Cookie Directions:

- Cream the soft butter with the sugar until the combination is smooth not grainy to the touch in a mixing bowl.

-Add all 4 eggs at one time...Continue to mix. -Add the vanilla.. Continue mixing.

-Sift the four, baking powder, and salt together.

-Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture.

-Continue mixing to make sure all ingredients are thoroughly blended.

-Make the dough into a ball, wrap it in cling wrap completely covering the entire dough ball.

-Put in the refrigerator for about 6 hours or overnight. Check to see if the dough is firm.

-Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

-Pull the cookie dough out of the refrigerator and sit it out to soften up a bit.

- Put flour out on the wood cutting board, rub flour on the rolling pin, and work some flour into the batter.

-Roll the dough out on the cutting board and using your cookie cutter begin to make your cookies.

-Line the cookie sheet with parchment paper.

-Using a metal spatula move the cut cookie to the parchment lined cookie sheet.

-Bake at 325 degrees for 8 minutes. Check to see if the cookie are thoroughly baked.

-Take the cookies off of the cookie sheet and put on a wire rack to cool completely. (About 10

minutes).

Icing Directions:

-Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl mixing on medium speed for 4 minutes. (except your food coloring)

-If icing is not stiff enough add 1/4 C powder sugar.

- Leave icing in large bowl. Take out 5 bowls, put 3/4 of the icing in the first bowl, add several drops of grey gel food coloring. Mix well.

-Divide the remaining icing into four equal amounts. Put each in a separate bowl.

-In the second bowl add several drops of black gel food coloring, mix well.

-In the third bowl of icing add several drops of brown gel food coloring, mix well.

-In the fourth bowl of icing add several drops of orange gel food coloring, mix well.

-The fifth bowl of icing remains white.

-Spoon each of these different colored icings into individual frosting bags with a #5 tips.... twist the open end of the bag to push the icing to the tip.

Basic Icing Directions:

-First step for each of the house is to outline it in grey. Allow 30 seconds for the outlining to dry.

*- Add water to some of the base icing mix (1 tsp) and mix it in. Use this grey icing to fill in the cookie. -Leave some of the grey icing in the pastry bag for use later.

-Using a butter knife to spread it from the outlined part inwards to the center.

Haunted House:

-With the black icing outline the roof of the house.

-Outline the window in white, allow this ti dry for 30 seconds then fill it in with the black icing.

-Allow the black icing of the window to dry then add white lines to make window sills.

-Add two small white dots in the lower corner of the window for the white of their eyes. Now add two tiny black dots for the eyes.

-Next to the window,draw then outline a flying ghost then fill the ghost body in with more white icing. Add two tiny black eyes and a dot for a mouth.

-Outline the door in brown, fill in with a lighter brown allowing for this to partially dry for 30 seconds then add the 3 stripes on the door. You can build a sign across the door from the lower right side of the door to the upper left side . Outline then fill the sign in brown. After 30+ seconds print the words KEEP OUT on the sign in black letters.

-Add three pumpkins , two pumpkins in orange with a brown stem on one side of the house and one on the other side of the house is a pumpkin in orange with brown stem with two black eyes and a small half smile. Outline each pumpkin in orange then fill them in. The stems, outline in brown icing then fill them in as well.