XXX – GF BBQ Treats!

Bwahaha.
No worries.
These treats are kid-approved and not obscene at all.
They are NOT the naked man cookies.
And even those are kid-okay.
Promise.
Well…wait…that all depends on your cookie cutters.

But I’m NOT going there.
And MY cookie cutters are good to go. 🙂

Instead, let me just tell you that I am in family heaven. Well – Near it anyway. My side of the family is missing as are many from my love’s family. However, I am soaking in the conversation from an uncle I haven’t seen in several years and my father-in-law (who doesn’t really speak English). WE are having a BLAST. Seriously. Oh how I LOVE these men.

While the night is upon us, let me just paint this picture for you. My love and I have a futon in the family room (where the only TV is). Here we are all gathered. My mother-in-law and niece are asleep on the futon (it’s opened). My father-in-law sits on the edge of the futon reading the Chinese newspaper to me. My uncle is using a laptop across from me and watching a movie from Hong Kong because the soccer games are playing on the TV. And my love? He is fixing yet another laptop that they brought with them from Chicago for him to fix. Oh, yes. And the dog is laying on my father-in-law’s feet.

Every sixth or seventh sentence is in English. The rest is Cantonese.
Life is good.

Today before they came, I made some XXX cookies. Nothing perverse. XXX (XXXX) is actually a baker’s term for confectioner’s sugar – or powdered sugar. And no, I didn’t know that. While I might be a mighty geek (and klutz if we are going to get technical), I actually did a little research in the letter “x” and food for the BBQ.

Since everyone was avoiding “x” and “z”, I spent some time researching and developing recipes for both. I figured I should “woman up” (sorry, had to say it) and take the “x”. After all, I’m the dork that put the alphabet challenge out there. I had to make sure we could actually finish it!

I’m just going to post the recipe quick. That way I can get back to my soccer-kung fu movie watching, newspaper reading, snoring, sleeping and all around good-loving family quickly.

These cookies were made for my niece, Valerie. Because really….. I’d rather her skinny-self ate them so I could actually LOSE some weight this summer. She’s already eyed the cookie tub in hopes of finding some goodness within. She was not sad to see the colorful sugar cookies beckoning to her after dinner. She munched on one with her white peach as a snack before bedtime. And then she checked the tub again…. just to make sure there were enough there for the rest of her visit here. I assured her we could make another batch together if we ran out.

I hope you get a chance to have a little XXX adventure of your own. These are tasty and roll out nicely, although the dough is soft unless you chill it in the fridge for a little while. (I didn’t chill it. I’m not that patient. LOL)

XXX Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1/2 cup cream cheese
1 cup powdered sugar (XXX sugar!)
1/2 cup. white sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon GF vanilla extract
2 or 2 1/4 cups GF flour mix (rice-based)
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
Decorative sugars (I use India Tree Decorative Sugars. See Note Below)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2. Beat together butter and cream cheese in mixer for 3-4 minutes until creamy and light.
3. Add powdered sugar and sugar. Cream together for an additional 3-4 minutes until light and fluffy.
4. Add egg and vanilla. Beat together to incorporate evenly.
5. Dump in gluten-free flour mix and xanthan gum. Beat together.
6. Scrap into a ball. The dough will be soft, but NOT sticky. If it is sticky, add a little more GF flour to the mix. It should not be stiff/crackling. If it is, add water by the tablespoon until you have achieved a soft dough.
7. Roll the dough into 1 inch balls. Roll the ball into decorative sugars. (I use India Tree decorative sugars. See note below.)
8. Place on parchment paper or a silpat. Flatten with the bottom of a glass to a 1/2 inch thickness.
9. Bake for 9 – 11 minutes or *just* until golden on the edges.
10. Cool slightly before moving to a cooling rack.
11. Store in an airtight container at eye level for your six year old niece.
12. She will love you forever and the cookies will last for at least the first week of her visit.

Enjoy!
-Kate

NOTE: I use India Tree decorative sugars. To be certain of their gluten-free status, I recently called this Seattle company (6/2008) and received confirmation. These are beautiful sugars. You can see a variety of them here on Amazon. I chose these as I enjoyed the different depth of colors they offer. Check out their site for more information and product choice.