Strawberry Sugar Cookies

Strawberry Sugar Cookies

Makes 15 large (¼-cup) cookies or 42 (1½-tablespoon) small cookies

ingredients

• 1 cup salted butter, softened (alternatively, use unsalted + ½ teaspoon kosher salt)

• 1½ cups granulated sugar

• 1 large egg

• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

• ¼ teaspoon almond extract

• 2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 teaspoons baking soda

• ½ cup pink sprinkles (optional)

• ½ cup dark chocolate chunks or chips (optional)

• 1 (1.2-ounce) bag freeze-dried strawberries (about 2 cups)

method

1. Preheat oven to 350*. Line both a large and small baking sheet with non-stick parchment paper. (For the smaller pan, choose one that will fit in your freezer.)

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugars at medium speed until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes). Add egg and extracts. Beat for 1 minute at medium speed, scraping sides of the bowl as needed.

3. In a bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt (if using). With mixer on low, slowly add flour mixture, beating just until combined. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl. Add sprinkles and chocolate (if using), and mix until combined. Stop mixer. Fold strawberries into dough by hand with a stiff spatula.

4. Using a ¼ cup or 1½ tablespoon spring loaded scoop, scoop dough onto small lined baking sheet. (Dough balls can be touching.) Freeze for 15 minutes. Place dough balls on the lined large sheet 3 inches apart.

   (Dough can be baked in batches, if needed. Store in fridge tightly wrapped, and freeze just before baking. Dough will keep up to 3 days in fridge or 2 months in freezer.)

5. Bake small cookies for 8 to 10 minutes and large cookies for 14 to 16 minutes, or until edges are golden brown and center is mostly dry in appearance. Let cookies rest on pan for 5 minutes; transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.  

Meyer Lemon Snowballs

If you’re looking for a last minute holiday cookie recipe, these snowballs are perfect. These little almond shortbreads flavored with Meyer lemon and tossed in powdered sugar are simple to make and last for several days if stored in an airtight container. If you don’t have Meyer lemons, you can substitute with your favorite citrus. Or, for more “festive” flavor, sub the tablespoon of lemon juice for bourbon and add a few fresh grates of nutmeg to the batter and over the top of the sugar coated cookies. (Eggnog snowballs? Heck yeah.)

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Meyer Lemon Snowballs

Makes about 36

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 cup almond flour

• ½ teaspoon kosher salt

• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened

• 1/4 cup sugar

• 1 tablespoon Meyer lemon juice

• 1 ½  teaspoons Meyer lemon zest, plus more to garnish

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• ½ teaspoon almond extract

• 2 cups powdered sugar

 method

1. Preheat oven to 325º. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  

2. In a large bowl, whisk together flours and salt. 

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar until smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add lemon juice, zest, and vanilla and almond extracts. Beat just until combined. 

4. With mixer on low speed, slowly add flour mixture. Beat until dough forms and becomes the consistency of playdough, about 20 seconds after all flour is added. Roll dough into 1 inch balls. (Using a 1½  tablespoon spring loaded scoop works wonders for this.) Place dough balls on baking sheet 1-inch apart. 

5. Bake for 16 to 18 minutes, or until edges begin to brown and dough does not look wet. Cool for 5 minutes. Roll cookies in powdered sugar and set on a wire rack to cool completely. Toss in powdered sugar again once cool. Top with lemon zest, if desired. Cookies will keep in an airtight container for up to one week.