How Sweet it is.... Cookies Made with Love

Who doesn’t love good homemade baked goods? When I was young living in Brooklyn, my mom always baked things from croissants to cinnamon buns, cakes and cookies. I also worked in a bakery in my teenage years so I was constantly surrounded by sweets. But the one missing ingredient was the ingredient of love that was in my mom’s baking.

Nowadays, my mom doesn’t bake like she used to but when she does, it’s a trip down memory lane.

My two younger nephews have peanut allergies so they can’t eat a lot of store bought treats. Anyone who knows someone with a food allergy can relate to this. It’s absolutely heartbreaking to tell a child they can’t eat what other kids are able to, especially at birthday celebrations in school or with friends.

My mother has been making these cookies for years - they are cake like bites and easy to make. Because she uses less sugar, I often indulge in a few!

Mama Mary’s Cookies - baked with love

Cookies:

1/2 cup milk

2 teaspoons lemon juice

4 cups flour, plus more for dusting the baking pan

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 eggs, at room temperature

2 1/2 sticks butter, at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon lemon zest

3/4 cup sugar

Icing:

1 cup confections sugar

5 to 6 teaspoons milk

1 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees and have two cookie sheet pans ready sprinkled with a little flour.

2. Combine milk and lemon juice in a small bowl and let sit for a few minutes. It will thicken like buttermilk.

3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt and set aside.

4. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar on medium-high until very smooth and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes.

5. Add eggs to the creamed butter mixture, one a time and then vanilla.

6. Scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure all is combined.

7. Add two thirds of the flour mixture and beat on low speed until combined.

8. For the last third, mix by hand until just combined and be careful to not over mix.

9. Put the cookie batter in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.

10. Using a tablespoon, drop dough, on flour dusted baking pans, 1 inch apart and bake for about 20 minutes, until cookies turn light brown and place on a wire rack to cool.

11. For the icing, combine the confectioners’ sugar, milk and lemon in a bowl until smooth, then dip the top of the cookie in the icing and back on the wire rack to dry.

Recipe makes about 40 cookies. Store in air tight containers for up to a week in the refrigerator. You can also freeze them and let come to room temperature when serving (if you can wait!).