Cookie Decorating Simplified

Dough Prep: Refrigerating

After you have made the dough, you will need to refrigerate it to make it workable. Here's how:
  1. Divide your dough in halves or thirds (proportionately more if you have doubled or tripled the batch). I tend to like working with smaller portions of dough, so I do thirds per batch, but it's really a matter of preference and how quickly you can work.
  2. Place each portion of dough on a large sheet of plastic wrap, and knead VERY LIGHTLY just to make a smooth ball, being careful not to develop the gluten. Flatten slightly and wrap in the plastic wrap. Repeat for remaining dough and pop them all into the refrigerator.
  3. You will need to refrigerate the dough for at least an hour, and up to 2 days. If it's in the fridge for more than an hour, you'll need to let it soften a bit on the counter top before rolling out. About 15 minutes will do the trick, but it depends on the temperature of your kitchen. If it's very warm it will take less time to soften, if it's a bit chilly it will take more.