INGREDIENTS

• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 3/4 cup molasses
• 1/3 cup water
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 5 3/4 ounces sourball hard candies

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large mixing bowl, cream butter or margarine, brown sugar and molasses until smooth. Blend in water. Stir together flour, baking soda, salt, and spices. Gradually add flour mixture to creamed mixture; blend well.
2. Cover and chill for 1 hour.
3. Cut out paper stars, bells, or other christmas motifs. Trace onto a sheet of aluminum foil.
4. Roll pieces of dough into ropes about 1/4-inch wide. Outline the designs with ropes of dough. Press ends lightly together.
5. Separate candies by color. In a blender or food processor, coarsely crush candies. Fill in dough outlines with the candies.
6. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 4 to 5 minutes or until cookie is set and candy melts. Cool on baking sheet.

Source: All Recipes

Baking cookies is relatively straight forward, but there are a few things you can do to make sure you turn out the perfect batch. Ten things you can do, as a matter-of-fact!

1. Use the best quality ingredients. They’ll produce the tastiest cookies.
2. Always use large-sized eggs, unsalted butter and nuts, and pure extracts of vanilla or almond.
3. Successful baking relies on the correct ratio of ingredients, so be sure to measure accurately.
4. Most cookie recipes call for all-purpose flour. For the best results, lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup and level with a knife. Do not sift unless the recipe specifically says to do so.
5. Unless you are baking with non-stick pans and cookie sheets, use parchment paper for stick-free baking and easy clean-up.
6. Chill dough for cut-out cookies. Soften it up at room temperature for a few minutes before rolling out.
7. Leave two inches of space between cookies so they don’t spread into each other.
8. Adjust baking times to achieve the cookie texture you crave. A little less time produces chewier cookies; a little more time makes them crispy.
9. Bake bar cookies in the pan size indicated in the recipe.
10. Cool cookies completely before decorating.

Source: All Recipes