Belly of the Beest

When presented with an array of cookies to choose from –say, chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin, peanut butter or sugar with brightly colored icing– I always reach for the sugar one, but change my mind midway through the gesture and grab a different one.

I sometimes feel like the sugar cookies are using aposematic coloration—or warning colors. Let’s turn this into a science discussion for a moment and assume the sugar cookies are sentient beings. Sugar cookies are cookies that want to be seen. It’s to the advantage of a cookie species if predators (humans) only have to eat, or attempt to eat, a small number of cookies before they learn to avoid them in the future. The more unique the appearance of the cookies, the easier it is to learn not to bother with it. So the more elaborate the frosting, the more dangerous it could be to eat the cookie. Naturally, in order for this to work properly, the cookie in question has to taste foul, which is usually the case with sugar cookies.

Despite my nasty run-ins with bad sugar cookies from bakeries across Chicago, I wanted to include some cute and tasty ones in Easter baskets for my nephews and niece. They make the basket look more festive and can be good to eat, but the proper combination of cookie and frosting must be achieved. Enter the “Casbah Sugar Cookie.” My Aunt Miriam always made these at Christmas and it is honestly the best sugar cookie recipe I have ever found. I had up until this year made these with a traditional butter based frosting, but this year I made royal icing and it made them even better!

I can’t say why they are called “Casbah” cookies, but that is what they are called and so it will remain. So, if you are like me, this sugar cookie recipe will change your attitude toward sugar cookies, but I still shy away from the cookies at the bakery. It’s not worth the risk, better to go for the hard to mess up chocolate cookie.

This post is the first to include prices with the recipes. I know when I read some food blogs I look at the ingredients and I think I can’t afford to eat like that. More on this later, but for now, I will list the price per ingredient with grand totals for each recipe. Nick and I buy mostly organic, but I know not everyone does, so I will post both in the future, this recipe is a mix because that is how I cook/bake, but for purists, I will research and post both in the future.

Now, without further ado, the recipe.

Casbah Sugar Cookies- Bake at 375 for 6-8 minutes or until the edges start to brown.

Ingredients

Total cost of the cookies: $2.19 or $2.75 if you use organic eggs

Shift together the flour, baking powder and baking soda in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar together, then blend in the eggs and vanilla. Add the sifted dry ingredients slowly until just combined.
Divide into three large balls then flatten them on a large plate. Chill the dough. I usually chill it for at least an hour, but overnight works too. The main thing is giving the dough time to come together and to become less sticky.

When the dough is chilled remove from the refrigerator and roll out 1 of the balls to about an 1/8 of an inch thickness on a floured surface. If you like puffier cookies then don’t roll it so thinly. When the dough is rolled out cut out using cookie cutters or a floured drinking glass. Continues cutting shapes until your run out of dough, gather up the scrapes and re-roll it. Continue until you run out completely! The baking time is quick so watch your cookies. The key with these is not letting them over bake. These cookies should be soft when you take them out of the oven. If you cook them too long they will get very hard. Let the cookies sit on the cookie sheet for a couple minutes before you remove them and they will be less likely to break.

Now to decorate them! I used Royal Icing since is dries smooth and is lighter. It also freezes well which means you can make the cookies ahead of time without worrying about the quality deteriorating. I think next time I might use infused liqueur instead of warm water to change up the taste a little bit, but here is the basic recipe.

Royal Icing Using Meringue Powder:

Total for the icing: $1.78

For Royal Icing with Meringue Powder: In the bowl of a stand mixer (or with a hand mixer), stir the confectioners’ sugar and meringue powder until combined. Add the water and beat on medium to high speed until very glossy and stiff peaks form (5 to 7 minutes). If necessary, to get the right consistency, add more powdered sugar or water. To cover or ‘flood’ the entire surface of the with icing, the proper consistency is when you lift the beater, the ribbon of icing that falls back into the bowl remains on the surface of the icing for a few seconds before disappearing.

The icing needs to be used immediately or transferred to an airtight container as royal icing hardens when exposed to air. Cover with plastic wrap when not in use.

Makes about 3 cups.

Use food coloring sparingly to color the icing and be sure to keep the icing covered while decorating because it dries out quickly. If you want to get fancy, check out this site.  She’s got some good tips!

This recipe makes anywhere between 4 and 6 dozen cookies (depending on the size of your cookies.) So, for less than $5.00 you can eat yourself sick on sugar cookies. Pretty amazing I think! Question for people who read the blog: Would you like to see basic nutritional information (calories, protein, carbs, and fat) with recipes? Or just the prices?

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