A comment from a reader of last week’s newsletter prompts this article today. Sandy, after reading “Sugar Cookie Dough Makes So Much More Than Cookies,” said “I was hoping for a good sugar cookie dough recipe to go with these ideas. There are so many sugar cookie recipes that are tasteless. Maybe next time.”

I was so glad she took the time to write and really appreciated her response. Here’s what I replied:

“Sandy, I have to say I was surprised by your comment. I honestly thought EVERYONE had a favorite sugar cookie recipe, so to be able to include more ideas content (we have a space-constraint with our articles), I opted to forgo including a recipe. But sounds like you’re wanting a recipe, so here’s my favorite. If you’re not interested in a lemon sugar cookie, omit the lemon zest, and lemon emulsion and increase your vanilla. I also make orange and maple sugar cookie using this recipe. The secret as mentioned below is flavor emulsions, rather than extracts. I get them at a cooking specialty store…I hope this meets your interest and needs. Thanks for commenting! Best, Alice”

My thought is that if Sandy was disappointed at a sugar cookie recipe not being provided last week, maybe the rest of you are as well. So read on for the recipe I shared with Sandy in the comments section, as well as a couple other basic recipes that I think you’ll enjoy.

With these 3 basic, timeless cookie recipes (sugar cookie, oatmeal, peanut butter) you can add a variety of embellishments and end up with several different cookie flavors and personalities. Only the surface has been scratched with these recipes, by the way. Add your imagination and see what clever cookies you can come up with.

But before launching into the recipes, let’s talk about emulsions versus flavor extracts. I’ve discussed it before, but for our new readers, here’s an explanation of the main difference between emulsions and extracts:

· Emulsions are water based and not alcohol based.

· Emulsions are superior to extracts because when they are subjected to high heat the flavor will not bake out.

· They have a more potent, robust flavor, so you’ll end up with a better flavor in anything you bake by using emulsions.

And you can substitute like for like. For instance, if a recipe calls for 1 tsp of extract, you can substitute 1 tsp of emulsions. Just like extracts, you can use the emulsions to flavor cakes, cookies, icings, fondant and all you're baking. When it comes to flavoring, professional bakers almost exclusively use emulsions over alcohol-based extracts. LorAnn is my favorite, and you’ll find them at any kitchen specialty store.

OK, now the cookie recipe I shared with Sandy—a basic sugar cookie dough that is perfect for flavor changes (it’s a lemon version here). I’ve also included my recipes for two more variations on the sugar cookie theme—orange and coconut. This versatile dough feels and looks like Play Dough™. It is the base for several different flavored cookies. So whether it’s a lemon sugar cookie, an orange sugar cookie, or a coconut sugar cookie, this recipe responds well to whatever flavor you’re in the mood for.

LEMON ZINGERS ( Yield: 2 dozen cookies)

1½ cups butter, softened

2¼ cups sugar

4 eggs, well beaten

2 teaspoons lemon zest

1 teaspoon vanilla

½ teaspoon lemon flavored emulsion

5¼ cups all-purpose flour, sifted

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder (try Rumford’s—it’s aluminum free)

¾ teaspoon salt

Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Stir in well-beaten eggs and beat until thick. Add lemon zest, vanilla, and lemon flavored emulsion. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together. Add dry ingredients, one cup at a time, to the butter and egg mixture. Divide into 3 or 4 parts, wrap in plastic wrap and chill thoroughly (several hours or overnight).

Next day, preheat oven to 375° F. Roll out dough to ¼-inch on a floured surface cut circles. If baking in a warm climate, keep each piece of dough in the refrigerator until you are ready to work with it. Place cut cookies on un-oiled cookie sheet with a ½-inch margin between cookies to allow for any spreading. (You can prevent cookie spread by chilling the entire baking sheet before baking.)

Bake until just barely brown around the edges, approximately 8 to 12 minutes, depending on your oven and baking sheet. Check periodically to prevent over-baking. These are delicious dipped in a lemon glaze:

LEMON GLAZE:

¾ cup confectioners’ sugar

1/3 cup milk, cream, or buttermilk

1/8 teaspoon lemon flavored emulsion

Pinch of salt

1 tablespoon lemon zest

In a medium bowl, mix ingredients well. While cookies are still warm, gently dip tops into glaze. Place on rack to continue cooling.

TIP: Flavored emulsions are what professional bakers use. Extracts contain alcohol, which tends to burn out when cooking or baking. Emulsions stay true, providing full-bodied flavor. They can be found at kitchen specialty stores.

ORANGE ZINGERS (Yield: 2 dozen cookies)

Same basic sugar dough recipe, but orange emulsion is substituted for the lemon emulsion, and orange zest is substituted for lemon zest.

1½ cups butter, softened

2¼ cups sugar

4 eggs, well beaten

2 teaspoons orange zest

1 teaspoon vanilla

½ teaspoon orange flavored emulsion

5¼ cups all-purpose flour, sifted

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder (try Rumford’s—it’s aluminum free)

¾ teaspoon salt

Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Stir in well-beaten eggs and beat until thick. Add orange zest, vanilla, and orange flavored emulsion. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt together. Add dry ingredients, one cup at a time, to the butter and egg mixture. Divide into 3 or 4 parts, wrap in plastic wrap and chill thoroughly (several hours or overnight).

Next day, preheat oven to 375° F. Roll out dough to ¼-inch on a floured surface cut circles. If baking in a warm climate, keep each piece of dough in the refrigerator until you are ready to work with it. Place cut cookies on un-oiled cookie sheet with a ½-inch margin between cookies to allow for any spreading. (You can prevent cookie spread by chilling the entire baking sheet before baking.)

Bake until just barely brown around the edges, approximately 8 to 12 minutes, depending on your oven and baking sheet. Check periodically to prevent over-baking. These are delicious dipped in an orange glaze:

ORANGE GLAZE:

¾ cup confectioners’ sugar

1/3 cup milk or cream

1/8 teaspoon orange flavored emulsion

Pinch of salt

1 tablespoon orange zest

COCONUT Ooo-Aahs (Yield: 3-4 dozen cookies)

This recipe is so named because everyone that tries these “Ooos” and “Aahs” with every bite. Coconut flavored emulsion is the secret to this no-roll sugar cookie dough—it provides a full, deep-bodied flavor that doesn’t wimp out upon baking.

1 cup sugar

1 cup butter, at room temperature

1 egg

1 teaspoon coconut emulsion (coconut extract works as well)

¾ cup shredded sweetened coconut

2 cups flour

½ teaspoon soda

½ teaspoon cream of tartar

½ teaspoon salt

Sugar for rolling cookie dough balls

¼ cup buttermilk

½ cup shredded sweetened coconut

Cream butter and sugar. Blend in egg, coconut flavoring, and coconut. Sift together dry ingredients and mix into batter. Roll cookie dough into walnut-sized balls and roll in sugar. Place on un-oiled cookie sheet. Flatten with bottom of glass. Mix buttermilk and ½ cup shredded coconut together. Top each cookie round with ½ teaspoon buttermilk and coconut mixture; top this with another flattened cookie round. Pinch edges together. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until cookies edges are just golden.

OATMEAL CHUNKIES (Yield: 3 dozen cookies)

Take a basic oatmeal cookie recipe and add whatever you or your family fancies. The result is a chewy, hearty, and chunky cookie that will earn you the title of “Clever Cookie Baker Extraordinaire!”

1 cup butter, softened

2 cups firmly packed brown sugar

2 eggs

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 cups old fashioned oats

1 (12 ounce) bag white chocolate chips

1 ½ cups dried cherries

1 ½ cups roughly chopped nuts (walnuts or pecans work well)

Preheat oven to 400° F. Blend butter, sugars, eggs, and vanilla until fluffy. Sift together flour, salt, and baking soda. Add flour mixture and oats, 1 cup at a time. Beat after each addition. When well blended, fold in white chocolate chips, dried cherries, and nuts. Drop onto un-oiled cookie sheet using a soup spoon or cookie dough scoop. Bake 10-12 minutes or until edges are barely golden brown. Do not over-bake these—easy to do with an oatmeal cookie.

PEANUT BUTTER PEEK-A-BOOS (Yield: approximately 3 dozen)

A traditional peanut butter cookie dough takes on a whole new persona when a chunk of Snickers Bar is added!

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup sugar

½ cup butter, softened

2 beaten eggs

1 cup peanut butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon soda

1 teaspoon salt

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 large Snickers Bar

Preheat oven to 375° F. In large bowl, mix sugars and butter until creamy. Add eggs, peanut butter, and vanilla. Mix until well blended. Sift together flour, soda, and salt. Add flour mixture. Roll dough into large log, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 1 hour or more.

When ready to bake, remove dough from refrigerator. Slice dough into 1/8-inch rounds. Place on un-oiled cookie sheet. Cut Snickers Bar in half, lengthwise, then each long half in half again. The cut these lengths in half width-wise. Keep halving candy bar sections until you have 32 small pieces of Snickers. Place a candy piece atop each cookie round and top them with another cookie round. Pinch cookie edges together to seal the candy piece securely inside the dough. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Watch closely to avoid over-baking.

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