My gift to you this Christmas is a box of sugar cookies that come together faster than you can say happy holidays. But you don’t have to use mine. Perhaps you have an old holiday cookie recipe passed down from your grandmother to your mother – or you just found it in this year’s magazine.

Maybe you grabbed a tin of cookie dough at the grocery store last week. None of this matters. What matters is that these cookies are made special by making them with those you love. I sure had a blast decorating ginger and sugar cookies with my grandkids this season, and making sure we had enough on hand for Santa.

Our cookies give new meaning to “tree trimming”, and sparkle with Fancy Sprinkles.

So, this season, grab someone special, get out the cookie cutters, and share a couple laughs while you make some cookies!

Christmas Sugar Cookie Recipe

15 minute cuisine

Makes about 3 dozen cookies

For the dough

3 cups all-purpose unbleached flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg, beaten

1 tablespoon whole milk

For the baked cookies

Red, green and gold sprinkles and icing

Confectioner’s sugar for work surface

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Mix flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Set aside.

Place the butter and sugar in a separate mixing bowl and beat by hand. You can use a mixer but it’s more fun to hand-mix!

Add the beaten egg and milk into the butter and sugar mixture until just combined, gradually adding the dry ingredients and beating until mixture resembles cookie dough.

Divide the dough in half, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 2 hours.

Sprinkle work surface with confectioners’ sugar. Remove cookie dough from refrigerator, and sprinkle rolling pin with more of the confectioner’s sugar.

Roll out the dough to just under an inch thickness, moving it around on your work surface so it doesn’t stick.

Cut the dough into Christmas tree shapes, and place into the oven for 9 to 10 minutes. Let the cookies cool before you decorate them with the icing and sprinkles.