--Palm sugar is a low-glycemic sugar made from the sap of the Palmyra palm tree. It works like sugar in cooking and baking and has a caramel-like flavor, and is a tawny brown color. I order it on-line from several different places (currently using NAVITAS organic palm sugar). You might want to check with your health care professional before using this. I have several friends with diabetes who can't use Splenda (one friend ends up in the hospital each time she is unknowingly served Splenda) and use palm sugar in moderation without any problem. But each person is different. --Another sugar substitute I've been trying is SWERVE (made from Erythritol). This product is safe for diabetics. --Almond flour is made from ground almonds. It is high in protein (6 g. per 28 g. serving) and low in carbohydrates (6 g. per 28 g. serving). I purchase it in 5-pound bags from Honeyville Grain Farms (http://store.honeyvillegrain.com/blanchedalmondflour5lb.aspx), but I also sprout and dry whole almonds and grind my own in my little Wonder Mill, Jr., as well as using almond pulp leftover from homemade almond milk I make. I dry the pulp in the dehydrator or use it moist. I make cookies, crackers, and there is even a recipe for Almond Pulp Freezer Fudge I'm going to try. Check out Elana Amsterdam's web site (www.elanaspantry.com) for recipes using almond flour. I've about worn out her cookbook "The Gluten-Free Almond Flour Cookbook". She uses agave nectar in most of her recipes, and that's another low-glycemic sweetener you may want to check with your health care professional before using it. --Coconut Flour is a high fiber, low-carb, gluten-free alternative to wheat. You can find lots of recipes using it on-line and I love the book by Bruce Fife, N.D. "Cooking with Coconut Flour". Most of the recipes can be made with alternative sweeteners. Diabetes is rampant in hubby's family, so I work hard at making foods that will hopefully help prevent him from ever getting it. We don't do without our favorite goodies, I just make them with different ingredients. -Grainlady

I think this is it. Got this from my mom about 30 years ago. It is a very forgiving dough and makes lots of cookies. Sugar Cookies 1 and 1/4 cups butter 2 cups sugar 2 eggs 5 to 6 cups flour 4 tsp. baking powder 1 tsp. salt 1/2 cup milk Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and beat until fluffy. Stir dry ingredients together using the smaller amount of flour. Add to egg mix alternately with milk. If dough is sticky, add flour to handle. Roll 1/4 inch thick on well floured board or cloth and cut as desired. Bake on ungreased cookie sheets 8 minutes at 375 degrees. Sometimes I add vanilla. You can also add spices. I have not tried rolling the dough thinner than 1/4 inch. The cookie is nicely firm and not too sweet which is good for adding frosting. I am not new to this board, but post very infrequently. I always find it a good read and get great ideas here. Enjoy the holidays!

I have been using your recipe for almost a year now. I love it. My daughter and grandchildren love it, but what surprises me is my little dog loves it. One addition I have tried a few times is: cut up about 6 dried dates into 1/2 cup of water (instead of the milk) and let sit for 15 minutes to rehydrate. Then follow recipe. I also add chopped nuts or chopped dried apples sometimes. I made a batch today and they're in the refrigerator chilling. Then I will try to dip the balls in melted chocolate. My diet allows me to have 8 grams of sugar so I can find dark chocolate with a lot of looking. One other point, I have found that two packets of sugar-free hot chocolate mix equal 6 tbs. of Quick. Thanks again for the recipe - it is wonderful. Monica

linda117, I did a search and could not find one with egg in the dought. Sorry yours was dry. Pistachio Icebox cookie Pistachio cranberry icebox cookies MAKESABOUT 3 DOZEN COOKIES ACTIVE TIME:20 MIN START TO FINISH:2 1/2 HR Gourmet magazine, DECEMBER 2006 It doesn’t get fancier or more Christmassy than these glittery-edged cookies sporting studs of red and green. But all that festivity comes in an easy slice-and-bake package, so you can always keep a log of dough in the fridge, ready to go when company unexpectedly comes calling. This is just one of Gourmet’s Favorite Cookies: 1941-2008 [EDITED TO ADD: Sadly the link to this fabulous cookie collection is broken. I encourage you to go to the Gourmet website and retreive and print recipes you are interested in, before it goes away. Epicurious has many Gourmet recipe, thankfully, but the photos of the cookie recipes are fabulous and only available at Gourmet.com.] Although we’ve retested the recipes, in the interest of authenticity we’ve left them unchanged: The instructions below are still exactly as they were originally printed. 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar 1/2 teaspoon finely grated fresh orange zest 1/2 cup shelled pistachios (2 1/4 oz; not dyed red) 1/3 cup dried cranberries (1 1/4 oz) 1 large egg, lightly beaten 1/4 cup decorative sugar (preferably coarse) SPECIAL EQUIPMENT: parchment paper MAKE DOUGH: • Stir together flour, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl. • Beat together butter, granulated sugar, and zest in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture in 3 batches, mixing until dough just comes together in clumps, then mix in pistachios and cranberries. Gather and press dough together, then divide into 2 equal pieces. Using a sheet of plastic wrap or wax paper as an aid, form each piece of dough into a log about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Square off long sides of each log to form a bar, then chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, until very firm, at least 2 hours. SLICE AND BAKE COOKIES: • Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. • Brush egg over all 4 long sides of bars (but not ends). Sprinkle decorative sugar on a separate sheet of parchment or wax paper and press bars into sugar, coating well. • Cut each bar crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices, rotating bar after cutting each slice to help keep square shape. (If dough gets too soft to slice, freeze bars briefly until firm.) Arrange cookies about 1/2 inch apart on lined baking sheets. • Bake cookies, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until edges are pale golden, 15 to 18 minutes total. Transfer cookies from parchment to racks using a slotted spatula and cool completely. COOKS’ NOTES: Dough bars can be chilled up to 3 days or frozen, wrapped in plastic wrap and then foil, 1 month (thaw frozen dough in refrigerator just until dough can be sliced). Cookies keep in an airtight container at room temperature 5 days. This post was edited by glenda_al on Mon, Mar 25, 13 at 12:22