Some of my favorite childhood memories center around my mother's Old Fashioned Tea Cakes.  A southern dish, they are simple, easy-to-make and relatively low-sugar, for such a sweet treat.

If you decorate them with icing, the sugar content jumps.  But if you paint them with colored evaporated milk, they are pretty, shiny and delicious, without being laden with sugar.

<a href="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/tea_cake_ingredients1.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-395" title="tea_cake_ingredients" src="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/tea_cake_ingredients1.jpg" alt="" width="799" height="905" /></a>

Only six ingredients: shortening; sugar; eggs; milk; vanilla and self-rising flour.<a href="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/stiff_batter.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-397" title="stiff_batter" src="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/stiff_batter-277x300.jpg" alt="" width="277" height="300" /></a>

And you just mix those six things together and add enough flour to get a stiff dough. I find the dough usually needs an additional 1 - 1.5 cups of flour to get the right stiffness.<a href="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/rolling_pin.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-398" title="rolling_pin" src="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/rolling_pin-266x300.jpg" alt="" width="266" height="300" /></a>

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Then roll it out.

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<a href="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/cookie_cutters.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-399" title="cookie_cutters" src="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/cookie_cutters-300x277.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="277" /></a>And cut it with cookie cutters.  As you can see, I collect cookies cutters - particularly pumpkin ones. Nine pumpkins cookies cutters, and two apple cookies cutters.  I have WAY too many cookie cutters!<a href="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/unpainted_cookies.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-400" title="unpainted_cookies" src="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/unpainted_cookies-300x221.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="221" /></a>

Brush them with colored evaporated milk.<a href="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/painted_cookie.jpg"><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-404" title="painted_cookie" src="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/painted_cookie.jpg" alt="" width="500" height="366" /></a>

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Please notice that I am NOT neat about painting the cookies.  The colored milk dribbled on the cookie sheet is easy to clean up, when I wash the pan later. No big deal if you drip the paint!

Then bake for 6 minutes or so. Gotta love these simple recipes.<a href="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/finished_cookies.jpg"><img class="alignright size-full wp-image-403" title="finished_cookies" src="http://motherhoodstress.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/finished_cookies.jpg" alt="" width="799" height="686" /></a>

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Old Fashioned Tea Cakes

1 cup shortening

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1/2 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 cups self-rising flour

Mix all ingredients together. Add enough self-rising flour to make a stiff dough. (It usually takes another 1 cup to 1.5 cup.)  Roll out on a floured board. Cut with cookie cutters and put on a cookie sheet.

Mix food coloring into a small quantity of evaporated milk, to desired color.  Bush onto the uncooked cookies.

Bake at 400 degrees until brown, 5 or 6 minutes.