Stars and Stripes Sugar Cookies

Soft and Puffy Sugar Cookies

1 cup butter
4 cups flour
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons soda
1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cream butter and sugar.  Add milk, eggs, and vanilla until combined.  Add already-mixed dry ingredients.  Chill dough for at least 30 minutes.  Roll out, cut out, and bake at 350 degrees for 6-9 minutes, depending on cookie size.

Buttercream

1/2 cup butter
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
3-4 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch

Directions for Frosting Cookies

Place dollop of frosting on a small plate and microwave for 4-5 seconds.  Stir to make sure frosting is smoothly melted.  Place cookie flat in melted frosting and move it around carefully to make sure all appendages are covered.  Pull cookie up as straight as possible, allowing some excess frosting to drip off.  Then flip cookie quickly and shake it back-and-forth to allow frosting to settle in a flat and smooth fashion.  You can re-melt the same frosting over and over again.  Just add dollops as needed.

Note:  Try this melt and dip frosting method a few times before giving up.  Once you master the method, the process moves quickly.