Best Sugar Cookies
Are you looking for a sugar cookie recipe that can holds it shape after shaping it with a cookie cutter and baking it? How about that sugar cookie with the old fashioned sweet sensation? Looking for that glaze frosting recipe that will harden and compliment the cookie? How about a royal icing recipe that wont let you down? Look no further, Karen’s Cookies has you completely covered. It took us several years to find that “perfect” sugar cookie recipe. Once we found it, it was as if we had stricken a gold mine. We have used this recipe for every holiday on the calendar, including for party favours at events (see photos below). We can’t wait for you to try it and to hear what you think of it!
Karen’s Basic Rolled Sugar Cookie Recipe
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 cup butter, softened
- 1 cup superfine sugar, or granulated sugar, processed in blender or food processor for 30 seconds
- ½ tsp. Salt
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 2 tsp. Vanilla extract
- ½ tsp. Almond extract or emulsion, optional
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour.
DIRECTIONS:
- Cream butter, sugar and salt until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes with mixer set at medium speed.
- Add yolk, beat well. Add whole egg, vanilla and optional almond extract and beat until well-incorporated.
- Add flour; beat at low speed just until flour is mixed in; do not overmix.
- Divide dough in halves or thirds and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm, at least one hour and up to 2 days.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Dust work surface and rolling pin with flour. Roll dough to 1/4″ thick, sprinkling with additional flour as needed to prevent sticking.
- Cut into desired shapes and place on parchment or silicone-lined pans. Bake in preheated oven until cookies appear dry on the surface and are light golden brown on the edges, about 10 minutes (very large cookies may take up to 12 or 13 minutes).
- Remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks and cool completely before decorating.
Karen’s Powdered Sugar Glaze Recipe
Ingredients: *Note: We use a teaspoon of Meringue powder to insure that it will harden.
- 2 lb. powdered sugar
- ¾ cup less 2 T. water
- 1 T. Vanilla (use clear vanilla for pure-white icing)
- ½ tsp. almond extract
- ¼ tsp. salt
- Put powdered sugar into large bowl.
- Mix water, flavorings and salt.
- Add to powdered sugar and stir until smooth.
- Add water, 1 teaspoon at a time, until desired consistency.
- Can thicken up with additional powdered sugar to make simple outlines in a pinch.
Karen’s Cookies Royal Icing Recipe
Ingredients:
- 3 T. meringue powder
- 4 cups (1 pound) powdered sugar
- 6 T. water
- ½ tsp. vanilla extract (use clear vanilla if you want a pure white icing)
- ¼ tsp. almond extract
Directions:
- Beat all ingredients together until stiff peaks form (about 10 minutes).
- To vary the consistency, add water to thin and add powdered sugar to thicken.
XOXO Nancy & Melissa
Here are several additional photos of sugar cookies prepared using the above recipes. These looked marvelous in cellophane bags and tied ribbons used for party favors:
Hi Melissa,
Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Great looking cookies, and I’d really like to try making a batch.
I have a question, though, and hope you may be willing to help.
I use a scale to measure the ingredients properly, especially when it comes to flour, and was wondering if you can say how the flour should be measured here, or how much the 2 1/2 cups should weigh? (12.5 oz. or 11.25 oz., or something else?)
Thank you!
Aww thank you Mick!