Red Velvet "Crinkle" Cookies

I am fortunate and blessed to have been the monthly recipe contributor to a local publication called, Women's Lifestyle Magazine for the past couple of years. My contact person there and I have become good friends, and we typically plan out the recipes two months in advance. Generally, one of us will think of an idea and then we go back and forth about what the best recipe will be for that particular month. I really love being the recipe contributor, because it keeps me on my "toes" as far as thinking outside of my "comfort zone." These cookies are a great example of that!!!!  The original recipe for February was going to be a slice and bake cookie with a red heart in the middle of the cookie. I had recently watched one of the baking shows on the Food Network, where the bakers made it look so easy. Oh my. It took me HOURS to make the cookies (I tested it out using Christmas trees). Let's just say, it was a DISASTER. They looked pretty bad, but tasted okay. My family will eat anything, so those cookies are long gone! LOL. Plan B was to make the Red Velvet "Crinkle" Cookies!! They are pretty cool, because they can be for Christmas or Valentine's Day. The hubby needed three dozen for the cookie exchange at work yesterday, so I made him some and saved the rest. After work, he told me, "your cookies were very popular at the party!" AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Cathy's Kitchen LOVES to hear that!!!!

Ingredients:

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 ½ cups white sugar
4 large eggs
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups white flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
1-ounce bottle liquid red food coloring
½ cup powdered sugar (reserved)

Preheat oven to 350° and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Set aside. In a large bowl, put the butter and white sugar and beat by hand with a large spoon or with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add the four eggs and vanilla extract and combine well. Next, add the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cream of tartar. Mix well again and then carefully add the entire one-ounce bottle of the liquid red food coloring. Stir very gently by hand with a large spoon until the liquid red food coloring is entirely incorporated into the batter. In a small bowl, put the ½ cup powdered sugar. Using the palm of your hands, roll out four dozen balls approximately one inch each. Roll each ball into the powdered sugar until it is completely covered. Bake a dozen at a time for 12-14 minutes until they are starting to look done in the middle. Remove from oven and let them sit on the cookie sheet for five minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to let them continue to cool. If desired, you can sprinkle additional powdered sugar on top!