Red Velvet Cut-Out Cookies

Do you love red velvet?

I love red velvet.  I'm not much of a chocolate person, but I will admit that I would change all that if all chocolate were red velvet.

Bruce and I took a trip down to Utah not too long ago, and while we were there, we stopped at a Hobby Lobby to look at some Christmas stuff and fabric.  While there, we also picked up some lemon and red velvet bakery emulsions, which are kind of like extracts, but thicker and more potent.  I have big plans to make red velvet pancakes, and lemon poppy-seed pancakes with blueberry compote...mmmm... makes me hungry just talking about it!

I decided to use some of the red velvet emulsion to make cut-out cookies for a gathering I'm having this evening, and I must say they turned out gorgeous! The ones pictured below were made for Halloween and they are so fun!  You should give these babies a whirl!

Red Velvet Cut-Out Cookies

Ingredients:

1 c. butter (softened)
1 1/2 c. powdered sugar
1 egg
2 Tbs red velvet emulsion
1 tsp vanilla
1 Tbs cocoa powder
1/3 c. dark chocolate chips (I used 63% dark) (melted)
3 c. flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 Tbs dry buttermilk powder

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400.

Cream together butter and powdered sugar.  Beat in egg, emulsion and vanilla until smooth, scraping down the sides.  Add the cocoa and melted chocolate and mix thoroughly.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and dry buttermilk, then slowly add to the other ingredients, mixing until the dough comes together.

Roll out on wax paper and cut into your desired shapes. And bake on a silpat line baking sheet for 8-1 minutes.

Frost if desired once the cookies have cooled.

Enjoy!