"Every Christmas, my grandmother's best friend, Mrs. Mack, would give me and each of my brothers just one of these cookies, large and exquisitely decorated," writes Wendy Phillips Kahn of New York, New York. "I would save mine for days and then nibble carefully to make it last. Today, it seems a little decadent to make a whole batch, yet my daughter and I love the excuse to use our extensive collection of cookie cutters, and then enjoy painting our reindeer, Christmas trees, bells, birds, and snowmen, complete with jaunty ribbons around their hats. They may not be as elegant as Mrs. Mack's, but they're a colorful highlight in gift boxes of treats."
Note: One of our readers alerted us to a problem with the cover recipe for cinnamon cookies in our December 2000 issue. We forgot the eggs! In order to make the cookies properly, add 2 lightly beaten eggs after beating together the butter and sugar, mix until blended, then follow the rest of the recipe. We apologize to Mrs. Mack, Wendy Phillips Kahn, and all of our readers for this oversight. These cookies are truly delicious, and we hope that you enjoy them.
Recipe information
Total Time
4 hours
Yield
Makes about 6 dozen
Ingredients
For cookies:
For icing and decoration:
Preparation
Make cookies:
Step 1
Sift together flour, cinnamon, and salt.
Step 2
Pulse walnuts with 2 tablespoons sugar in a food processor until finely ground (be careful not to grind to a paste).
Step 3
Beat together butter and remaining sugar with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Beat in eggs until combined. Mix in flour mixture and nuts at low speed just until blended. Form dough into a disk and chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, about 1 hour.
Step 4
Preheat oven to 325°F.
Step 5
Keeping remaining dough chilled, roll out half of dough 1/4 inch thick on a lightly floured surface. Cut out cookies with a 2 1/2- to 3-inch floured cookie cutter. Chill scraps.
Step 6
Arrange cookies 1 inch apart on greased baking sheets.
Step 7
Bake cookies in batches in middle of oven until firm but not browned, about 10 minutes. Transfer cookies to a rack to cool. Make cookies with remaining dough in same manner, rerolling scraps no more than twice.
Ice and decorate cookies:
Step 8
Whisk together powdered egg whites and water, then stir in confectioners sugar and lemon juice until smooth and spreadable.
Step 9
Spread a thin layer of icing on 1 cookie with a metal spatula or knife and sprinkle lightly with walnuts. (Use your imagination and decorate more elaborately if you like.) Decorate remaining cookies in same manner. Let icing harden, about 1 hour, before storing cookies.
