, but does not become too hard to work with.

5. Generously coat your work surface with flour and roll out the dough to desired thickness, To get those thick, soft cookies, keep the dough thick.

6. Use preferred cookie cutter and place cut out dough onto prepared baking sheets. Bake for about 8-12 minutes, or until the cookies turn a very light golden color. Do not overbake or they will not be those delicious soft sugar cookies.

Frosting:

1/3 cup earth balance, melted

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

4 tablespoons rice milk

5 cups sifted, organic powdered sugar

1. Place the butter, vanilla and rice milk in a large bowl. Whisk together very well.

2. Add the powdered, sugar, 1 cup at a time, until the frosting reaches desired consistency. (I used a little spirulina powder (and I mean a little!!) to tint it that nice green color.
3. Once the cookies cool completely, frost as desired with the frosting.