Easy Decorated Sugar Cookies

Easy decorated sugar cookies are a MUST for the holidays around our house. Our family loves to spend a snowy winter evening decorating sugar cookies. As the kids get older, the decorating gets more intense and creative! What are your favorite cookies to make during the Christmas season?  These easy, decorated sugar cookies are perfect for any holiday celebration!

What are your favorite cookies to make during the Christmas season?  I don’t know about you, but I struggle to find a great, easy to shape, cookie dough for those fun Christmas cookies!  So, I put it off and then my kids beg me to make the fun shaped cookies…and I get frustrated. But, this easy sugar cookie recipe is the one I have gone to again and again. I just love it!

Then there is the the icing….that is a whole different aspect, isn’t it? Every time I attempt to make cut out cookies, I get nervous.  I think they looked pretty, but that it will be too much work.

This time around, I whipped up a glaze type of icing, that not only tastes good, but also makes it so easy to decorate!  Theses cookies turned out to be so soft, delicious, and my kids had a great time adding their personal creations to them!  I am excited to share some tips with you to create easy decorated sugar cookies.

Iced Sugar Cookies aren’t just for Christmas.  My grandma makes them for every holiday…Easter, Valentine’s Day, birthdays….you name it, she has a cookie cutter for it!  I was often intimidated to make these, because hers were so perfect.  But now, I find myself cutting out sugar cookies every Christmas!  My daughter LOVES to be creative with the icing, and I am now obsessed with having as many varieties of sprinkles as possible!

You probably have all the ingredients in your pantry!  Gather your butter, sugar, flour, eggs, vanilla, baking powder, milk, and salt together so it’s all in one place.  Be sure to set your butter out to soften about 2 hours before you are ready to bake.  

Ingredients for Easy Decorated Sugar Cookies

• 2 3/4 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup salted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract

Icing:

• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 3-4 Tablespoons milk
• 2 Tablespoons light corn syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

How to Make Iced Sugar Cookies

Combine flour, salt, and baking powder in a large bowl, and set aside.

Then, in your stand mixer with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, and when they are fully combined, add the vanilla and almond extracts.

Slowly add the flour to the butter/sugar mixture and beat until combined. Divide the dough into two equal parts.

Roll each portion to about 1/4 inch thickness. Dust each portion lightly with flour. Wrap in plastic wrap, and chill in the refrigerator for about 2 hours.

When you are ready to cut the cookies, preheat the oven to 375 degrees. While it is warming start cutting out the cookies with cookie cutters. Arrange the cut outs on a baking sheet, about 2-3 inches apart.

Pop the shapes back in the fridge for about 10 minutes to set up before baking.

Bake the cookies for 8-10 minutes. Allow to cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes, then place on a wire rack to finish cooling.

To Make the Icing:

Combine the powdered sugar, milk, vanilla, and corn syrup in a small bowl. Mix until smooth. Add a little more milk or sugar to get the consistency you want.

I like mine a bit thin. I hold my cookie face down, and dip it in the icing so it has a smooth finish. I let it dry a bit, and then decorate it.

Tips for Beautiful Sugar Cookies

• Make sure the dough is chilled before you try to roll and cut it.  This is so important….and sometimes, I have to put it back in the refrigerator to chill a little more as we are baking.  You need CHILLED dough so it will cut easily and not lose its shape when you bake it. I like to remove the dough from the mixing bowl and mold it into a nice ball, and then flatten it slightly. Then, wrap it in saran wrap and I place it in the refrigerator to cool for about 2 hours.  
• Use REAL butter.  Try not to use a substitute or anything like that.  Real butter works best!
• You can freeze your cookies, or the dough.  
• Use a royal icing for a very smooth look.  Buttercream icing will give you a fuller, creamier topping on the cookies.

Baking sugar cookies doesn’t have to be challenging!  It is a wonderful way to pass a cold, snowy day, and have a sweet treat!