Laddie and the Cooky Book

You'll have to read clear to the end for the part about Laddie..
I was room mother many times in the past for my kids schools. It seemed that they always had their hand in the air, when it came time to volunteer Mom for something special. Be it Cub Scout den mother, Brownie and Girl scout leader, and room mother. So many moms started working in those days and it fell upon us stay at home moms to do the job. While I'm reminiscing I have to say that it seemed that the moms who always had time to help were the ones with lots of kids. My kids and I made so many treats together. Their little hands were most often in their mouths, and sprinkles were everywhere. It was a mess, but so much fun for us. Valentine's Day was my favorite time to plan a party for school. I love the color red and the shape of a heart. In my crafting years...I did so many things with hearts. My house was filled with heart shaped things. Anyway, back to the party...Refreshments always were heart shaped sugar cookies. I must have made a million of these in my lifetime. Many times late at night, while my family was sleeping. You would find me in the kitchen rolling out the cookie dough and using my old cookie cutters to make the cookies. I used an old recipe that made the most tender cookie and it was sweet enough to not need frosting. I did frost the cookies with pink, white, and red frosting when they went to school parties. I put the sprinkles on and in the days when kids could take them to school, I might add some names to the top. Now days, you can't bring a homemade treat to our schools. I always ask Audra if she had a Valentine's party...and she says, ""No." What a shame that kids no longer can enjoy a homemade treat. No more homemade cupcakes either....for birthdays. After my kids left home...I still continued making cut out cookies. Many times for Valentine's Day...but mostly for Christmas.

Here is my recipe for cutout cookies...

Mary's Sugar Cookies

1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
granulated sugar

Mix together sugar and butter. Add egg, vanilla, and almond extract; mix well. Blend in flour, baking soda and cream of tartar. Cover and chill for 2 to 3 hours. Heat oven to 375 F. Divide dough in half. Roll each half 3/16 inch thick on lightly floured cloth-covered board. Cut into desired shapes; sprinkle with granulated sugar or frost. Place on lightly greased baking sheet. Bake 7 to 8 minutes or until light brown on edges.

This recipe came from my out-of-print cookbook called "Betty Crocker's Cooky Book," printed in 1963. A couple of years ago, our dog Laddie, was nosing around the bookshelves where I keep my favorite cook books. This cookbook was worn and tattered from years of use. I'm sure that it had some delicious smells on many of the pages, butter, cinnamon, sugar etc. Well, our beloved Laddie smelled that cookbook and pulled it out, when we were gone one day. He must have had a field day with that book. It was chewed to pieces when we got home. It was the only book that he ever destroyed. Laddie had a sweet tooth I guess :) I no longer have the cookbook...now I have to get those recipes on the internet at the Betty Crocker website.Whenever I make those cookies, I think of Laddie.

Balisha