From:
Martha Stewart Living

Holiday Cookies: 1 Dough, 4 Cookies

Here's one of the best-kept secrets of professional bakers: It takes only one cookie dough to produce a beautiful assortment of holiday cookies.With a few subtle twists (a sprinkle of coarse sugar, a burst of orange zest) and basic tools (a rolling pin, a cookie press), you can make clever variations from a single sugar cookie recipe.

In just an afternoon, you'll have dozens of sparkling snowflakes, jam-filled thumbprints, powdered snowballs, and festive flowers -- all worthy of a bakery display case.

Basic Sugar-Cookie Dough

Our Basic Sugar-Cookie Dough recipe can be used to create:
Santa's Snowflakes
Orange Spritz
Chocolate-Raspberry Thumbprints
Hawaiian Snowballs

First Published: December 2003

Ingredients

Makes enough for our 4 varieties of cookies.

2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
2 teaspoons salt
5 cups all-purpose flour

Directions

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs, vanilla, and salt; mix on medium speed until combined. With mixer on low speed, add flour in 2 batches, mixing just until incorporated.
Divide dough into 4 equal portions. Place each on a piece of plastic wrap; flatten into disks. Wrap in plastic wrap; refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours or up to 1 week.
Santa's Snowflakes
Ingredients

Makes about 2 dozen.
- 1/4 Basic Sugar-Cookie Dough
- Sanding sugar or colored sprinkles, for decorating
Directions
1. Divide dough in half. Roll out each half between two pieces of parchment paper to about 1/8 inch thick. Transfer each half to a baking sheet; cover tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours or overnight.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks on upper and lower thirds. Remove one sheet of dough from refrigerator, and let stand 1 minute. Using a 3-inch snowflake-shaped cookie cutter, cut out shapes. Place shapes 2 inches apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. Gather together scraps, and reroll as above; chill until firm, 10 to 15 minutes, then cut out more shapes. Repeat process with second sheet of dough.
3. Decorate cookies with sanding sugar or sprinkles, as desired.
4. Bake cookies in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching positions of sheets halfway through, until golden around the edges and slightly firm to the touch, about 15 minutes. Let cool on baking sheets 1 minute; transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Store in airtight containers at room temperature, up to 5 days.
Orange Spritz

If you stack the finished cookies in a tin or other airtight container, place waxed paper between the layers to protect the chocolate decoration.
Ingredients

Makes about 2 dozen.
- 1/4 Basic Sugar-Cookie Dough
- 1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest
- 2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks on upper and lower thirds. On a piece of parchment paper, pat out dough to Ë™ inch thick. Sprinkle zest evenly over top; knead to incorporate.Transfer to a cookie press; pipe shapes, about 1 inch apart, onto ungreased baking sheets.
2. Bake cookies in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching positions of sheets halfway through, until edges are light golden, about 15 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
3. Set a small heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water; add half the chocolate to bowl, and stir until melted and smooth. Add the remaining chocolate; remove bowl from heat. Stir until smooth. Transfer chocolate to a pastry bag fitted with a very small (less than 1/16 inch) plain round tip, such as Wilton #1.
4. Transfer cookies to a sheet of parchment paper. Pipe chocolate in a zigzag pattern over tops. Let stand until chocolate has set. Store in airtight containers at room temperature, up to 5 days.
Chocolate-Raspberry Thumbprints

For softer cookies, bake 12 minutes; for crisper ones, bake 16 minutes. If you'd like, melt extra chocolate for the filling, then add to cookie centers and top with the jam.
Ingredients

Makes about 4 1/2 dozen.

1/4 Basic Sugar-Cookie Dough
3 1/2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
4 ounces walnuts, finely chopped (1 cup)
1/3 cup seedless raspberry jam, warmed

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. Place dough in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Set a small heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water; add the chocolate, and stir until melted and smooth. Drizzle chocolate over dough; mix on low speed until just combined.
Place walnuts in a shallow dish. Form dough into 1-inch balls; roll balls in nuts, coating completely. Place balls on parchment-lined baking sheets. Use your thumb to make an indentation in center of each ball. Chill 20 minutes.
Bake cookies in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching positions of sheets halfway through, until firm to the touch, 12 to 16 minutes. Remove from oven. Using the handle of a wooden spoon, press indentation of each cookie to redefine shape; fill each with about 1/4 teaspoon jam. Transfer sheets to wire racks to cool completely. Store in airtight containers at room temperature, up to 5 days.

Hawaiian Snowballs

Ingredients

Makes about 4 dozen.

1 cup salted, roasted macadamia nuts, finely chopped
2/3 cup finely chopped dried pineapple
1/4 Basic Sugar-Cookie Dough
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks on upper and lower thirds. On a clean work surface, toss nuts with dried fruit. Sprinkle over dough; knead until just blended.
Form into 1-inch balls; place 2 inches apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake cookies in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching positions of sheets halfway through, until edges are barely golden, about 15 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Dust with sugar. Store in airtight containers at room temperature, up to 5 days.