Spritz cookies

1-1/2 c. soft butter

1 c. white sugar

1 egg

2 T. milk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 tsp. almond extract

1 T. baking powder

3-1/2 c. flour

Blend together the butter, sugar, egg, milk, vanilla and almond extracts, and baking powder. Add flour a little at a time - it will seem like too much, but keep mixing. The dough will coalesce the way it's supposed to. The cookies are kind of like a shortbread, so don't worry if this doesn't seem like other cookie recipes.

There's no need to chill this dough - it should be ready to work with right away. Load your cookie press with dough. In order to achieve the streaks of color like the cookies in my pictures, add a couple of drops of food coloring in between lumps of dough until the press is full. You can also use sprinkles to add color, or just mix food coloring into the dough for a solid color.

Use the cookie press and your chosen cookie disk to drop the cookies onto the pan - they will be small and delicate, and that's okay. Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Baking time depends more on your oven more than anything else. As I said, these cookies are delicate and even a little bit of brown will ruin them. The baking time with my oven is about six minutes - keep a close eye on the first few trays so that you can figure out the ideal baking time

To make Spritz cookies, you need a cookie press