• In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together flour, cream of tartar, and salt and set aside. Place the softened butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and cream with the paddle attachment until light and fluffy—about 3 minutes. Slowly add the eggs, almond extract, and vanilla extract and mix again until combined.
• Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix until combined, scraping the bowl to make sure that all of the butter has mixed in completely. Let the cookie dough chill in the fridge for at least 1-2 hours, or overnight.

Bake the Cookies

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Sprinkle the counter and rolling pin lightly with flour, then roll the dough on your floured surface until it is about 1/4" thick.
• Cut cookies out into desired shapes and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper at least 1" apart.
• Bake in your preheated oven for 8-10 minutes, or until the edges are set and there is just a hint of golden brown color.
• Let the cookies cool for about 2 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
• Decorate once cooled, or store until ready to use.

Royal Icing

• In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together meringue powder and warm water with the whisk attachment until light and fluffy.  Slowly add powdered sugar to the meringue mixture and whisk again. Once all sugar has been added, whip on high for several minutes until stiff peaks form.
• Separate frosting into several different bowls and color as desired. Thin the frosting out with ½ teaspoon water at a time (Note: when you pull a spoonful up, it should quickly dissolve back into itself and become smooth on top)
• Pour frosting into piping bags or squeeze bottles and decorate cookies as desired. Enjoy!