Baking My Way: Molasses Jack-O-Lantern Cookies

These cookies are seriously tasty! If you bake them so they're still nice and soft they just melt in your mouth with that butter cream frosting. Oh, I'm so glad I'm bringing them to a party tonight because other wise I would just sit here and eat them all by myself!

Ingredients

Cookies
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup molasses
1 egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons grated orange peal
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cloves



Frosting
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup shortening
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon salt
4 cups powdered sugar
2 to 4 tablespoons milk
3 drops red food color
6 drops yellow food color
4 drops green food color
Miniature chocolate chips
Gumdrops
Candy Corn

Directions to make Cookies

In large bowl, beat sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add molasses and egg and blend well.
Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup and level off. Stir in flour and remaining cookie ingredients and mix well.

Cover cookie dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 to 3 hours for easier handling.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

On well-floured surface, roll half of dough to 1/8-inch thickness.

Cut with floured 3-inch pumpkin-shaped or round cookie cutter.

Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.

Repeat with remaining half of dough.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 6 to 9 minutes or until set.

Immediately remove cookies from sheets and place on wire rack to cool completely.

In small bowl, combine half of Buttery Icing, 3 drops red food color and 3 drops of yellow food color and blend well to make orange icing.

Divide remaining icing mixture in half and place in two small bowls.

Add 4 drops green food color to one bowl and remaining 3 drops yellow food color to second bowl and blend each bowl well to make green and yellow icing.

To decorate cookies, frost each cookie with orange icing.

Use green and yellow icings, chocolate chips, candy corn and gumdrops to make faces on the frosted cookies.


Directions to make Icing

In large bowl, beat butter and shortening until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and salt.

Beat in powdered sugar 1 cup at a time, scraping down sides of bowl.

Add 2 tablespoons milk and beat at high speed until light and fluffy.

Add enough additional milk for desired spreading consistency.

(This is what the cookies look like in the book. I decided to do them my way...Mainly because I didn't want to go out and buy all the little candies and a cookie cutter just for this recipe. Maybe next year..Plus I already had those sprinkles, and who doesn't like sprinkles!)