sugar cookies

Sugar Cookies

I find myself posting and promoting healthy eating and cooking, but then the holidays approach and I love to make cookies. This recipe is neither heart healthy nor bone healthy. For that matter it’s downright just fun to make and eat on occasion! I hope that you enjoy the holidays while making this sugar cookies recipe.

Options are to sprinkle the candies on the dough before baking. If you have more time, bake sugar cookies and let them cool, then make the icing and decorate the cookies with either colored icing or white icing with candy sprinkles. I provide the recipe here for both the sugar cookies and the sugar cookies icing.

This recipe makes about 30 small 2 inch sugar cookies. Double the recipe for a larger group or for sharing with friends and family, or bringing to a holiday potluck.

Cookie Ingredients

Ingredients

  • 2 ½ cups unbleached white flour

  • ½ teaspoon salt

  • 1 teaspoon baking powder

  • 3/4 cup butter

  • 1 cup sugar

  • 2 eggs

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

  • candied sprinkles

Icing Ingredients

Ingredients

  • 3 cups powdered sugar

  • 2 to 4 tablespoons whole milk

  • 2 tablespoons light corn syrup

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

  • food coloring (in desired colors), optional

Cookie Directions

Directions

  1. In a mixer, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla.

  2. In a separate bowl, mix the flour with the salt and baking powder.

  3. Stir the flour mixture into the butter/sugar mixture.

  4. Wrap dough in parchment paper and chill for at least one hour (or overnight).

  5. Preheat oven to 375° F.

  6. Roll out dough on floured surface 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into shapes with any cookie cutter. Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets layered with parchment paper.

  7. Optional-decorate with candied sprinkles. If you add sprinkles when the cookie dough is raw, skip step 9.

  8. Bake on middle rack in the oven for 6 to 8 minutes. Transfer cookies with the paper carefully to a cooling rack and cool completely.

  9. When cool, decorate with icing and candy sprinkles, if desired.

Icing Directions

Directions

  1. In a small bowl, combine sugar and 2 tablespoons milk. Mix until smooth. Add milk as need to create a smooth mixture, one tablespoon at a time.

  2. Add corn syrup and vanilla extract. Icing should be the consistency of corn syrup.

  3. Add food coloring one drop at a time until desired color is reached. Use a butter knife to decorate cooled cookies Keep unused icing sealed until ready to use.

  4. The icing will dry hard. It can take up to overnight before it is recommended to stack them.

If you like this recipe and want a challenge, try making kolache. This is a rolled cookie recipe with a walnut filling.

 

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