Confetti Cookies

adapted from SmittenKitchen by Carol Hutchinson

preparation time: about an hour

makes 4 dozen cookies

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon baking soda

¾ teaspoon fine sea salt

¼ cup cream cheese

1 cup unsalted butter

1¼ cup granulated sugar

1 large egg

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

¼ teaspoon almond extract (optional but delicious)

1 cup rainbow sprinkles

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

With an electric mixer, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl and whisk to blend.  In a large bowl or the bowl of a standard mixer, beat cream cheese, butter and sugar until fluffy.  Add egg and extracts and blend again.  Add flour mixture and beat just until the flour disappears.  In some cases, this dough will feel too soft to roll into balls in your hands; if so let it chill in the fridge for 20 minutes or so before using.

Scoop balls of dough and roll them briefly in the palms of your hands before dropping them in a bowl of rainbow sprinkles and gently rolling to coat them evenly.  The sprinkles adhere much better to tacky exterior of balls of dough that have been briefly warmed by your hands.

Transfer balls of sprinkle-coated dough to baking sheets at least two inches apart.  Use the bottom of a drinking glass to press down on the cookies until they are about ¼ to ½ inch tall.  If you see any bare spots in the sprinkles that bother you, you can sprinkle a few more on top.  Bake for 9 to 10 minutes until they look under baked but lightly golden underneath. (If they are not quite soft in the center, they will be fully crisped through the next day.)  Let set on the baking sheet on a rack for a few minutes before transferring to cooling racks to cool the rest of the way. Repeat with remaining cookie dough.