Iced and decorated sugar cookies are the quintessential holiday cookie, perfect for every occasion. Dress them up or dress them down, they’re a delight at the sweet table and the best cookies for a Christmas cookie exchange.
Tips and tricks to get your holiday sugar cookie baking in top form
1. What’s the best icing for sugar cookies?
The high shine, hard set and sweet icing that makes sugar cookies Insta-worthy is called Royal Icing. It’s made from three simple ingredients: meringue powder, water and icing sugar. Royal Icing is a cookie decorator’s dream – it’s easy to tint different colours and pipe outlines or detailed patterns. To cover the entire cookie surface (aka ‘flood’ the cookie) simply thin the icing with a few drops of water and pour over or dip the cookie into the icing.
2. What’s the recipe for Royal Icing?
Using only three ingredients, this recipe is perfect for outlining or flooding sugar cookies and gingerbread cookies. You can also use this recipe for assembling and decorating cookie houses. In a large bowl, beat together 3 tbsp meringue powder and 5 tbsp water until foamy, about 2 minutes. Beat in 3 cups icing sugar, adding up to 1 cup more as needed, until a thick, glossy icing that holds a peak when tested forms, about 7 minutes.
3. Is there an easy icing for sugar cookies?
A simple glaze style icing of icing sugar and water, milk or citrus juice is perfect for a no-fuss sugar cookie icing. Use about 1 tbsp liquid to 1 cup of icing sugar and beat until smooth. Increase icing sugar for a thicker icing or increase liquid, a few drops at a time, for a thinner icing. Tint, pipe and decorate as you wish.
4. What are the best cutouts for sugar cookies?
The best cookie cutter cutouts are always the ones you love the most or have a place in your family tradition. Classic holiday shapes like trees, bells, hearts and people are great because the shapes are simple, and this is ideal. Small, intricate designs can get lost in the baking process as the cookie rises and expands a little. Tiny points or cutout details bake faster than the rest of the cookie, potentially resulting in unsightly burnt edges. Use the icing, sprinkles and your creativity instead of the cutouts to bring your sugar cookies to life.
5. How do I make sugar cookie ornaments?
Cookie ornaments are a beautiful way to decorate a tree and they make the most delightful holiday hostess gifts. To make ornaments, arrange cookie dough cutouts on your baking sheet, use a straw to puncture a hole in the dough where you’d like to run the ribbon through. Bake according to the recipe. Remove the cookies from the oven and while the cookie is still soft and warm, re-puncture the hole with the straw to set the edges. Let cool completely. Decorate as desired. If using icing, let the icing set and string a festive ribbon through the hole.
6. How thin should I roll out my sugar cookies?
The ideal thickness for sugar cookies is about ¼ inch (5 mm) thick. Too thin and the cookies can be dry and brittle, too thick and they can be dense and doughy.
7. How do I put sprinkles on sugar cookies without them falling off?
For best results when using sprinkles or sanding sugar to finish your cookie, apply them when the icing is still wet, so right away after piping or flooding. This gives the sprinkles something to hold on to. If you’ve gone and done all the piping at once and then want to sprinkle but the icing is dry, no sweat! Make a thin glaze of icing sugar and water, use a paintbrush to apply it to the areas you want to sprinkle. Apply sprinkles immediately and liberally.
8. How long do I bake my sugar cookies for?
It’s always tempting to bake the cookies for just one more minute, but overbaking can yield dry, hard and unappealing cookies. For sugar cookie texture perfection, look for pale gold on the edges of the cookies and remove them immediately. Cookies continue to bake as they rest on the pan from residual heat. Smaller cutouts will bake more quickly than larger ones, so arrange similar sizes on one pan and adjust baking time accordingly for size.
9. What’s the best recipe for sugar cookies?
Sugar cookies should be buttery and crisp, which is why our recipe is the best.
Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- ¾ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- In large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- In separate large bowl, using electric mixer on medium speed, beat butter with granulated sugar until creamy and light, about 3 minutes. Beat in egg and vanilla, scraping bottom and side, until combined.
- Beat in half the flour mixture on low speed, then beat in remaining half.
- Divide dough into quarters. Flatten each quarter into a disc, wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside.
- On lightly floured work surface, roll out dough into ¼-inch thickness; using cookie cutters, cut into desired shapes. Arrange on prepared sheets.
- Bake 1 sheet at a time until edges are pale golden, about 10 minutes. Let cool on rack.
- Ice and decorate as desired.
