Holiday Butter Cookies

For my office holiday party, I volunteered to make some cookies. This can feel like a lot of pressure, since everyone has a certain idea of what holiday cookies are, and can be really picky about it. Also, a quick disclosure: I haven't been to the grocery store in a few weeks, so my cupboards aren't overflowing with baking options. I decided to go with this recipe for butter cookies because it is a simple, easy-to-make recipe and it's super-likely that you have all of the ingredients in your house already. This recipe makes a baker's dozen and was adapted from this recipe. Enjoy!

Prep Time: 10-15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients
1 1/4 cup of all-purpose flour
1/2 egg, beaten
1/2 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of butter, melted
One (1) tablespoon of orange juice
1/2 tablespoon of vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon of baking powder




Directions
Preheat oven to 400F degrees.
Mix all dry ingredients (sugar, flour, and baking powder) together in a large mixing bowl.
In a separate bowl, mix together the egg, melted butter, orange juice, and vanilla extract.
Slowly mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and continue mixing until they are completely blended.

Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper and spoon small balls of dough onto the sheet.
Press the dough down with a fork.
Place the entire baking sheet in the fridge for at least five minutes so that the dough cools. If you don't have time to cool the dough, you can still bake it, but the cookies will not hold shape as well.
Bake the cookies for 6-10 minutes (depending on your oven; I had to bake for the full 10 minutes).

Remove and let cool.
Enjoy with hot cocoa, egg nog, or coffee.