Cream Cheese Cookies

Recipe From: Maura Gallagher's mom
Notes:  I acquired this recipe when in sophomore year of college (so 1989-1990), a group of us decided we needed to see The Little Mermaid movie, which had just come out.  It wasn't playing in Williamstown, or North Adams, but it was playing in Red Hook, NY, Maura's home town.  So off we went.  We watched the movie, and then descended on Maura's parents house, where her mother graciously fed the completely unexpected horde of college students these fabulous cookies.

Ingredients

8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 lb butter, softened
2 1/2 cups flour
1 jar strawberry preserves (or any preserves)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup sugar
raisins
confectioners sugar

Instructions

Cream butter and cheese and mix with flour.  Chill dough.

Sprinkle powdered sugar over surface that you'll roll the dough out on.  Take small fists of dough and roll out into a thin circle about plate size.  Cut like a pie into 16 pieces.  Sprinkle with cinnamon, nuts and sugar.  Place one raisin & tiny drop of jam on each piece.  Roll up from wide to narrow end.  Bake at 375 degrees for approx 10 minutes or until lightly browned.  Repeat with remaining dough.

These freeze very well.

Smørkranser (Butter Wreaths)

Recipe From:  Ruth Hassing, Kirsten's grandmother

Notes

This is a Norwegian recipe translated by my aunt Åse Blake, Ruth's daughter.

Preheat Oven to:  350 degrees

Ingredients

1 egg
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup ground almonds
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 cups flour
12 Tbl butter

Instructions

Grease cookie sheet.  Beat egg and sugar.  Add finely chopped almonds and vanilla.  Work in butter, sifted flour and baking powder.  Chill dough.  Use cookie press (star shape); make them about 3 inches long.  Form into a circle.  Bake until golden brown and crisp in 350 degree oven for 10 to 15 minutes.

Makes 3 dozen.

Pepperkaker

Recipe From: Ruth Hassing (Kirsten's grandmother)

Notes

This is a Norwegian recipe translated by my aunt Åse Blake, Ruth's daughter.

Preheat Oven to:  375 degrees

Ingredients

1 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
1 egg
2 Tbl dark corn syrup
2 tsp baking soda, dissolved in a little warm water
3 cups flour
2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground cardamon

Instructions

Sift together dry ingredients, except soda; set aside.  Cream butter and sugars.  Add egg and syrup and mix well.  Dissolve the soda in a little warm water; add to egg mixture and stir thoroughly.  Add sifted dry ingredients and stir until blended.  Chill several hours.  Roll quite thin and cut into shapes with cookie cutter.  Bake at 375 degrees for about 7 minutes.

Grandma Hullinger's Sugar Cookies

Recipe From: I'm not sure.  It's a variant on the Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies from Great-Grandma Hullinger I published yesterday, similar to but not the same as.  I clearly got it from someone in the family as it has a note at the bottom, but all I have is a typed version so I can't even use handwriting as a clue!  If you wrote this down, let me know so I can credit you!

Preheat Oven to: 350 degrees

Ingredients

4 cups flour

1 cup butter, or shortening

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 3/4 cups sugar

2 eggs

4 egg yolks

1 tablespoon vanilla extract, lemon or almond

1 cup milk

1 tsp baking soda

Original Instructions:  Sift together the dry ingredients and set aside.  Beat the eggs and set aside.  In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar; add the beaten eggs and continue to beat until mixed.  Add vanilla and flour mixture and stir until well mixed.  Chill.

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Roll out chilled dough on a floured surface to about 1/4 ".  Cut into rounds or shapes with cookie cutters.  Sprinkle with sugar if desired.  Bake until edges are lightly brown, 15-17 minutes.  Decorate with colored icing, sprinkles, etc. if desired.

Notes
I remember that Grandma Hullinger (your Great-Grandmother) made great sugar cookies. I found this recipe in a box of recipes from their house. Grandma wrote that Ruthanne called these Grandpa's cookies. Dough must chill.

Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies

Recipe From: Agnes Hullinger (Kirsten's great-grandmother.  Agne's daughter was Ruth.  Ruth's daughter is Ruthanne and Ruthanne's daughter is me.) San Jose, IL

Preheat to: 350 degrees

Ingredients

2 3/4 cup flour
2 3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup margarine or butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp grated lemon rind, opt.

Original Instructions 

"Sift measure add bp. and salt
cream butter add sugar and eggs
beat
add vanilla and flour.  Chill and roll. Sprinkle sugar.  Bake."

Instructions for bakers not as experienced as Great-Grandma Hullinger

Sift flour with the baking powder and salt. In a separate bowl, cream the butter.  Add the sugar and eggs, beating between each addition.  Add the vanilla and optional lemon rind.  Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients.  Chill for a few hours in the refrigerator.  Roll out dough 1/4 inch thick and cut out cookies.  Sprinkle with sugar or decorations if desired.  Bake at 350 degrees until slightly gold at edges (4-8 minutes, depending on the size of the cookie).

Notes:  Keep covered in a tin with a cut apple or orange slice to keep soft.  I've also made these with orange rind and once with grapefruit rind.  All very good!  I bet lime rind would also be good.  I think my mother first added the lemon rind.  She would cut them out with a large glass to make big round cookies and would sometimes put a raisin in the center before baking.

These cookies are intended to be thick and soft, not thin and crunchy.