On Halloween Eve, making cutout cookies for the holiday seemed like the perfect thing to do. I found this recipe which had originally been published in Cooking Light. I liked that it made a small batch of cookies (about 2 dozen); the ingredients were all things in my cupboards and required no extra trip to the grocery store; and they are easy to decorate! Enjoy!
Ingredients
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 large egg whites
1/4 tsp. vanilla
1 cup powdered sugar
1 or 2 Tablespoons orange juice
Orange food coloring or red and yellow food coloring to make orange
Preheat oven to 350F
Combine flour, cocoa and salt in small bowl. Stir to combine.
Cream butter and sugar in mixer until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add egg whites and vanilla, beat until well combined. Add flour mixture and beat at low speed until just combined.
Spoon dough onto a sheet of waxed paper; cover and refrigerate for one hour.
Roll dough to 1/4 inch on lightly floured surface, using half of the dough. Cut into desired shapes. Refrigerate remaining dough to keep it chilled. Place cookies on baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake 10 minutes. Cool 2 minutes before removing from baking sheet.Cool completely before frosting.
While cookies are baking, place powdered sugar in small bowl. Add orange juice, one teaspoon at a time until frosting is a thick consistency. Add food coloring to tint orange. Use a small decorating tip to pipe icing outline on cookies or you can place icing in plastic bag and cut off a tiny corner to use as a decorating bag.