Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies (with Butter Cream Frosting)

Dough:
4 cups sifted flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla

Frosting:
2/3 cup Crisco
1 lb powdered sugar
1/4 cup water
1 tsp vanilla
1 dash salt

1 In small bowl, sift flour with baking powder, salt and nutmeg. In large mixer bowl beat butter sugar and egg until light and fluffy. Beat in sour cream and vanilla at low speed. Gradually add flour mixture. Use rubber scraper to form dough into a ball. Wrap in wax paper or foil and place in refrigerator for several hours. Divide dough into four parts. Continue to refrigerate until ready to use.

2 Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly grease cookie sheets. On well-floured counter roll dough ¼ inch thick. With floured cutter cut dough and place 2 inches apart on cookie sheets. Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on wire racks.

3 To make frosting, beat the frosting ingredients for 5 minutes. Add coloring if desired. Frost only after cooled.

Cooking Tips
Other Cookie Ideas: Watermelon cookies. Red cookie dough with tiny chocolate chips for seeds and dipped in green frosting for the rind, also remember the Christmas tree made of various sized stars iced with green icing.

***COMMENT: These are the cookies we used to make and decorate each year for Santa. They are SO yummy and it is by far my favorite sugar cookie recipe. It seems strange to put sour cream in a cookie batter...but believe me...they are WONDERFUL! ...and SANTA LOVES THEM!

Recipe Source: Sherie K (my Mom)