Straightforward Sugar Cookies

Completely sweet sugar cookies are an irresistible treat right thru the vacations (or any day if we’re being appealing). Whether crisp and fleet, gentle and chewy, or intricately decorated, there is a sugar cookie for each person. Our standard sugar cookie recipe is a favorite in Martha’s kitchen, and for appealing reason. The recipe is as easy as they arrive. The regular butter and sugar-primarily primarily based cookie dough is snappily and uncomplicated to whip up—all you need is a stand mixer. While you roll out the dough, it would possibly perhaps perhaps probably moreover moreover be conventional to plan any whimsical shapes you care for (or support it traditional and poke for added primitive circles).

Be taught what makes our sugar cookie recipe so special, and accept our tricks for baking and decorating these sweet treats.

What Is a Sugar Cookie?

Technically, every cookie is a sugar cookie if it has…successfully, sugar. The types of cookies that we assuredly label as “sugar cookies” would possibly perhaps moreover moreover be divided into two fundamental lessons: sturdy cookies for decorating (care for this recipe) and still and chewy cookies (care for Snickerdoodles).

Both of quite quite a bit of these cookies initiating up within the same system; butter and sugar are creamed collectively earlier than eggs, flour, and leavening brokers (care for baking soda and baking powder) are mixed in to contain a dough. The total texture of the sugar cookie will count totally on the ratios of paunchy, sugar, and flour.

Sugar Cookie Ingredients

• Sugar: Sugar no longer handiest makes the dough sweet, on the opposite hand it also keeps the dough tender. We namely admire this recipe for that reason of it has the explicit amount of sugar—the dough is no longer in point of fact too tender, so it be easy to roll without cracking right thru the perimeters.
• Flour: The extra flour that goes into cookie dough, the extra crumbly and crisp this would possibly perhaps well be. Recipes for softer sugar cookies care for snickerdoodles can grasp less flour than extra impregnable decorated sugar cookies.
• Butter: Butter adds quite quite a bit of flavor to cookies and affects the total texture. Extra butter will plan a softer, chewier dough.
• Eggs: The fundamental position of eggs in cookie dough is construction and moisture. The proteins within the eggs bind to the starch in flour and support protect the dough collectively.
• Leaveners: Baking powder (and assuredly baking soda) is added to cookie dough to support the dough rise and unfold. Baking soda is no longer included in our recipe for that reason of it permits browning (this has to operate with the pH level) and we need our sugar cookies to cease gentle in shade.

Rolling, Reducing, and Baking Sugar Cookies

Rolling:

1. Chill the dough as a flat disk. The thinner the half of dough, the less time you can use rolling it out later.
2. Dirt a smooth work floor with some flour, starting with a gentle-weight coating and along with extra if wanted.
3. Let the dough relaxation at room temperature for a couple of minutes earlier than you initiating up rolling. You would like to grasp the dough to cease chilled, but when it’s too cool, it would initiating as much as crack as you roll it out.
4. Practice agency and even stress, starting from the center and dealing your system out to the perimeters. Let the rolling pin operate the majority of the work and rotate the dough a little bit each time you roll.

Reducing:

1. If the dough has warmed up too grand within the rolling project, pop it onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and refrigerate it for approximately 10 minutes, or except it is far agency every other time.
2. Dip your cookie cutter into flour to retain it from sticking to the dough as you cleave.
3. Minimize out shapes as shut to 1 one more as that you just would be in a position to moreover so you don’t grasp too many scraps.
4. Scraps would possibly perhaps moreover moreover be rerolled and conventional one beyond regular time to cleave out extra cookies. Any scraps that you just would be in a position to moreover grasp left after this need to restful be discarded, as they’ll modified into tricky after too grand rolling.

Baking:

1. Prepare the cookies about a inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
2. The cookies will unfold less within the occasion that they poke into the oven whereas they’re restful a little bit frosty and agency to the touch. To support them perfectly formed, allow them to put collectively within the freezer for appealing a couple of minutes earlier than baking.
3. Rotate the pans as soon as as they bake. Most ovens grasp hot spots, so rotate the pans and their oven rack positions halfway thru baking to plan obvious they’re evenly cooked.

Decorating Sugar Cookies

Sugar cookies would possibly perhaps moreover moreover be as easy or decorative as you care for. To support it easy, add sprinkles, sanding sugar, or nonpareils to the cookies earlier than baking. They are going to add fun colours and crunch to the cookies, and children continuously admire them.

That you just would be in a position to presumably moreover also red meat up the cookies with icing. Royal icing is ideally suited for intricate designs, but a easy confectioners’ sugar glaze adds a pleasant amount of sweetness as successfully. Gel-primarily primarily based food coloring would possibly perhaps moreover moreover be added to both of these decorating choices.

1. Drag collectively dry ingredients:

   In great bowl, travel flour, baking powder, and salt.

2. Cream butter and sugar:

   With an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar except gentle and fluffy.

3. Add egg and vanilla:

   Beat in egg and vanilla.

4. Add dry ingredients:

   With mixer on low, step by step add flour mixture; beat except combined.

5. Chill dough:

   Divide dough in half of; flatten into disks. Wrap every half of in plastic; freeze except agency, no no longer as much as 20 minutes, or attach in a resealable plastic accept, and freeze as much as three months (thaw in fridge overnight).

6. Roll out dough and cleave cookie shapes:

   Preheat oven to 325°F. Line baking sheets with parchment. Rob away one dough disk; let stand 5 to 10 minutes. Roll out 1/8 poke thick between two sheets of floured parchment, dusting dough with flour as wanted.

7. Minimize out cookies:

   Minimize shapes with cookie cutters.

8. Teach cookies on baking sheets:

   Utilizing a spatula, switch to prepared baking sheets. (If dough will get gentle, sit down back 10 minutes.) Reroll scraps; cleave shapes. Repeat with final dough.

9. Bake cookies and let frosty:

   Bake, rotating halfway thru, except edges are golden, 10 to 18 minutes (looking on size). Cool totally on wire racks.

10. Originate icing

    Sift confectioners’ sugar into a shrimp bowl. Drag in milk, water, or lemon juice, 1 tablespoon at a time, except gentle and thick enough to coat the support of a spoon. If too skinny, travel in extra sugar; if too thick, add extra liquid.

11. Serve cookies:

    Dip cookies in icing or unfold icing over cookies the utilization of the support of a spoon. Add totally different decorations, if desired. Let the icing harden, about 20 minutes.

Making Sugar Cookies Ahead

That you just would be in a position to presumably moreover plan sugar cookie dough ahead and refrigerate or freeze. Camouflage the disks of dough tightly with plastic wrap and store within the fridge for as much as 2 days, or the freezer for as much as three months.

That you just would be in a position to presumably moreover also bake and red meat up the cookies and store them for as much as one week at room temperature.

Customarily Requested Questions

Can you freeze sugar cookies?

The dough freezes successfully and would possibly perhaps moreover moreover be saved within the freezer for as much as three months. Baked cookies need to restful no longer be frozen.

Can I exercise confectioners’ sugar for sugar cookies?

Confectioners’ sugar or powdered sugar can no longer be substituted straight for granulated sugar. Confectioners’ sugar has a grand finer texture and contains some cornstarch, so this would possibly perhaps well switch the texture.

Extra Sugar Cookie Recipes to Are attempting:

• Most practical seemingly Sugar Cookies
• Broad Chocolate Sugar Cookies
• Gluten-Free Sugar Cookies
• Dutch Sugar Cookies (Arnhemse Meisjes)
• Citrus Sugar Cookies
• Vanilla-Bean Sugar Cookies
• Crackly Cinnamon Sugar Cookies