Animal Cracker Cookies Recipes

Steps:

• For the dough: Add the granulated sugar and butter to the bowl of an electric mixer and beat until smooth. Add the vanilla and egg and beat again, scraping the sides of the bowl halfway through. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the milk to the mixer until the dough comes together. Flatten the dough into a disc and put it in a plastic bag. Refrigerate until chilled, about 2 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or baking mats.
• Roll out the dough to 1/4 inch thick and cut out as many cookies as you can in a variety of animal shapes. Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheets and bake until they're just barely done, 8 to 10 minutes; you want them to be set, but not brown. Let the cookies cool completely before decorating.
• For the frosting: Sift the powdered sugar into a bowl, add the food coloring and 1/4 cup cold water and stir to combine
• Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack set over a baking sheet and drizzle the frosting over them. Let the frosting dry before serving the cookies, about 2 hours.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grind oats until fine using a blender or food processor.
• In a medium bowl, stir together the blended oats, flour, baking soda and salt. Cut in the butter using a pastry blender or your fingers until the butter lumps are smaller than peas. Stir in the buttermilk and honey to form a stiff dough. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to 1/8 inch in thickness. Cut into desired shapes with cookie cutters. Place cookies 1 inch apart onto cookie sheets.
• Bake for 5 to 7 minutes in the preheated oven, until edges are lightly browned. Remove from cookie sheets to cool on wire racks.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, beat shortening, milk and honey with electric mixer on medium speed until blended. Stir in remaining ingredients until well blended.
• Divide dough in half. On lightly floured cloth-covered surface, roll half of dough at a time 1/8 inch thick. Cut with about 1 1/4- to 1 1/2-inch animal-shaped cookie cutters. On ungreased cookie sheet, place cutouts about 1 inch apart.
• Bake 6 to 8 minutes or until edges are very light brown. Remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.

Steps:

• Over small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, nutmeg and mace, set aside.
• In bowl of electric mixer beat butter on high speed for 2 minutes.
• Reduce the speed to medium, slowly add sugar and beat for 2 minutes, stopping the mixer occasionally to scrape down sides of bowl.
• Add the egg and vanilla and beat for 1 minute, again stopping once to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
• Stop the mixer and add half of the flour mixture.
• eat on low speed until most of the flour has been absorbed.
• Add remaining flour and beat until all of the flour has been absorbed and dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl, 2-3 minutes.
• Turn dough out onto a work surface and divide into 2 equal balls. Shape eacy into a disk and wrap separately in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.
• Let the dough stand at room temperature for 5 minutes. Place each dough disk between 2 clean, large pieces of plastic wrap.
• Roll out dough to 1/8 inch thickness (If dough cracks while rolling, let it stand at room temperature for 5-10 minutes) Remove plastic wrap and place the dough on a floured work surface. Lightly dust the top of dough with flour.
• Preheat oven to 350.
• Line several baking sheets with parchment paper. Dip cookie cutters (I have circus animal shapes) into flour just before using and cut out the shapes.
• Bake cookies until very light golden brown, 14-16 minutes. Transfer to wire rack and alow to cool to room temperature.