Christmas Cookies

One of the Christmas traditions that I enjoy is making Christmas cookies. When the children were in elementary school I spent weeks making cookies and freezing them. The last day of school before the holidays an array of a dozen different kinds of cookies were arranged on trays and taken to their teachers. The year after Aaron, our youngest, moved on to Junior High, I met one of his elementary school teachers who bemoaned the fact that there would be no more cookie trays from the Russell children.
Another event that became a tradition during those years were cookie parties. Each child could invite four or five of his or her friends to decorate cookies. The parties were scheduled an hour apart and lasted an hour so that an any one time there were no more than six present. The week before the party I made endless batches of cookie dough, rolled it and cut out Christmas trees, stars, bells, reindeer, Santa’s and angels. A few gingerbread men too.
On the day of the party I beat up batches of icing, tinted it different colors and set them out with bowls of different kinds of sprinkles and and small candies. Each child decorated a dozen or so cookies and went home with a plateful of his/her creations.
I tried many different cookies over the years but a few became special favorites. Pecan Sandies and Angel Bars from Joy of Cooking and Raspberry Strip Cookies from a long ago cookbook were always included.

Raspberry Strip Cookies
1 cup soft butter (2 sticks)
½ cup sugar
3 cups flour
Raspberry jam

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
¼ cup water

Beat the butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Gradually beat flour into the butter mixture. The mixture will be crumbly, use your hands to form into a smooth dough. This will happen with the warmth of your hands.
Roll the dough into logs about ½ inch in diameter and the length of the baking sheet. Place on a baking sheet a little distance apart. With your little finger or knife handle make a groove the the length of the logs. Bake in 375 degree oven for ten minutes. Remove and fill the groove with raspberry jam. Return to the oven and bake another ten minutes until the dough is set and light golden.
While the cookies are baking stir the powdered sugar and water together.
As soon as the cookies come out of the oven brush them with the glaze. Cut the warm logs diagonally into cookies about 1 inch wide. Cool on cookie sheet set on a wire rack.