The Preschooler’s Busy Book (6 page)

These sturdy cookies, baked and glazed ahead, can be painted with food coloring for a rainy day or party project.

Ingredients

2 cups softened margarine or butter

2 cups granulated sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

5 cups flour

5–9 teaspoons warm water

1½ pounds powdered sugar

Food coloring

Materials

Large bowl

Electric mixer or fork

Cookie sheet

Knife or cookie cutters

Aluminum foil

Paintbrush

Small cups

1.
Beat butter, granulated sugar, and vanilla together.

2.
Add flour and mix until thoroughly blended.

3.
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.

4.
Roll out the dough on an ungreased cookie sheet to ¼–
3/8
-inch thickness.
Cut into shapes with a knife or floured cookie cutters.

5.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until dough is a pale golden color.
Let cookies cool about 7 minutes, then transfer to a foil-covered surface.

6.
To make icing, add warm water to icing sugar until icing is smooth and thick.
Spread the icing onto the cookies, making a smooth surface.
Let the icing dry thoroughly (8 to 24 hours).

7.
When the icing is dry, paint on it with food coloring.
Use a paintbrush and small cups of food coloring—undiluted for bright colors or slightly diluted for lighter ones.
Food coloring will flow, so allow each color to dry briefly before adding the next.

Note:
If making the cookies ahead of time, follow steps 1 to 6, and then store the cookies at room temperature for up to 4 days, or freeze for longer storage.
Thaw before painting.

This is the tastiest rolled cookie recipe I’ve found.

Ingredients

2½ cups flour

1 teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon ginger (optional)

½ teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

¾ cup butter

½ cup liquid honey

1/3
cup granulated sugar

1 egg

Colored sugar or sprinkles (optional)

Materials

Medium bowl

Large bowl

Electric mixer or fork

Rolling pin

Cookie cutters

Cookie sheet

1.
Stir together flour, cinnamon, ginger, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
Set aside.

2.
In a large bowl, cream together butter, honey, and sugar until smooth.

3.
Beat in egg.

4.
Stir in flour mixture, mixing well.
Cover and refrigerate dough for 1½ hours or until firm enough to roll and cut.

5.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

6.
Roll out the dough on a well-floured surface, about one-third of the dough at a time.
Cut into desired shapes using floured cookie cutters.

7.
Place on a lightly greased cookie sheet.
Bake for 8 to 10 minutes until lightly browned and firm to the touch.
Makes 3 to 4 dozen cookies.

Note:
You can decorate these with colored sugar or sprinkles before baking, or, when cool, cover with icing and then decorate.

This makes a truly great chocolate chip cookie.
Be sure to refrigerate the dough before baking, and don’t overbake them; they harden as they cool.
Double the batch and freeze half of the dough for instant, no-mess baking fun on a rainy day.

Ingredients

½ cup margarine, room temperature

½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup dark brown sugar, packed

1 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs, lightly beaten

2 tablespoons milk

2 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 cups quick-cooking oats

1 cup (or more) chocolate chips

1 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped

Materials

Large bowl

Electric mixer

Spoon for mixing

Cookie sheet

Teaspoon or tablespoon

Wire racks

1.
Cream the margarine, butter, and both sugars in a large bowl until light and fluffy.

2.
Add the eggs, milk, and vanilla and beat until blended.

3.
Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together and add to the butter mixture.
Stir just until blended.

4.
Stir in the oats.
Fold in the chocolate chips and walnuts.

5.
Cover the dough and refrigerate for at least one hour.

6.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Grease the cookie sheet.

7.
Shape the dough into balls, using a rounded teaspoon for small cookies or a scant tablespoon for large.
Flatten slightly into rounded disks.
Place 2 inches apart on the cookie sheet.

8.
Bake until the edges are slightly browned, but the cookies are still white, 8 to 10 minutes.
Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes.
Transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Ingredients

1¼ cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

¾ teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons salad oil

1
1/3
cups milk

1 egg, slightly beaten

Chocolate chips or blueberries (optional)

Materials

Large bowl

Fork, spoon

Electric griddle or skillet

1.
In a large bowl, with fork, mix flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt; add salad oil, milk, and egg, and stir just until the flour mixture is moistened.

2.
Preheat an electric griddle or a skillet; grease lightly with salad oil.

3.
Use a spoon to drop the batter into the pan to make animal shapes.
A bunny needs only a round shape for the head and two long shapes for ears (and maybe chocolate chips or blueberries for eyes).
Try to make a mouse with an oval body, smaller drops for the head, ears, and feet, and a long thin tail.
A turtle can be one big spoonful of batter surrounded by six smaller drops.
Try a cat, bird, giraffe, elephant—use your imagination!

Ingredients

1 egg

1 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

1¼ cup white sugar

½ cup margarine, melted

1¾ cup flour

2½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

White frosting

Shredded coconut

Materials

Large bowl

Electric mixer

Paper-lined muffin tins

1.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2.
Combine egg, milk, vanilla, sugar, and margarine in a large bowl and blend on medium speed with electric mixer.

3.
Add flour, baking powder, and salt, and mix on the top speed of mixer for 2 minutes.

4.
Pour into paper-lined muffin tins.
Bake for 20 minutes.

5.
Let your child frost the cupcakes with white frosting and dip them in coconut for snow.
Serve them for dinner or a teddy-bear tea.

These are delicious for adults and children alike!

Ingredients

½ cup butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar, lightly packed

½ cup corn syrup

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons vanilla

4 cups quick-cooking oats

½ cup peanut butter

½ cup chocolate chips

1½ teaspoons butter

Materials

Large bowl

Fork for mixing

9-by-13-inch baking pan, greased

Small saucepan

Teaspoon, knife