The Best Christmas Cookie Icing Ever

I’m not going to lie, Christmas cookies are now the highlight of my holiday season. When I was a kid I used to get excited about Santa and decorating and presents. Now that I’m deep into adulthood I focus on icing covered carbohydrate happiness.

My family always goes overboard on Christmas Cookies. We make Snickerdoodles, chocolate chip with nuts, chocolate chip without nuts, Chocolate chip with coconut, oatmeal cookies, tea cakes, and my favorite, cut out sugar cookies with icing. My mom takes her baking very seriously. Only real butter, actual vanilla, and name brand brown sugar will do. And we live by the rule that you should always double whatever amount of vanilla is called for.

One year when we were making the cut out cookies we ran out of cream for the icing. So we improvised and used whipping cream instead. Best icing upgrade ever.

If you’re looking for a great icing recipe here it is…straight from my mom’s seventy-year-old Betty Crocker Cooky Book…and yes the creative spelling of cookie does set my teeth on edge, but you can’t beat the recipes.

2 ½ Tablespoons of softened butter

1 ½ Cups sifted confectioners sugar

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla (double to 1 Tablespoon)

1 ½ Tablespoons whipping cream

Blend butter and sugar together. Stir in cream and vanilla until smooth.

Happy holidays and happy baking to all.

If her love life is going down in flames, she might as well spark a revolution.

Finding out on your sixteenth birthday you’re a shape-shifting dragon is tough to swallow. Being hauled off to an elite boarding school is enough to choke on.

Since Bryn is the only crossbreed at the Institute for Excellence, all eyes are on her, but it’s a particular black dragon, Zavien, who catches her attention.

Zavien is tired of the Directorate’s rules. Segregated clans, being told who to love, and close-minded leaders make freedom of choice almost impossible. The new girl with the striped hair is a breath of fresh air, and with Bryn’s help, they may be able to change the rules.

At the Institute, old grudges, new crushes, and death threats are all part of a normal day for Bryn. She’ll need to learn to control her dragon powers if she wants to make it through her first year at school. But even focusing on staying alive is difficult when you’re falling for someone you can’t have.