My mother couldn't make a cake for sour apples, but she made a killer sugar cookie. She never used a recipe, just dumped everything in her dishpan, stirred, rolled it out, cut and baked. I don't have her recipe, but I found one close to it when I was first married in the late forties.

When I was growing up, we only had cookies in cold weather when it wasn't a chore to be in the kitchen with a hot cook stove. I remember watching Mother as she made them. She would roll out the dough on our oilcloth covered kitchen table and place several in the 9 by 13 inch pan she also used for Johnny cake and biscuits. It was my job to put one raisin or walnut meat, if we didn't have any raisins, in the exact center of each cookie. Mother sprinkled each with sugar and in the oven they went. Oh, what delicious smells filled that old farmhouse kitchen. Memories are made of things like that.

Back to the recipe I didn't have. I tried several cookie recipes until I found the right one. Have you eaten something at a friend's table and asked for the recipe? Then when you made hers, it wasn't quite the same? Sharing recipes is no time to play games. I don't do that. I hope you enjoy my recipes.

2 cups white sugar
1 cup shortening or lard, not margarine
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs
1 cup milk
¾ teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
About 6 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon nutmeg, optional
Raisins

In large bowl combine flour, salt, baking powder, soda and nutmeg, if using. Set aside. In another large bowl, using an electric mixer, cream together the sugar, shortening and vanilla until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time. Beat until fluffy after each addition. Then with a large kitchen spoon, add flour mixture alternately with milk, ending with flour to make a stiff dough. Chill dough for at least an hour to allow the flour to soften and the dough to become firm. Roll out a portion of the dough on a floured surface to about 3/8 of an inch thick. Cut with a round cookie cutter. Place on greased baking sheet. Put a raisin in the exact center of each cookie. Sprinkle with white sugar and bake at 400 F. until lightly browned. When cool, place in a cookie jar to prevent cookies from drying out. Makes about 6 dozen cookies. These make good drop cookies as well. Using a tablespoon of dough, flatten tops, sprinkle with sugar and bake. Two cookies and a glass of cold milk makes a good after school snack. Recipe can easily be cut in half.