Sugar cookies are synonymous with holiday baking. They take a bit more time to roll, cut and shape and frost, but the end result is so worth it. I’ve baked many sugar cookie recipes, but this one is still our favorite– hands down. They bake crispy on the outside, with a slightly soft chew in the middle. Sometimes, I frost them with a buttercream, and other times I use this simple cookie glaze recipe. Either way, you will love this classic recipe! NOTE: You can make the dough ahead of time, wrap it in plastic wrap and freeze it up to 3 months in advance.
Back in the day, before my adult son was born, I used to host an annual Christmas Cookie Party. I would bake this sugar cookie dough recipe, and set out different colors of buttercream frosting and all kinds of sprinkles. My guests had fun, decorating the sugar cookies and taking some of them home– plus we’d divvy up all the different cookies that we each brought to share. I got to benefit by not having to decorate all of the sugar cookies, too. Great memories!
Over the years, I stopped hosting the party. My life became immersed with raising an active toddler and some of my girlfriends had either moved away, or became busy moms themselves. I continued to bake these cookies for my family, at Christmas time. These cookies are just so darn good, and everybody loves them. I admit, though, that I just don’t have the patience to decorate sugar cookies. To me, it felt like a lot of work with a big mess to clean up.
I’ve lost count on how many “how to decorate with royal icing” blogposts that I’ve pinned. I just don’t consider myself to be that artistic, to fill squeeze bottles with icing and to outline each and every cookie. Then, to “flood” inside the lines with frosting– and to take a toothpick to swirl or write all kinds of gorgeous designs intimidates me!. I mean, I admire then, but I just don’t have the confidence in my amateur artistic talent– not to mention my lack of patience.
Last week, I found some sugar cookie dough that I made at Christmas. During the holidays, I just couldn’t find the time to decorate them, so I put the dough into the freezer. This weekend, I was nesting at home and enjoying the rainy weather that we so desperately need. I thawed the dough, stuck in my smart phone ear buds so I could listen to an audio book.
This helped me to immerse myself into rolling out the sugar cookies, while enjoying a good story. I debated if I really wanted to dig out my piping bags and make buttercream frosting. I just wasn’t feelin’ it. So, I decided to make a simple glaze recipe that I found on my trusty King Arthur Flour website. I weighed my ingredients, which I found to be really helpful. Unlike royal icing, that uses egg whites or meringue powder– this recipes uses powdered sugar, corn syrup and milk. Best of all, it was quick and easy.
I admit that my icing precision isn’t as stellar as using a squeeze bottle. Still, I found this glaze to be very easy to work with.
The consistency should be like “room temperature honey”. I am using Ameri-Color “hot pink” gel food coloring. It’s definitely pink!
This is about as good as it gets, for my cookie decorating. All I have to do, is let the glaze set.
Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
COOKIES:
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 cup butter softened
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
- 2 1/2 cups unbleached flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
GLAZE:
- 2 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar 9-ounces ; sifted
- 2 tablespoons light corn syrup 1 ½ ounce
- 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons milk plus 1 teaspoon; 3/4 to 1 1/8-ounces
- Food coloring optional
Instructions
- Cream powdered sugar, butter, egg, vanilla and almond extract.
- Stir in flour, baking soda and cream of tartar.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours. Or, you can freeze this dough up to 3 months.
Bake:
- Heat oven to 375°F.Divide dough into halves. Roll each half about 3/6-inch thick on a lightly floured surface, making sure to add flour to your rolling pin.
- Cut into desired shapes with cookie cutters.
- Chill the cookie cutouts for at least 15 minutes, before baking.
- Place on an ungreased cookie sheet (I use parchment paper).
- Bake until edges are light brown, 9 to 11 minutes, rotating halfway through for even baking.
- Allow to cool completely. Frost and decorate as desired.
Easy glaze:
- NOTE: I prefer to measure the ingredients in ounces, with a scale, so I've provided volume measurements as well.
- Using a fine mesh sieve, whisk the powdered sugar into a bowl to get rid of any lumps. This makes for a very smooth glaze.
- Mix all of the ingredients together. Stir until smooth; a fork works fine, but a whisk is best.
- The glaze should be thick, but soft enough to “settle” when you spread it. If the glaze is too thick, dribble in another teaspoon of milk, 1/2 teaspoon at a time.
- Add food color, if you like; gel paste food colors are preferable, as they yield vibrant color, and don’t alter the liquid/sugar ratio as regular food colors might.
- There are different ways you can apply the glaze to cookies. I took the easy route and spooned the frosting. A zip-loc bag could be come a disposable bag, with a small corner cut out. You can then outline the shape of the cookie, and then “flood” it in with more frosting.
- Allow at least 2 hours for the frosting to set. Just don’t lay the glaze on too thick. If you want to add sprinkles, add them right on top of the glaze, before it sets
Notes
These are so deliciously festive! Can't go wrong with a good sugar cookie.
Uh oh, how much flour?
Oooops. I fixed it. 2-1/2 cups flour. Thanks for pointing out my boo-boo.
I'm with you, Debby. As much as I love the fancy decorated cookies I don't have the patience to make them and always end up with a big mess. I love these old recipes that can be counted on year after year. Your hearts are so festive and pretty.
Thanks Debby! Can't wait to try them 🙂