Stained glass cookies stars of season

Mom would be proud.

There are cookies for every occasion and occasions for every cookie in Lauren Chattman’s new book, “Mom’s Big Book of Cookies.”

There are 200 family favorites in 10 chapters. (All kid tested, of course.) They range from basic chocolate chip, oatmeal and peanut butter to edible art the kids can decorate to “desperation cookies” you can make when you’re short on ingredients.

Here is Chapman’s top holiday cookie recipe from the book:

Stained Glass Star Cookies

From “Mom’s Big Book of Cookies,” by Lauren Chattman. “These are my family’s hands-down holiday favorite. Over the years I’ve experimented with different shapes and flavors of candy, and everyone in my house agrees that the stars filled with butterscotch are the prettiest and most delicious. They are a bit of a project, so I spread out the work, making the dough in one day, rolling and cutting them the next, then freezing the cookies until I want to bake them. … The delicate cookies shatter easily and are difficult to transport, so I keep them at home and serve them to anyone who drops by, and as an extra treat alongside other holiday desserts on Hanukkah, Christmas and New Year’s Eve.”

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup sugar

1 large egg yolk

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

3/4 cup (about 6 ounces) butterscotch candies

Cream the butter and 1/2 cup of the sugar together in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until fluffy. Add the egg yolk and vanilla extract and beat until incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Add the flour and mix on low speed until the dough comes together in a ball.

Divide the dough into 3 equal-size balls. Wrap each ball in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for at least 2 hours and up to 2 days. (The dough can be wrapped and frozen for up to 1 month; defrost in the refrigerator before use.)

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

Place the butterscotch candies in a food processor fitted with a metal blade and process until they are finely ground. Transfer the ground candy to a small bowl.

Remove one ball of dough from the refrigerator and knead it 4 to 5 times on a lightly floured work surface to soften it. With a lightly floured rolling pin, roll out the dough to 1/8 inch thick. Use a star-shaped cookie cutter measuring about 3 inches across to cut the dough into star shapes. Use a star-shaped cookie cutter measuring about 1 1/4 inches across to make a star cut in the center of each cookie, making a cut-out area for the crushed candy. Transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheets. Refrigerate the scraps. (Cut-out cookies can be frozen on a baking sheet, layers of them separated by parchment paper and the baking sheet tightly wrapped in plastic, for up to 1 month. Remove them from the freezer, place them in single layers on parchment paper-lined baking sheets, and proceed directly to the next step in the recipe.)

Using a very small measuring spoon, carefully fill each small star cutout with the candy so that the candy is resting on the parchment paper and is level with the dough. Sprinkle the cookies with some of the remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Bake the cookies until they are firm and golden around the edges, about 8 minutes (a minute or two longer for frozen dough.)

Let them cool completely on baking sheets. Repeat with remaining dough balls and then the chilled scraps, using fresh parchment each time. Stained Glass Star Cookies will keep at room temperature in an airtight container for several days.

Yield: 45 cookies

Approximate nutrition per cookie: 87 calories, 4 grams fat (2.6 grams saturated, 43 percent fat calories), 1 gram protein, 12 grams carbohydrate, 16 milligrams cholesterol, less than 1 gram dietary fiber, 2 milligrams sodium.