"Shape" cookies help please

[chocaholic73]

My DD wants to make some Christmas cookies in shapes of Christmas trees, snowmen etc. All the recipes we have used in the past, taste yummy but tend to go splodge in a big way when cooked and totally lose their shape. Can anyone tell me what we are doing wrong, or is there a difference in recipes for cookies?

Shortbread recipes seem to work well.

These work perfectly

Suitable for freezing before decorating.

100g/4oz slightly softened butter
50g/2oz caster sugar
175g/6oz plain flour
pinch of salt
a few drops of vanilla essence

For the icing:
100g/6oz icing sugar sifted
½tbsp lemon juice or water

Preheat oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.

Beat butter and sugar

Sift together the flour and salt & mix into butter mixture with vanilla essence to form a fairly stiff dough.

Form dough into a ball, roll out thinly on a floured work surface.

Cut into heart shapes using biscuit cutters.

Arrange on greased or lined baking sheets and bake for about 12 to 15 minutes or until the biscuits are lightly golden.

To make the icing, mix icing sugar with enough lemon juice or water to make a good spreading consistency. Spread or pipe onto the cooled biscuits

ooooh they sound lovely, I will be baking tomorrow - have just bought some new cookie cutters!

I might have to make some now!

I tend to use a Gingerbread recipe for Christmas Cookies, always smells christmassy

I too have new cookie cutters and Christmas sprinkles that I can't wait to try out

Dont' freeze them baked, freeze them as dough. Make a double quantity of dough and freeze a batch which you can whip out for freshly baked home made biscuits in an emergency. If you're really keen, you can freeze then cut out and then bake from frozen.

If you're really keen you can freeze them cut out...

Yes, I would only freeze the dough, not the cooked biscuits - I forgot the recipe said you can freeze them cooked. I never do.