Soft Sugar Cookies

So it was "one of those evenings". You know, where one bad thing unsettles the entire schedule? ...And we're off... Wait... dinner's cooking... overly sensitive fire alarm goes off... Crayon's are flying... I have to get the toddler's stuff ready for tomorrow. Medicine? Oh yeah, forgot to take it... Change the bedding due to said toddler's accident last night... got it... I know there's more. And then it becomes 9pm?! HOW?! Just how?!

Yeah one of those. 

In the middle of it all "genius" here decides to bake cookies with the toddler. And what did we get? ~ Someone (not naming any names, but he's 2 & 1/2) was heavy-handed on the colored sugar ;) ~ 

DeLish-iousness with these looks:

Soft Sugar Cookies  

 by Laura Stearns  "This Recipe is a State Fair Blue Ribbon winner. This is an easy sugar cookie recipe, you don't have to roll it out, and the cookies are soft and chewy, unlike other sugar cookies. Anybody can make these." from allrecipes.com

• 2/3 cup shortening
• 2/3 cup butter
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar for decoration

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). 

In a medium bowl, cream together the butter, shortening & sugar. Stir in the eggs & vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder & salt, stir into the creamed mixture until dough comes together. 

Using a little flour, roll dough out to 1/4" thick.Cut into shapes. Sprinkle (or drown like we did) with colored sugar ;) )

~OR~

Just roll dough into walnut sized balls & roll the balls in sugar.

Place them on a parchment-lined cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. 

Bake cookies 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, until bottom is light brown. Remove from baking sheets to cool on wire racks.