They say everyone has a story, and the same can be said for cookies. This Crisp Gingerbread Stars recipe came out of a food writers’ luncheon I attended in the late 1980s. I cannot remember the venue or the rest of the meal, but I fell in love with the cookies, fragrant with orange, and a deep and dark color with cinnamon and ginger. They were crisp and buttery, yet light. And at my house during the Christmas holidays, they are the cookies that go onto trays to give to friends.
The secret of making great cutout cookies is not only the recipe but the tools. You need a heavy rolling pin. A maple rolling pin bought at E. Dehillerin while in cooking school in Paris decades ago is my favorite. I lugged it back with me in a carry-on bag, something you wouldn’t be able to do today. It is long and tough and can roll anything out as thin as paper. The trick to thin and crispy rolled cookies is to bash the dough first before rolling. Then roll from the center out to the desired thickness. Keep the counter lightly floured, and flip the dough often to prevent it from sticking.