Sugar cookie recipe

This is the sugar cookie recipe that I used, which is similar to the "family" recipe except I think my mother uses almond flavoring instead of vanilla. But I didn't have almond and they are still tasty.

This recipe made about 60 small pumpkin and cat cookies (1 WW point each). Double it for a serious batch.

3/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or almond)
2 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt.
Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour (or overnight).
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Roll out dough on floured (I found I needed a lot of flour so they didn't stick!) surface 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into shapes with any cookie cutter. Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.
Bake 6 to 8 minutes in preheated oven. Cool completely.

Frosting

Mix powdered sugar, a little almond or vanilla flavoring and then add milk until the frosting is slightly runny, maybe 2T milk for 1 cup of sugar? You don't want it to be too thick but you also don't want it to run off the cookie. It's an art. Divide the frosting into different containers and add food coloring. I used Ateco, which I got at the kitchen store. It's a gel coloring which makes vibrant colors, including black, which I have never used before. Cool!