Sugar Cookies

1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 egg
2 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cream of tartar

What to do:
You can also use refrigerated sugar cookie dough -- roll out, and cut with cutters.
Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy (using an electric mixer on low speed.) Tip: Hold the bowl steady, and invite your child to hold the beater with two hands, making small circular motions. Tell her to always keep the beater firmly down on the bottom of the bowl.
Add egg and vanilla, and continue to mix until smooth.
Combine flour, baking soda, and cream of tartar in a small bowl, and slowly mix into butter mixture.
Gather dough into a ball, press into a disk shape, and wrap in plastic. Chill dough for an hour.
Preheat oven to 375 F.
On a lightly floured surface, roll to approximately 1/8" thickness. Tip: The trick to using a rolling pin is to roll and press at the same time. Have your child first practice rolling with both hands on a dry board to get the feel of the back-and-forth motion. Then show how to press down while rolling. Your child can try practicing on play dough or clay a few days ahead of time.
Use winter-themed cookie cutters to create shapes. Tip: Often the problem with little hands and cookie cutters is that kids don't press down hard enough to cut through the dough. Suggest to your child that she use both hands and lean into the cutter to make a deep cut. (Again, a low work surface helps.)
Bake on a greased baking sheet until light brown (8 to 10 minutes). Remove cookies and place on a baking rack to cool. Tip: Have your child use a spatula to lift the cookies off the board and onto the cookie sheet.
Royal Icing
Royal icing is perfect for holiday cookies you want to serve or give as gifts -- the icing dries hard so you can stack and/or freeze your cookies ahead of time.
The recipe for the icing is very simple. The trick is the consistency. If the icing seems too thin, add more sugar. If it is too thick, add more corn syrup or water. The goal is to create icing that is easy to paint or squeeze onto the cookies.

It is essential that the cookies be completely cool before icing them. Try making a two-day cookie event with your child. Make the batter, roll, cut, and bake one day. Ice and decorate the next day.

Icing
1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 tsp. milk
2 tsp. light corn syrup
food coloring

What to do:
In a small bowl, stir together the confectioners' sugar and milk until smooth.