"The Most Versatile Cookie Throughout The Year"!!
By: Sharon  Burkey
Published: Monday, April 4, 2011 - 7:43pm

Ingredients




1 1/4 cups Flour
1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/4 teaspoon Salt
Stir together in a medium bowl:
3 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
3 tablespoons Margarine
1/2 cup Granulated Sugar
1 Egg
1/2 teaspoon Vanilla or Almond Extract

Preparation

1 Beat butter, margarine,sugar, egg and extract in large bowl until well blended. Stir in flour mixture. 2 For Christmas Trees: 3 Shape dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate several hours or overnight. Preheat oven 350 degrees. Coat cookie sheet with vegetable oil spray. 4 For trees roll out dough on lightly floured surface to 3/8" thickness and cut into desired shape. Bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly browned. Remove cookies to a wire rack,cool. 5 Frost with glaze. 6 Vanilla Glaze: Stir 2 Tablespoons of milk into 1 cup of powdered sugar until smooth and slightly runny- add 1/4 teaspoon vanilla and tint green for trees. 7 For an Almond Cookie Variation: 8 Omit Vanilla and add 1/2 teaspoon almond extract to butter mixture. Add 1/3 cup finely chopped almonds to flour mixture. Shape dough into a 12" roll. Wrap and chill until firm. Slice into 1/4" slices. Bake as directed. Cool, dip half into melted semi-sweet chocolate & place on wax paper to cool.

About


 I submitted for the LA Times Holiday Bake-off!
I requested this recipe from My Mother-in- law, Edna who I dearly love! She made these for Christmas one year and I was soooo addicted to them! Originally they are called Vanilla Cookies & Almond Ice Box Slices. I liked them so much that I've made them throughout the year with different variations to go with the seasons or what we are craving for at the time. I've added Toffee bits,Mini M&M's, Mini Chocolate Chips,Mint Chocolate Chips(now hard to find!),Pecan,lavender,lemon,Walnut,Macadamia nut,and variety of shapes & colors throughout the year!
So let your imagination & creativity fly with this recipe!
Hope you enjoy as much as our family does!
Yum... now I'm craving them! 
Enjoy the journey with me to dig into cherished recipes and the stories they tell.Check by my cookbook cupboard blog.Enjoy!Sharon
http://steppingbackintimecherishedcookbooks.blogspot.com