Black-White Christmas Cookies

Cookies • Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat mat.
• In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda.
• In a separate larger bowl, cream the butter and sugar using an electric mixer.
• Add the egg, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg.
• Alternate gradually adding the flour mixture and the buttermilk into the batter until well combined.
• Load the batter into a piping bag with a round tip and pipe out small circles on the sheet, about œ-inch apart (or use a tablespoon to drop the batter onto the sheet).
• Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden on the edges.
• Let cool.
• Frost half the cookies with vanilla icing and the other half with chocolate frosting. Allow time to set and dry completely before storing or stacking.

Chocolate Icing • Put the chocolate chips in a bowl and pour the hot water over them, stirring until combined.
• Add in the rest of the ingredients and stir.
• Add more powdered sugar if necessary to achieve a spreadable consistency. (Start with small quantities of sugar and work your way up according to consistency and flavor.)

Vanilla Icing • Stir all ingredients together in a bowl.
• Add more powdered sugar if necessary to achieve a spreadable consistency. (Start with small quantities of sugar and work your way up according to consistency and flavor.)

This article appears in December 2011.