Drop Sugar Cookies

This is an awesome sugar cookie recipe. These are very soft and sweet. Enjoy!

5 ½ c. flour
1 ½ t. salt
1 t. soda
1/4 t. baking powder

1/4 c milk
1 c. shortening
1 c. butter
2 c. sugar
2 eggs
Mix dry ingredients together. Cream remaining ingredients together. Roll into balls & press slightly with bottom of a glass. Bake at 400 (convection 375) for 7-9 min.
Frost with a buttercream frosting.

Janell's Rolls

2 cups milk
2 t salt
½ cup sugar, plus 2 t sugar
½ cup shortening
2 eggs beaten
2 T yeast (If using SAF yeast, only use 1 T & you don’t have to let it raise separately in the ½ cup of warm water, you just dump the yeast and water and sugar in with the other ingredients)

½ c warm water
approx 7 c flour, divided

bring milk to a boil in microwave, approximately 5 minutes. Add salt, 1/2 c sugar, and the shortening. Combine 4 cups flour to cooled milk mixture, beat then add eggs, beat. In a separate bowl, combine yeast, warm water, and 2 t sugar. Then add yeast mixture to milk mixture. Add 3 cups of flour. Beat well. Let raise. Divide dough in half. Form each half into a ball. Using a rolling pin, roll each ball out onto lightly floured surface. It works well to spread flour on
the counter with a sifter and keep palms of hands covered in soft butter. Spread the top with melted butter. Cut each circle with a pizza cutter into 12 triangles, like a pie. Roll up like a crescent roll, beginning at widest end of triangle. Place close together on a 10 x 13 cookie sheet
4 rolls across and 6 down. Let raise again. Bake 350 17 minutes. Butter tops of rolls while hot.

Makes 24 rolls. This recipe can easily be halved if you're making it for a small family. Or turn half the dough into cinnamon rolls! Yum!

BROWN SUGAR SWISS MERINGUE BUTTERCREAM

1 cup light brown sugar
4 egg whites
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

Put sugar, egg whites and salt into the top of a double boiler over a pan of simmering water. Whisking constantly, cook until sugar has dissolved and mixture is warm (about 160 degrees). Pour heated egg whites into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat egg white mixture on high speed until it forms stiff (but not dry) peaks. Continue beating until fluffy and cooled, about 7 minutes total. Switch to the paddle attachment. With mixer on medium-low, add butter two tablespoons at a time, beating well after each addition. Increase speed to medium-high; continue beating until frosting appears thick, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low and continue beating 1 minute to reduce air bubbles.

Great on Creme Brulee Cupcakes
Recipe from HowToEatACupcake

Recently I made the Creme Brulee Cupcakes into a 3 layered cake. I tinted the Brown Sugar SMB pink (for my daughter's birthday) and followed a Martha Stewart technique for piping it on my cake. Here's the finished product.

Crème Brûlée Cupcakes

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt, plus a pinch for the egg whites
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 ½ cups sugar
2 eggs, separated
1 cup milk
3 tablespoons caramel syrup (ice cream topping)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Mix flour, baking powder, and salt together and set aside.
3. Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Alternately beat in dry ingredients and milk. Add caramel syrup and vanilla. Beat until smooth.
4. Beat egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff but not dry. Gently fold whites into batter.
5. Spoon batter into cupcake papers, filling cups about 2/3 full. Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool.

Frost with Brown Sugar Swiss Meringue Buttercream.
Recipe from HowToEatACupcake