#4 Peppermint Sugar Cookies!

 Decorating sugar cookies is like therapy for me. Sometimes I just get so focused and into it, and I forget about everything else for a while. In the end I have something that is a cute and edible piece of art that makes others smile.  Experimenting with different flavors for the sugar cookies is half the fun. Peppermint flavored sugar cookies are delicious any time of year.
Here's what you'll need:
2 sticks butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups flour
1 tbsp baking powder
3/4 cup crushed peppermint

 Here's how to put it all together:
Cream butter and sugar together in mixer, then add egg and vanilla. In a separate bowl mix together flour and baking powder. Add flour mixture to the other ingredients and mix until well combined. Lastly, add crushed peppermint until just combined.  Next, I like to chill the dough in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes so that it rolls out easier and sticks less to the surface when you go to pick it up and place it in the cookie pan.  I like to roll out the cookie dough to 3/8 inch thickness when using cookie cutters to cut the dough.  I also recommend using airbake style cookie sheets as they bake evenly and without burning the cookies. No parchment paper needed.
Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes.
Now you can eat the sugar cookies as is or you can decorate them with royal icing.
A basic royal icing recipe that I use is 4 cups powdered sugar, 3 tbsp meringue powder mixed with just enough water to get the consistency you want for flooding or piping.  For the cookies below I added 1/2 teaspoon of peppermint extract just to give it that added minty flavor.