Ingredients

• Makes about 18 cookies
For the cookies
• 3 cups Flour
• 1 tsp Baking Powder
• 1 cup Butter
• 1 cup Sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp Vanilla
For Icing
• 3 Egg Whites
• About 3 cups Powdered Sugar

Instructions

1. In medium sized bowl combine flour and baking powder. In a stand mixer beat room temperature butter with sugar until the mixture pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Add egg and vanilla and beat until combined. Add flour on low speed, one cup at a time. Remove dough from bowl and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.
2. To roll and cut your cookies place dough onto a lightly floured surface. Lightly flour the top of the dough. Roll out to ¼ inch thick. Cut with your choice of cookie cutter. Place on parchment lined baking sheet. Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes. See below for doneness instructions. Allow cookies to cool completely before icing.
For the icing
3. Beat egg whites in a stand mixer with whisk attachment until soft peaks form. Add powdered sugar until medium peaks form. If the texture is too thin, add more powdered sugar, if too thick add a very small amount of water. You want the icing to stick the whisk and drip slowly off. Color icing as desired with gel food coloring.
To ice
4. Place colored icing in piping bags with small dot tip. Choose your base color of icing and pipe a thin border 1/8 of an each from the outer edge of your cookie. Allow border to dry slightly then pool base icing color inside. If necessary use a toothpick to spread or pop any air bubbles. If you want your decorative icing to be flush with your base color add the icing décor while the cookie is wet. If you want the icing to sit on top then wait for the base layer to dry slightly. Once decorated allow cookies to dry for at 8 hours before stacking or bagging.