The Best Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe
The Best Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe
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Hello there! I hope you are getting into the Christmas spirit because today we are talking all things Christmas cookies! Now that you know how to make the easiest dish for those holiday get-togethers and that special adult beverage for those of you who don’t like eggnog, it’s time to get out those cookie cutters.
I make this recipe every year during the holidays with my children and we have shared many years of recreating this recipe and even switch things up a time or two. It’s a crowd favorite.
My kids love them!
My parents love them!
My kids’ teachers love them!
It took me a few attempts but I finally was able to figure out just the right ingredients for these tasty cookies.
So here’s what you need to do.
The Best Soft Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted Butter (softened)
- 1 3/4 cup sugar
- 2 eggs (room temp)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup sour cream
- 5 1/2 cup unbleached flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
Buttercream Icing
- 1 cup butter or shortening (depending on your preference)
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 5-6 tbsp heavy whipping cream
- 2 tsp clear vanilla extract
- food coloring
- sprinkles
Royal Icing
- 4 lbs powdered sugar
- 3/4 cups Meringue Powder
- 2 tbsp clear vanilla extract
- 1 1/3 cup warm water
Instructions
- Mix together butter & sugar. Beat until it is creamy.
- Add the eggs (one at a time), vanilla and sour cream and mix it all with a mixer until combined.
- In a separate bowl mix the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Then slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in the mixer as it is blending. Mix it just until everything is combined.
- Separate the dough in two equal parts, cover with saran wrap. Refrigerate the dough for at least one hour.
- Once the dough is fully chilled roll out dough on a bakers mat, parchment paper or even your counter. The dough will be sticky so be prepared to add anywhere from 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup more of flour as you roll and cut out the cookies. At this time heat your oven to 350 degrees.
- Cut with your desired cookie cutter, I used this snowflake one. Make sure the cookie cutter is either dusted with flour or powdered sugar to prevent it from sticking to the dough.
- Bake for 8-9 minutes.
- Remove and let cool completely.
Buttercream Icing
- Combine the shortening, heavy cream and vanilla with an electric mixer until smooth and then gradually add your powdered sugar (and food coloring if desired). Make sure the butter is at room temperature and make sure you do not stick it in the microwave to soften or it will separate your frosting.
- Frost your cookies. Serve shortly after or enjoy later.
Royal Icing
- Combine the meringue powder and powdered sugar in a mixing bowl. Then combine vanilla extract with warm water separately.
- dd the water to the sugar mixture mixing as you go until fully combined.
- Add your desired food coloring and ice your cookies. I like to use these Wilton squeeze bottles to help ice the cookies. It helps so much especially when you do them with little kids.
I enjoy making these with the kids. They get so excited and love to decorate them.
These cookies are the perfect combination of a sugar cookie and a cake. Perfect taste and texture… They turned out so well! You have no idea how many times I have baked these for school. They are a hit among the kids (and the teachers as well).
Depending how large you want the cookies it can yield 40-55 from this recipe. If it wasn’t because I was making them for my daughter’s class I would have saved half the batter and stored it in the freezer. It freezes and defrosts great.
And there you have my kid’s artwork! They are pretty good at decorating, if I do say so myself. 😉 Must get it from their momma.
Here is what they look like when I use the royal icing recipe. These hold up better if you are going to package them and gift them to anyone.
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What kind of cookies do you bake this season? If you try these you gotta let me know how they turn out!
The cookie cutter I used is below!
Be sure to visit our fellow 12 Days of Christmas Bloggers below for even more creative ornament ideas this holiday season!
Sugar cookies are my favorite! We make sugar cookies for all the holidays and I love cookies cutters. My kids love to make them.
Yes! They are so fun to make. I love getting the kids involved – they truly love decorating them and we have a blast.
Your kids are such artists! Sugar cookies are such a wonderful classic Christmas cookie, aren’t they?
These look beautiful? Did you use butter or margarine when you made them? You put either on the recipe ingredient list, but butter and margarine can make a difference between soft or crispy cookies.