How to Make Nurse Sugar Cookies for Nurse Appreciation Week

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Cover a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside
3. Using a standing mixer, cream together the butter, powder sugar, vanilla and egg and mix until combined and creamy
4. Using a large bowl, combined the flour, baking soda and cream of tarter
5. Gradually add in the dry ingredients and mix on low speed
6. Using your hands continue to mix until fully combined
7. Lightly flour a cutting board and knead the cookie dough a couple of times
8. Roll out the dough to about 1/4 inch thick
9. Cut out 12 nurse's and 12 hearts, placing 6-8 shapes onto a cookie sheet
10. Bake for 8 minutes or until lightly golden brown
11. Repeat steps until completely out of dough
12. Let cookies cool completely

Royal Icing Directions:

1. Using the standing mixer, combine the egg whites, cream of tarter, vanilla and powder sugar and mix until combined and stiff peaks form
2. Split the icing into 5 bowls
3. Leaving one bowl white, add a color into one bowl each. You should have a bowl for each color (white, red, hair color 1, hair color 2, skin color)
4. Mix the colors until they are the shades that you want
5. Scoop about 1/4 C of each colors into the 5 piping bags
6. Mix in 1-2 tablespoons of water into the brown, red, white and ivory bowls
7. Pour thinned icing into the squeeze bottles
8. Draw out the outline of the Nurse hair onto the cookies
9. Using the brown piping bag, pipe out the detail of the Nurse hair
10. Fill in with the brown thinned icing
11. Using the ivory piping bag, pipe the outline of the face below the hair
12. Fill in with the thinned ivory icing
13. Using the white piping bag, pipe the nurse hat and fill in with the thinned white icing
14. Using the red piping bag, outline the hearts
15. Fill in with the red thinned icing
16. Allow cookies to dry over night
17. Using the black piping bag, pipe two dots for the pupils
18. Using the brown piping bag, pipe out curly lines for the hair
19. Using the red piping bag, pipe out a cross in the center of the hat
20. Using the white piping bag, pipe out a heart beat onto the center of the heart
21. Allow to dry for 2 hours before enjoying!