CLASSIC SUGAR COOKIES

Our tender, delicate butter cookie is sure to become a favorite in your house. Decorate with colored sugar or Ornamental Frosting , if you like.

Prep: 1 hour 30 minutes plus chilling
Bake: 12 minutes per batch

3 cups all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup butter (2 sticks), softened (do not use margarine)

1½ cups sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. In large bowl, with wire whisk, stir flour, baking powder, and salt. In separate large bowl, with mixer at low speed, beat butter and sugar until blended. Increase speed to high; beat until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Reduce speed to low; beat in eggs and vanilla until mixed, then beat in flour mixture just until blended, occasionally scraping bowl with rubber spatula. Shape dough into four equal disks; wrap each disk and refrigerate overnight, or freeze until firm enough to roll, at least 2 hours.

2. Preheat oven to 350°F. On lightly floured surface, with floured rolling pin, roll one piece of dough until slightly less than ¼ inch thick; keep remaining dough refrigerated. With floured 3- to 4-inch cookie cutters, cut dough into as many cookies as possible; reserve trimmings for rerolling. Place cookies, 1 inch apart, on two ungreased large cookie sheets.

3. Bake until golden around edges, 12 to 15 minutes, rotating cookie sheets between upper and lower oven racks halfway through baking. With wide spatula, transfer cookies to wire racks to cool completely.

4. Repeat with remaining dough and trimmings. Makes about 72 cookies.

Each cookie: About 61 calories, 1g protein, 8g carbohydrate, 3g total fat (2g saturated), 13mg cholesterol, 47mg sodium.

JAM-FILLED SUGAR COOKIES

Prepare, chill, and roll dough as directed. With 2½-inch fluted round or other decorative cutter, cut dough into rounds; with smaller cutter (1 to 1¼ inches), cut out and remove centers from half of rounds. Reserve centers for rerolling. Bake as directed; cool completely. Using 1 cup seedless raspberry jam, warmed, spread whole rounds with thin layer of jam. Top with cutout rounds. Makes about 36 cookies.

Each cookie: About 144 calories, 2g protein, 23g carbohydrate, 5g total fat (3g saturated), 26mg cholesterol, 98mg sodium.