Ginas Italian Butter Cookies Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Combine cake flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.
• Combine butter, sugar, and shortening in a large bowl; cream with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Mix in almond paste until thoroughly combined. Add eggs, vanilla extract, lemon juice, and almond extract. Reduce the mixing speed to low and slowly add dry ingredients. Scrape down the bowl once all dry ingredients are added, then mix on medium speed until evenly combined, about 30 seconds.
• Fit a large pastry bag with an 864 or 4S tip and fill bag with batter. Pipe evenly sized cookies onto an ungreased cookie sheet 1 1/2 to 2 inches apart, giving cookies space to puff slightly during baking.
• Bake in the preheated oven, in batches if necessary, until bottom edges are slightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• In a large mixer bowl, cream lightly the butter and sugar until really fluffy and pale, about three minutes.
• Add the egg and vanilla and mix until combined.
• At low speed add the combined dry ingredients and mix until just blended.
• Do not overmix.
• Place into a pastry bag fitted with a star tip, pipe onto prepared parchment lined cookie sheets, spacing two inches apart.
• If dough is too thick to pipe, pour in a few tablespoons of milk.
• If you make wreath or stars, you can add a cherry as decoration now before baking.
• Or you could just roll into small bals and flatten with a fork if desired.
• Bake for 10 to 14 minutes just until the bottoms and edges begin to turn golden brown.
• Remove from pans by sliding thw whole piece of parchment onto a large wire rack, and cool completely.
• Dip fingers or one side of each into melted chocolate and sprinkles if desired.
• Sandwich with raspberry jam also if desired, dip in melted white chocolate and crushed almonds.
• Leave plain also.
• Store in an airtight container.

Steps:

• Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl; set aside.
• In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until well combined, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing after each addition. Add the lemon juice and flour mixture and mix until the dough just comes together.
• Fill a 16-inch piping bag fitted with a large star tip with three-quarters of the dough. Pipe 3-inch-long strips 1 inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets (or pipe into stars if you prefer).
• Roll the remaining dough into 1 1/2-inch balls. Put some sprinkles in a bowl and roll the balls in the sprinkles to coat. Place the balls 1 inch apart on another parchment-lined baking sheet. Chill the dough for 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Bake until the cookie edges are just golden brown, about 11 minutes. Allow to cool completely before decorating and enjoying.
• To decorate: Spread raspberry jam on the underside of one of the long cookies and sandwich with another long cookie. Continue with the remaining long cookies and jam.
• Microwave the chocolate chips and coconut oil in a microwave-safe bowl in 20-second increments, stirring between each, until melted.
• Dip the sandwiched cookies first in the chocolate, then in the sprinkles. Set the cookies aside on parchment until the chocolate is set, about 5 minutes. The cookies will keep for a few weeks packed in an airtight container.