Stenciled Chocolate Cookies

It's finally here... CHRISTMAS!! I had the most blessed day today and I pray that you did too! I took several different desserts to my family's dinner this year, but the one that got the most ravings were my stenciled chocolate cookies! I found this recipe online and when I first saw it, I thought it was going to be very difficult, but these turned out to be one of the easiest things I made this year. Everyone told me I was a master baker and raved about how cute they were. They were a hit to say the least! When you see the picture, you're probably going to be intimidated but DON'T BE! You definitely don't need to know how to become a pastry chef. Anyone can make these cookies.

Here's the recipe...

Ingredients:
3 cups sifted all-purpose flour, plus more for surface

1 1/4 cups unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 cup ground cinnamon

Salt

3 sticks unsalted butter

2 1/2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Royal icing

Confectioners' sugar or luster dust

Directions:

Sift flour, cocoa, cinnamon, and 1/4 teaspoon salt into a large bowl.

Beat butter and sugar with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture, and beat until combined. Divide dough in half, and wrap each in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to a 1/8-inch thickness. Cut out cookies in desired shapes using cookie cutters, and transfer to baking sheets. Refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes.

Bake until crisp, but not dark, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire racks, and let cool completely.

Punch desired shape out of stiff paper (we used a thick envelope) using a craft punch. Hold stencil over 1 cookie, and brush a thin layer of icing over exposed surface using a small food-safe paintbrush. Holding stencil in place, gently sift confectioners' sugar over cookie through a fine sieve to evenly coat exposed surface. Lift stencil, and return cookie to wire rack. Repeat with remaining cookies. Let dry.