How To Bake Sugar Cookies For Decorating

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Introducing the actual best sugar cookie recipe! My recipe makes simple, versatile vanilla sugar cookies; the dough is easy to roll and to work with and doesn't spread when baking, so your cookies will always have sharp, defined edges! Y'all can decorate these cookies with sanding carbohydrate, or y'all can utilize my recipe below for a simple (and tasty!) pipage-able sugar cookie icing (i that'due south non royal icing!).

Plate of Christmas sugar cookies shaped and decorated as stars, candy canes, snowflakes and christmas trees

If yous're looking for perfect cutting-out Christmas saccharide cookies, ones that hold their shape and don't spread in the oven, come together hands with no strange ingredients, and that actually taste incredible, also, I've got you covered this twelvemonth.

If you lot desire a foolproof (and I do literally mean foolproof) easy carbohydrate cookie icing that isn't royal icing, 1 that dries firm only not pause-your-teeth hard, well I've got you lot covered there as well.

I'grand adding this flawless saccharide cookie recipe to my Christmas cookie tray alongside the gingerbread men, meringues, and hot chocolate bombs (am I the merely one including these on my cookie list this yr?) and would like to gently suggest y'all consider doing the same, I don't think you (or your guests or gift recipients!) will regret it.

iced christmas sugar cookies on metal cooling rack, including snowflakes, christmas trees, candy canes, and stars

My recipe yields cookies that absolutely practice not spread in the oven, and so y'all have perfectly defined shapes and clear cookie-cutter edges.
These saccharide cookies accept a soft interior texture with a classic, buttery flavor (and instructions for adding other flavors, if desired).
Recipe includes instructions to easily customize the cookies depending on whether y'all prefer thicker and softer or thinner and crispier carbohydrate cookies.
Includes a simple, shiny, and absolutely foolproof (you seriously tin can't mess this upward!) carbohydrate cookie icing that you are going to love. While regal icing certainly has its place (and I fifty-fifty have a fantastic purple icing recipe, if yous're searching or would like to employ that here) I generally prefer this oh-so-easy frosting instead.

What You Need

collage of two photos showing sugar cookie ingredients on the left and icing ingredients on the right — Ingredients for cookies (left) and easy sugar cookie frosting (correct)

Saccharide Cookies Ingredients

Butter. I recommend using unsalted butter then that we tin best control the flavor. For best results, notation that the butter should be softened, simply not so soft that it's melting/oily.
Sugar. Use granulated sugar, information technology gives my carbohydrate cookie recipe that classic Christmas cookie season y'all know and love and helps keep them from spreading.
Egg. A unmarried egg helps the dough demark together.
Vanilla excerpt. You can really flavor these cookies with whatsoever excerpt you like all-time (almond and lemon are popular choices), but typically I always include at to the lowest degree a splash of vanilla, even when using other flavors, equally information technology gives the sugar cookies a beautiful depth of season. (If you have homemade vanilla excerpt, now is a great time to employ it!).
Flour. I take only tested and only recommend this sugar cookie recipe with all-purpose flour (often only referred to as "plainly" flour outside of the US).
Baking powder. My recipe uses just a small-scale amount of blistering pulverisation, which helps give the cookies the perfect soft interior texture and crisp edge.
Salt. I mentioned higher up that unsalted butter is all-time, but if you only have salted on hand simply reduce the salt in the recipe to ¼ teaspoon.

Powdered sugar. Also known equally confectioners sugar or icing carbohydrate. For best results (especially if you'll be pipe the icing), sift it to remove any lumps before using.
Milk. I use whole milk, but any diverseness (low-fat, skim, or even non-dairy milk like almond) will work instead. Just note that if you are using a lower-fatty milk you may need less than the recipe calls for, equally it is thinner.
Vanilla extract. If y'all want pure white icing I recommend using a clear vanilla extract.
Low-cal corn syrup. Not to be dislocated with high fructose corn syrup, this ingredient gives my carbohydrate cookie frosting a glossy, shiny cease and helps it to to set firmly. If y'all must leave it out, I've included notes in the recipe on how to practice so, but for all-time results I recommend using it. Nighttime corn syrup could piece of work simply will add a muddy color and additional flavor to your icing. Outside of the United states, you may be able to find glucose syrup, which should piece of work instead.
Food Coloring. Of course this is optional, but for festively decorated Christmas saccharide cookies, y'all'll probably desire to add a bit of color. I beloved and use gel food coloring for best results (and linked to the kind I use in the recipe). Liquid or powder food coloring volition work, but may not exist as vibrant.

As e'er, this is just an overview of the ingredients used here and why they were chosen. For the full saccharide cookie recipe with amounts and detailed instructions, please scroll downwardly to the printable recipe.

SAM'S TIP: Don't have time to decorate? Skip the sugar cookie frosting and just sprinkle colorful sanding saccharide over the cookies before baking!

Sugar cookie recipe dough being cut into festive shapes with cookie cutter

Tips for Making the Best Sugar Cookies

When cutting out your sugar cookies, brand certain to continue your cuts equally close together to go as many cookies out of your dough as possible. Re-curlicue whatsoever scraps so that you useall of your dough. Keep in listen that with each re-roll you're adding more than flour into the dough, and then you want to get as much as possible out of that commencement roll.
Bake cookies that are about the same size on the same baking sheet. Otherwise the modest ones will burn and the large ones won't terminate baking.
For thinner, crispy sugar cookies: Gyre cookie dough thinner (almost ⅛″) and look for the edges of the cookies to be showtime to turn golden chocolate-brown to know that they are washed.
For thicker, soft sugar cookies:Roll dough to near ¼″, and watch for cookies to bemerely outset to turn lightly golden around the edges. Permit them cool completely on the cookie rack as they may interruption if yous effort to motility them while they're notwithstanding warm.
When making the sugar cookie icing: It's difficult to mess this one up, because if you make it too sparse, but add more powdered sugar. If it's besides thick, just add more milk! Expect for a consistency where the icing that drizzles off of the whisk holds its shape for several seconds before dissolving dorsum into the icing bowl.

plate of festively iced and decorated sugar cookies next to cooling rack of similar cookies

Oft Asked Questions

How do you make saccharide cookies more flavorful?

Sugar cookies should always have a distinctly buttery, sugary and (unremarkably) vanilla flavour, but in order to maintain their groomed shape they are never quite as rich as drop cookies. Much of their flavor comes from the sugariness saccharide cookie icing. While my saccharide cookie recipe is already flavorful, to make them even more so, you can add unlike extracts or emulsions to the dough or acme the icing off with sanding sugar or decorative candies.

Tin can I brand this sugar cookie icing in advance?

Yes, my easy sugar cookie icing may be colored (if desired) and stored in an airtight container at room temperature or in the fridge for up to a week earlier using. To help keep the top from crusting, ever place a piece of plastic wrap directly against the surface of the carbohydrate cookie frosting when storing (or proceed in a plastic handbag and twist to keep the air from reaching the icing). Most likely you will demand to stir (or if you stored it in pipe bags, massage it) earlier using.

Why is my sugar cookie dough crumbly?

This is often a event of accidentally mis-measuring an ingredient or over-measuring the flour. Please encounter my post on how to measure flour properly, and call up to never scoop the flour directly into the measuring cup (for all-time results, use a scale!).
Add your flour gradually. Adding it all at once can make it difficult for the dough to properly absorb the dry out ingredients, resulting in a crumbly, difficult dough. Brand sure that your carbohydrate cookie dough is thoroughly combined; if it still seems crumbly afterward you've added all the flour, just proceed mixing with an electric mixer (or stand mixer) until dough is clinging together and no flour remains.

Why is my dough too soft/sticky?

This is most often a result of accidentally mis-measuring or substituting an ingredient, using butter that is much as well soft (it should never be melting/oily and should not be warmed in the microwave), or not chilling the dough for long plenty. Dough that is still slightly sticky after chilling can often be salvaged by chilling longer or by generously dusting your countertop and the dough with additional flour.

christmas themed sugar cookies on cooling rack and white plate

Hopefully you dearest this easy saccharide cookie recipe every bit much as I practice, and don't forget to bank check out the how-to video in the recipe bill of fare!

Enjoy!

Carbohydrate Cookies

▢ one cup unsalted butter softened (226g)
▢ 1 cup granulated sugar (200g)
▢ 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract (see note)
▢ one large egg
▢ 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour (Manifestly flour) (315g)
▢ ¾ teaspoon baking pulverization
▢ ¾ teaspoon tabular array table salt

Sugar Cookie Frosting

▢ 3 cups powdered sugar, sifted (375g) (counterbalance earlier sifting)
▢ 3-iv Tablespoons milk (I use whole milk, simply whatsoever kind will work)
▢ 2 Tablespoons light corn syrup (encounter notation)
▢ ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
▢ Gel food coloring optional
▢ Additional candies and sprinkles for decorating optional

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Sugar Cookies

Combine butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer (or in a big basin and use an electric hand mixer) and beat until creamy and well-combined.
Add egg and vanilla extract and beat until completely combined.
In a split up, medium-sized bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and table salt.
Gradually stir dry ingredients into wet until dough is shine and completely combined.
Lay out a large slice of plastic wrap and transfer approximately half of the dough onto the wrap (dough volition be quite sticky at this point, that'due south OK!).
Cover dough with clear wrap or wax paper and mold into a apartment disk. Wrap tightly. Repeat with remaining cookie dough in another piece of articulate wrap. Transfer dough to refrigerator and chill for at least 2-iii hours and up to 5 days.
Once dough has finished chilling, preheat oven to 350F (175C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper (alternatively broil cookies directly on an ungreased baking sheet). Fix aside.
Generously grit a clean surface with flour and place one chilled cookie dough disk onto the surface. Lightly flour the dough and roll out to ⅛" (for thinner, crispier cookies) or ¼" (for thicker, softer cookies). Add additional flour as needed both on peak of and beneath the dough so that information technology doesn't stick.

Notation: if dough is cracking as yous roll it, allow information technology sit at room temperature for 10-15 minutes to soften before attempting again.
Utilise cookie cutters to cut out shapes and utilize a spatula to transfer shapes to prepared baking sheet, spacing at least 1" apart. If you are non intending to decorate your cookies with icing, you tin can decorate them with sanding sugar at this betoken before you bake them.
Broil on 350F (175C) for viii-10 minutes (this is for cookies that are approximately 3" [7.6cm]; note that smaller cookies volition need less time and larger cookies will need more), or until edges just brainstorm to plough lightly golden brown.
Permit cookies to absurd completely on cookie sheet earlier decorating.

Easy Sugar Cookie Icing

Combine powdered carbohydrate, ii Tablespoons of milk, corn syrup, and vanilla extract in a medium-sized basin and stir until combined. If frosting is as well thick, add more milk, about a teaspoon at a time, until the frosting is thick but pipeable. If you lot accidentally add together also much milk, add powdered carbohydrate until desired texture is reached.
If coloring the frosting, carve up into bowls and color as desired at this point.
Transfer frosting to a piping purse with a piping tip (I used Wilton 5), or identify in a Ziploc purse and snip a small piece of the corner off (not as neat, just this will still work, just accept care that the frosting isn't so thick that it breaks open the seam of the bag when y'all are squeezing).
Pipe frosting on cookies and decorate with decorative candies, if desired.
Allow frosting to harden before enjoying, stacking, or storing (this took several hours for me and may vary for you depending on the consistency of your frosting).

Flavoring and extracts

You may also reduce the vanilla extract to ¾ teaspoon and add together ¼-1/2 teaspoons of either almond or lemon extract (or only nearly any other extract you'd like!).

Corn Syrup

I highly recommend using light corn syrup for the firmest, glossiest finish on your saccharide cookies. All the same, if you must omit it, you may, but note that the frosting volition not dry quite as difficult and you will likely demand to add more than milk to get the icing to the proper consistency. Glucose syrup may be substituted, only exterior of that I am not certain of a substitute that would give the same event.

Making Frosting in Advance

To brand icing in advance, store in an airtight container with a piece of plastic wrap pressed straight against the surface of the icing. It volition go on for several days and may be stored either at room temperature or in the refrigerator. Icing will need to be stirred again before using. It may be colored with nutrient coloring before or after storing.

Storing

Keep uneaten cookies sealed in an airtight container at room temperature for up to ten days. Cookies may also be frozen for several months.

Nutritional data is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate merely. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.

More than Classic Christmas Cookies to Try:

Gingerbread Men Cookies
Thumbprint Cookies
Easy Royal Icing Recipe
Whipped Shortbread Cookies

Source: https://sugarspunrun.com/easy-sugar-cookie-recipe/

Posted by: farrowthaturs.blogspot.com

How To Bake Sugar Cookies For Decorating