to make sour milk, put 1 tablespoon of either lemon juice or vinegar in a cup measure, fill with milk and let it sit for 5 minutes.

 

Stir together 4 and 1/2 cups flour

                    2 teaspoons baking powder

                    1 teaspoon baking soda

                    1/2 tea. ground nutmeg (optional)

                    1/2 tea. salt

                    

Cream together 1 and 1/4 shortening or butter with

                        2 cups sugar

Then beat in       2 eggs

                        1 tea. vanilla

                        1/2 tea. lemon extract

beat well and then add the flour mixture alternately with the milk.

 

When mixed, cover and chill for at least 3 hours.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

 

Roll out dough between two sheets of wax paper until thin.  Cut with cookie cutters and put on ungreased cookie sheet.  For thin cookies ( 3/8 inch thick) bake for about 9 minutes.  For thick cookies ( 1/2 inch thick) bake for about 12 minutes.

 

You can sprinkle them with sugar before baking or paint with egg yolk paint before baking.

egg yolk paint.....mix together 1 egg yolk with 1/4 teaspoon water.  Add food coloring and paint designs on cookies before baking.