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1
In a bowl, with an electric mixer on medium speed, beat butter and 3/4 cup sugar until smooth. Beat in egg, brandy, and anise seeds. Stir or beat in flour and baking powder until well blended.
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2
Divide dough in half. Flatten each portion with your hands into a 1-inch-thick round. Wrap each portion in plastic wrap airtight and freeze until firm, about 30 minutes.
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3
Unwrap dough. On a lightly floured surface, with a floured rolling pin, roll dough, a portion at a time, to 1/8 inch thick.
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4
With floured cookie cutters, cut dough into desired shapes (if dough becomes too soft to handle, freeze briefly until firm again).
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5
With a wide spatula or your fingers, transfer cookies to buttered or cooking parchment-lined 12- by 15-inch baking sheets, spacing them about 1 inch apart. Gather scraps, pat into a ball, and repeat rolling and cutting. In a small bowl, mix remaining 1/4 cup sugar and the cinnamon. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar over cutouts on sheets.
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6
Bake cookies in a 300u00b0 oven until golden, about 15 minutes; if baking more than one pan at a time, switch pan positions halfway through baking.
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7
With a wide spatula, transfer cookies to racks to cool. If hot cookies start to break, slide a thin spatula under them to release, let stand on sheets to firm up, about 5 minutes, then transfer to racks to cool completely.
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8
Nutritional analysis is per cookie.
