Irish Potato Cookies

Raspberry Danish Murder

## Ingredients

* 1 and ½ cups white ***(granulated)*** sugar
* 1 cup salted butter ***(½ pound, 2 sticks)***, softened to room temperature
* 3 large eggs
* 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* ½ teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 1 and ½ cups all-purpose flour ***(pack it down in the cup when you measure it)***
* 3 cups instant mashed potato flakes ***(I used Hungry Jack Original)***
* 1 cup finely chopped walnuts ***(measure AFTER chopping)***
* ½ cup powdered ***(confectioners')*** sugar in a bowl for later

## Directions

* This dough must chill before baking.
* Place the white ***(granulated)*** sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer.

**Hannah's 1st Note: This recipe is a lot easier to make if you use an electric mixer. You can do it by hand, but it will take much longer.**

* Add the softened butter and mix until the two ingredients are well combined and the mixture is light in color and fluffy.
* Add the eggs, one by one, beating after each addition.
* Add the cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. Mix until everything is well combined.
* Add the vanilla extract and mix it in.
* Measure out the all-purpose flour in a separate bowl.
* Mix it into the sugar, butter, and egg mixture in half-cup increments at LOW speed, mixing well after each addition.
* Add the instant mashed potato flakes in half-cup increments, mixing well after each addition. Beat until everything is well incorporated.
* Mix in the chopped walnuts. Beat for at least a minute on MEDIUM speed until everything is thoroughly combined.

**Hannah's 2nd Note: At this point, you can add several drops of green food coloring if you are making these cookies for St. Patrick's Day. Try to achieve a nice pale green.**

* Scrape down the sides of your mixing bowl and give your Irish Potato Cookie dough a final stir with a wooden spoon by hand.
* Prepare your cookie sheets by spraying them with Pam or another nonstick cooking spray, or covering them with parchment paper.
* Scoop out a small amount of cookie dough with a spoon from your silverware drawer and try to form a dough ball with your impeccably clean hands. If this is too difficult, because the dough is too soft, cover your bowl with plastic minutes to an hour. ***(Overnight is fine, too but then don't forget to shut off the oven!)***
* When you're ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F, rack in the center position.
* While your oven is preheating, place the powdered sugar in a small bowl. You will use it to coat the cookie dough balls you will form.
* Form balls of cookie dough 1 inch and diameter with your impeccably clean hands.
* Roll the dough balls in the bowl of powdered sugar, one at a time, and place them on the cookie sheets, 12 dough balls to a standard-sized sheet. Flatten the dough balls a bit with a metal spatula or the heel of of your impeccably clean hand.
* Bake at 350°F for 10 to 12 minutes are golden around the edges.
* Take your cookies out of the oven and cool on the cookie sheet for 2 minutes and then remove them to a wire rack.
* If you've covered your cookie sheets with parchment paper, all you have to do is grasp the edges of the paper and pull them, cookies and all, onto the wire rack.

Yield: Approximately 8 dozen tender and delicious cookies, depending on cookie size.