Christmas cookies - two varieties

Such a cold day, only four days from Christmas, found us seeking indoor diversions today, so we baked.  Isn't that a rather traditional thing to do this time of year?  I'd found two recipes in our Penzey's Spices magazine that we had wanted to try.  The first is for cocoa cookies and, while they taste pretty yummy, they were a pain to make; even after over an hour in the fridge the dough was too sticky to successfully transfer from counter to cookie sheet with its shape still intact.  The second recipe is for no-chill cookies and that one worked like a charm!

Cocoa Cutout Cookies (thanks to Penzey's Spices)

Combine 3/4C sugar, 1/4C corn syrup, 1 egg, 1t vanilla and beat on medium until creamy.  Add 1/4C cocoa powder, 1/2t baking soad, 2/3C butter (softened), 2C flour, and 1/2t baking powder and beat on low until well mixed.  Divide dough in half, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least one hour before rolling on a lightly floured surface to cut.  Bake cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet at 375 for 8 minutes per sheet.  Cool before frosting.

No-Chill Cutout Cookies (thanks to Penzey's Spices)

Mix 1C butter (softened) and 1C sugar until creamy.  Add 1 egg and 1t vanilla, mix until creamy.  Add 3C flour and 2t baking powder, blend well.  Form dough into a smooth ball and roll out on a lightly floured surface to cut.  Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet at 400 for 6 minutes.  Cool before frosting.

Vanilla Frosting (thanks to Penzey's Spices)

Combine 2C powdered sugar, 2t butter (melted), 3TB milk, 1/4t vanilla and mix until smooth.  Apply to cookies right away.  I made a make-shift applicator by rolling wax paper into a cone shape and filling it with frosting - a trick I learned umpteen years ago in Girl Scouts!