My Favorite Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies

❊ Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies

This is my all time favorite sugar cookie recipe! It has the best flavor and the shapes hold up as well!

2 cup vegetable shortening 2 1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons orange zest, grated
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 eggs
1/4 cup orange juice
6 cups all purpose flour
4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt

Cream together shortening, sugar, orange zest and vanilla. Add eggs to creamed mixture; mix well. Add orange juice and mix. Sift flour, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture and blend. Chill for 2 hours, covered. Once chilled, roll dough to 1/8 to 1/4” thick on lightly floured surface. Cut out with favorite cutters. Use floured spatula to pick up cut-out cookies and put on uncreased cookie sheet. Bake at 375° for 7-10 minutes. Cool before removing from cookie sheet; ice when cool.

Sugar Cookie Frosting
3 cups powdered sugar
3-4 Tablespoons milk
2 Tablespoons light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Gel food coloring (optional)
Additional candies and sprinkles for decorating

Combine sugar, 2 Tablespoons of milk, corn syrup, and vanilla extract in a medium-sized bowl and stir until combined. If frosting is too thick, add more milk, about a teaspoon at a time, until the frosting is thick but pipeable. If you accidentally add too much milk, add powdered sugar until desired texture is reached.
   
If coloring the frosting, divide into bowls and color as desired at this point.
 Transfer frosting to a piping bag with a Wilton 5 piping tip Pipe frosting on cookies and decorate with decorative candies, if desired.
 Allow frosting to harden before enjoying (this could take several hours and may vary for you depending on the consistency of your frosting)
 Keep uneaten cookies sealed in an airtight container at room temperature.