Black Eyed Susans Recipe

About 3 hours before serving or early in day:

In large bowl, with mixer at high speed, beat butter or margarine and sugar until light and fluffy. Reduce speed to low; add flour, milk, baking powder, extracts, and egg; beat until well mixed, occasionally scraping bowl with rubber spatula.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. With hands, shape 1 teaspoon cookie dough at a time into a ball. For each cookie, on ungreased large cookie sheet, arrange 5 balls around and touching 1 center ball, to form a flower. Place a prune on center ball. Repeat with remaining dough and prunes, placing cookies 1 inch apart.

Bake 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool cookies on cookie sheets on wire racks 5 minutes. Remove cookies to wire racks to cool.

Prepare frosting; spread on cookie "petals" surrounding prune. Let frosting dry, about 1 hour. About 195 calories each cookie.

BRIGHT YELLOW FROSTING: In medium bowl, with mixer at low speed, beat confectioners' sugar, cream of tartar, and egg whites until blended. Increase speed to high; beat mixture until so stiff that knife drawn through mixture leaves a clean-cut path. Beat enough yellow food coloring into frosting to tint a bright yellow color.