CONVERSATION HEART COOKIE CUTTER RECIPES

Steps:

• To prepare cookies: Whisk flour, salt and baking powder in a medium bowl. Place butter, sugar and cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment; beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add egg; beat until well combined. Add lemon extract; beat until well combined. Reduce mixer speed to low; gradually add the flour mixture, beating until dough forms.
• Shape the dough into a disk; wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface; roll to 1/8-inch thickness. Using a 4 1/4-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter, cut out 16 cookies, re-rolling the scraps as necessary. Place the cookies 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake until lightly browned, about 12 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely, about 30 minutes.
• To prepare icing: Sift confectioners' sugar and dried egg whites together in a medium bowl. Stir in water, corn syrup and lemon extract until smooth. Divide among 5 bowls (about 1/4 cup icing per bowl); stir 1 to 2 drops of food coloring into each portion until desired colors are achieved. Reserve 1 bowl of icing for writing messages on the cookies, adding 6 to 8 drops of red to make dark pink icing for writing. (To prevent the icing from drying out, keep it covered with a damp paper towel until ready to use.) You may need to add 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon water to thin the icing to the proper consistency. When ready to decorate, spoon each icing into a pastry bag with a writing tip. Outline the edges of the cookie and fill with the desired color. Let dry for 1 hour. Pipe on conversation heart message of choice.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line two cookie sheets with Reynolds® Parchment Paper.
• Beat butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, baking powder, and salt. Beat until combined, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally. Beat in the egg, milk, and vanilla until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Using a wooden spoon, stir in any remaining flour. Divide dough in half. If necessary, cover and chill dough about 30 minutes or until easy to handle.
• Roll half the dough at a time between two sheets of parchment paper to 1/8- to 1/4-inch thickness. Using a 2 1/2-inch heart-shape cookie cutter, cut out cookie shapes, re rolling dough as needed until all the dough is cut out. Place shapes 1 inch apart on prepared cookie sheets.
• Bake 6 to 8 minutes or until edges are firm and bottoms are very light brown. Transfer the parchment paper with baked cookies to wire racks and let cool. Once cooled, slide the parchment paper onto a work surface.
• Tint frosting as desired with food coloring. Frost cookies with one color and use another color to pipe a message over the frosted cookies.