Have you been invited to yet another cookie exchange this holiday season? Racking your brain on which recipes to make? What if you could make just one batch of dough and then add in different things to make variations off of the basic recipe? Guess what? You can!

Basic Cookie Dough

Ingredients
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
1 tspn baking powder
1/4 tspn salt
1 egg
1 tspn vanilla
2-1/4 cups flour

Directions
1. In a large bowl mix butter and shortening with an electric mixer for about 30 seconds.
2. Add in the sugar, baking powder, and salt. Mix until all are combined, scrape the sides of bowl ever so often to get all ingredients mixed in.
3. Add in egg and vanilla
4. Add in flour. Mix in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Stir in any remaining flour with a spatula.

Recipe can be refrigerated for up to 3 days or stored in the freeze for up to 1 month.

Variations:
1. Make shaped sugar cookies
2. Mini tart shells
3. Add 2 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder to make chocolate cookies
4. Add a few drops food coloring to make colored cookies such as green wreaths or red candy canes
5. Add 2 tablespoons of instant espresso powder or instant coffee to make coffee flavored cookies
6. Add 1 tablespoons of pumpkin pie spice to make spice cookies
7. Add essential oils such as 2 tablespoons of mint to make pepper mint flavored cookies
8. Add 2 tablespoons of maple syrup to make maple flavored cookies
9. Add ½ cup nuts to make nutty cookies
10. Add ½ cup dried cranberries or other dried fruit to make cranberry, date or fig cookies
11. Add ½ cup fruit jam to make a fresher fruit cookie (can dollop into the center)
12. Add 2 tablespoons of liquor to make an alcohol infused cookie
13. Add ½ cup peanut butter to make peanut butter cookies
14. Add ¼ cup marshmallows and ¼ cup chocolate chips to make a s'mores style cookie
15. 14. Add ½ cup of shredded, toasted coconut to make toasted coconut cookies