St. Nicholas Cookies

Makes About 5-Dozen Small Cookies

Ingredients:

1 cup Unsalted Butter; Softened
2 tsp. Vanilla Extract
1 cup Granulated Sugar
1 1/4 cups Brown Sugar; Firmly Packed
2 Large Eggs; Slightly Beaten
3 1/2 cups All-purpose Flour
2 tsp. Baking Soda
2 tsp. Cinnamon
1 tsp. Nutmeg
1 tsp. Cloves; Ground
1/2 tsp. Ginger
1/2 tsp. Anise Seed; Ground
1/8 tsp. Salt

In a large mixing bowl combine butter and vanilla with both sugars and beat until light and fluffy. Add beaten eggs and blend well. Sift the flour and all remaining dry ingredients together and beat into the butter mixture. Either form the cookies now, or divide the dough and chill overnight.

Form the cookies now by rolling small pieces of dough into balls and baking on a greased cookie sheet in a pre-heated 350-F degree oven for 10-15 minutes.

After chilling the dough, either cut the rolls into 1/8-inch thick slices and place on a greased cookie sheet about 1/2-in apart, or roll the cooled dough out into 1/4-inch thick portions and cut with cookie cutters. Bake in a pre-heated 350-F degree oven for 10-15 minutes and store in an airtight container.