Hey Colgate! Welcome to the final 2004 edition of Cooking with Tom! I can’t believe that another year is almost gone and that the Holiday season is upon us once again. Though I’m not a big fan of the crazy shopping and all the traffic, I do love this time of year for all the delicious baked goods that start to pour out of everyone’s kitchen. Pies, cakes and most importantly, cookies! They seem to come in all shapes, sizes, colors and flavors this time of year and new recipes are always being introduced. Even with all of the new goodies being created every year, I still like three traditional cookie recipes that have been made in my family during the Holiday season all my life.

Sugar Cookies1 cup shortening2 cups sugar3 eggs1 tsp. baking soda1 cup milk5 cups flour1 tsp. lemon juice

Dissolve baking soda in milk. Soften shortening, then in a large blender gradually add the sugar and flour. When all these ingredients have combined, add milk, lemon juice and eggs and mix until dough forms. Drop desired size cookies onto a greased baking sheet. Gently press down on the ball of dough with a potato masher to give the cookies a square pattern. Sprinkle the cookies with a little more sugar before baking. Bake at 3750 for 10-12 minutes.

Snickerdoodles1 cup shortening1 1/2 cups sugar2 eggs2 3/4 cups flour2 tsp. cream of tater1 tsp. baking soda1/2 tsp. salt2 tbsp. sugar2 tbsp. cinnamon

Cream together shortening, sugar and eggs. Using a pastry blender, gradually add the rest of the dry ingredients, except for the extra sugar and cinnamon. When dough is formed, chill for about an hour then form into walnut sized balls. Roll the balls of dough in the cinnamon and sugar, then bake for 10-12 minutes at 3750.

Cut-out cookies1 cup margarine1 1/2 cups sugar2 eggs1/2 tsp. nutmeg1 tsp. almond flavoring3 1/2 cups flour1 cup 10x sugar (powdered)Milk

Cream the margarine and gradually add sugar, eggs, nutmeg, almond flavoring and flour until dough forms. Chill for at least an hour, then place all of the dough on a floured counter top. Knead the dough for a brief minute, then roll out to about a half inch thick. Cut out cookies with your favorite shapes and bake on an un-greased baking sheet for 8-10 minutes at 4000. The icing that my family has always used is very simple. Take the cup of 10x sugar and slowly add milk to it, until you’ve created a runny frosting. When you put the frosting on the cookies it will harden so don’t worry. Decorate the cookies all you want and use some food coloring in the frosting to make them more festive.

I hope you enjoy the Holiday season and have a great end of the year. Good luck on finals, Happy Holidays, Happy New Year and until next year,

Eat, drink and be merry!