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Th e B e s t S u ga r C o ok i e s
Posted on September 16, 2019 / posted in Cookies / 742
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With crisp edges, thick centers, and room for

lots of decorating icing, I know you’ll love
these so! cut out sugar cookies. Use your
favorite cookie cutters and try my classic royal
icing!

These are my favorite sugar cookies with

icing. I shared the recipe on Sally’s Baking
Addiction several years ago and even
published them in my cookbook, too! I’ve
made them at least 38577 times (that’s a lot of
butter), so I figured it’s time to share new
recipe tips, a video tutorial, and more helpful
information.

Sugar cookie success is in your near future. I

can smell them baking already!

Why You’ll Love These Sugar

Cookies
So!, thick centers with slightly crisp edges
Irresistible buttery vanilla flavor
Leave plain or flavor with extras like maple,
cinnamon, and more
Hold their shape
Flat surface for decorating
Stay so! for days
Freeze beautifully

Sugar Cookies Video Tutorial

The Best Sugar Cookies | Sally'…

How to Make Sugar Cookies with

Icing
1. Make cookie dough. You only need 7-8
ingredients. With so little ingredients, it’s
important that you follow the recipe
closely. Creamed butter and sugar provide
the base of the cookie dough. Egg is the
cookie’s structure and vanilla extract adds
flavor. I almost always add a touch of
almond extract for additional flavor and
highly recommend that you try it too! Flour
is an obvious addition, baking powder
adds li!, and salt balances the sweet. So
many *little ingredients* doing *big jobs*
to create a perfect cookie. By the way, I
also make chocolate sugar cookies too!
2. Divide in two pieces. Smaller sections of
dough are easier to roll out.
3. Roll out cookie dough. Roll it out to 1/4
inch thick or just under 1/4 inch thick. If
you have di"iculty evenly rolling out
dough, try this adjustable rolling pin.
Speaking from experience– it’s incredibly
handy!
4. Chill rolled out cookie dough. Without
chilling, these cookie cutter sugar cookies
won’t hold their shape. Chill the rolled out
cookie dough for at least 1-2 hours and up
to 2 days.
5. Cut into shapes. If you need suggestions
for cookie cutters, I love Ann Clark brand.
(Not sponsored, just a genuine fan!) Some
of my favorites include this heart set, dog
bone, snowflake, snowman, leaf, and a
pumpkin!
6. Bake & cool. Depending on size, the
cookies take about 10-12 minutes.
7. Decorate. See my suggested icings below.
Have a little flour nearby when you’re rolling
out the cookie dough. Keep your work
surface, hands, and rolling pin lightly floured.
This is a relatively so! dough.

The Trick is the Order of Steps

Notice how I roll out the dough BEFORE
chilling it in the refrigerator? That’s my trick
and you can see me doing it in the video
tutorial above.

Let me explain why I do this. To prevent the

cookies from over-spreading, the cookie
dough must chill in the refrigerator. Roll out
the dough right a!er you prepare it, then chill
the rolled-out dough. (At this point the dough
is too so! to cut into shapes.) Don’t chill the
cookie dough and then try to roll it out
because it will be too cold and di"icult to
work with. I divide the dough in half before
rolling it out and highly recommend you do
the same. Smaller sections of dough are
simply more manageable.

That’s like
getting a trip to
Paris, France
for the cost of
Paris, Texas.
*Auto rate reduction is an average by
state and will vary by individual.

Another trick! Roll out the cookie dough

directly on a silicone baking mat or
parchment paper so you can easily transfer it
to the refrigerator. Pick it up, put it on a
baking sheet, and place it in the refrigerator. If
you don’t have enough room for two baking
sheets in your refrigerator, stack the pieces of
rolled out dough on top of each other.

How Thick Do I Roll Sugar

Cookies?
These sugar cookies remain so! because
they’re rolled out pretty thick. Roll out the
cookie dough to about 1/4 inch thick or just
under 1/4 inch thick. Yes, this is on the thicker
side and yes, this produces extra thick and
so! cookies! If rolling out cookie dough
doesn’t sound appealing, try my drop sugar
cookies instead.

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Sugar Cookie Icing

I have TWO sugar cookie icing recipes and you
can choose whichever works best for you.

1. Favorite Royal Icing: This royal icing is

my preferred sugar cookie icing because
it’s easy to use, dries within 1-2 hours, and
doesn’t taste like hardened cement. (It’s on
the so!er side!) I make it with meringue
powder. Meringue powder takes the place
of raw egg whites, which is found in
traditional royal icing recipes. It eliminates
the need for fresh eggs, but still provides
the same consistency. You can find
meringue powder in some baking aisles,
most cra! stores with a baking section,
and online. The 8 ounce tub always lasts
me awhile. The trickiest part is landing on
the perfect royal icing consistency, but I
provide a video in the royal icing recipe to
help you.
2. Easy Glaze Icing: You can find my easy
glaze icing recipe paired with
my Christmas sugar cookies. This icing is
easier to make than royal icing because
you don’t need an electric mixer and the
consistency won’t really make or break the
outcome. However, it’s thinner than royal
icing and doesn’t provide the same sharp
detail that royal icing decorations do. It
also takes a good 24 hours to dry.
The pictured hearts are decorated with my
royal icing using Wilton piping tip #4. If you’re
not into piping tips, you can simply dunk the
tops of the cookies into the icing like I do with
my animal cracker cookies.

Sugar Cookie Tips & Tools

Before I leave you with the recipe, let me
suggest some useful sugar cookie tools:

Cookie Sheets
Rolling Pin
Food Coloring: Liquid food coloring can alter the
consistency of the icing, so I recommend gel food
coloring. For the pictured cookies, I used a few
drops of dusty rose and 1 drop of sky blue.
Piping Tips/Squeeze Bottle: If you’re using royal
icing, I recommend Wilton piping tip #4 for outlining
and flooding. This is a wonderful basic piping tip to
have in your collection. If you’re using my easy glaze
icing, I recommend using a squeeze bottle.
Piping Bag: If you’re using royal icing and a piping
tip, you need a piping bag.

Here’s What You Can Do with

This Dough
Christmas Sugar Cookies
Striped Fudge Cookie Sandwiches
Snowman Cookies
Cinnamon Roll Cookies
Valentine’s Day Heart Cookies
Watermelon Cookies
Football Cookies
Maple Cinnamon Stars

And if you’re craving sugar cookies with a little

extra tang, try my so! cream cheese cookies.

Soft Cut-Out Sugar

Cookies

4.9 from 166 reviews

Prep Time: 2 hours

Cook Time: 12 minutes
Total Time: 4 hours
Yield: 24 4-inch cookies

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Description

With crisp edges, thick centers, and

room for lots of decorating icing, I
know you’ll love these so! sugar
cookies as much as I do. The number
of cookies this recipe yields depends
on the size of the cookie cutter you
use. If you’d like to make dozens of
cookies for a large crowd, double the
recipe.

Ingredients

2 and 1/4 cups (281g) all-purpose

flour (spoon & leveled)

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup (170g) unsalted butter

butter,
so!ened to room temperature

3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar

1 large egg
egg, at room temperature

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1/4 or 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

(optional, but makes the flavor
outstanding)*

Royal Icing or Easy Glaze Icing

Instructions

1 Whisk the flour, baking powder, and

salt together in a medium bowl. Set
aside.

2 In a large bowl using a hand mixer

or a stand mixer fitted with a
paddle attachment, beat the butter
and sugar together on high speed
until completely smooth and
creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the
egg, vanilla, and almond extract (if
using) and beat on high speed until
combined, about 1 minute. Scrape
down the sides and up the bottom
of the bowl and beat again as ! ×
needed to combine.