Sugar cookie decorating is an absolute must this time of year! There really isn't a sugar cookie that I would turn away but this is my favorite recipe. These are made with powdered sugar instead of granulated. So they have a kind of melt-in-your-mouth quality to them, like butter cookies. I like to make classic vanilla sugar cookies along with chocolate sugar cookies. Everything is better with chocolate, if you ask me.
Sugar Cookies, makes around 2 dozen
1 cup (2 sticks) softened butter
1 cup powered sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups flour*
1 teaspoon salt
Cream together the butter and sugar. Now mix in the egg and vanilla extract until just combined. Stir in the flour and salt until dough forms. Form a ball from the dough, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm (or over night).
Lightly flour your counter top and roll out the dough to about 1/4 inch thinkness. Use cookie cutters to cut out your shapes. Place cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake at 375°F for 8-10 minutes until the edges begin to brown. Remove from oven and move to a cooling rack.
*To make chocolate sugar cookies simply replace 1/4 cup of the flour with 1/4 cup cocoa instead.
Royal icing is a lot of fun to work with, not to mention delicious. It is very liquid so you use to to flood your cookie shapes, rather than piping or spreading it on. This is done by outlining your cookies with butter cream frosting (do this with a pastry bag and fine tip). Then pour or use a squirt bottle to flood the cookie with royal frosting and the buttercream will keep it from running off the edges.
I used this recipe for the royal frosting. I made mine with egg whites but there is also an option to use meringue powder in case you don't like the idea of using uncooked egg whites. And my favorite buttercream frosting can be found here. 
After a few minutes the royal frosting will set, so be sure to add sprinkles or other candy elements as you work. Make sugar cookies with your friends or family this season! xo. Emma
70 Comments
I think I’ll been referencing this all month! Great post. xo
yuuuuum!!!
Valentina
http://valentinaduracinsky.blogspot.com/
I love these. So adorable and simple!
Melissa
http://shakeshakee.blogspot.com
YUMM! i could use a sugar cookie right now!
Thanks for sharing
http://rainbowsandtress.blogspot.com/
Ah, I love sugar cookies. Thank you for the recipe!
I wish cookies were healthy. I’d eat them all the time!
i like to make these too.. 🙂 so fun.. we called this snow white princess 🙂 *kue putri salju in Bahasa Indonesia
http://lovesimplegreen.blogspot.com/
yum! I make sugar cookies every year but have never tried chocolate ones. That must go on my holiday baking list this year :).
I lovelovelove sugar cookies! Especially at Christmas time! I’ve never tried the chocolate kind, but I’m sure it’s just as delicious. I love the variety of sprinkles! Gold and white make them look fancy.
love the gingerbread cookies
I really like the idea of royal icing in a squeezy bottle like that! Great tip 🙂
http://floatingthrufields.blogspot.com/
How funny is it that I see this post after my son and I baked some sugar cookies! We made them with regular sugar but Im tempted to make some more later this week trying your recipe! I need holiday cookie cutters! Great post
Yum!
xo Jennifer
http://seekingstyleblog.wordpress.com
My decorated sugar cookies never look this good!! =) Love Christmas cookies!
http://chloemoonergo.blogspot.com
Those LOOK melt-in-your mouth wonderful! Might have to try switching to powdered sugar this year and see for myself…because you are right, sugar cookies are a Christmas must!
Can’t wait to make Christmas cookies! Might be my favorite part of the holidays. 🙂
http://sarahthearchitect.com/
Thanks for sharing this! I always butcher sugar cookie recipes, so I’ll have to try this one.
i just made sugar cookies last week with lemon icing. i love these!
Sugar cookies are my FAVE – especially during the holidays! These look heavenly!
XOXO
-Daisy Nguyen from the PS BANANAS! fashion blog: http://psbananas.com
I absolutely agree! The kids and I always make dozens and decorate. I love to add red hots to the iced sugar cookies…. it makes my mouth happy!
Hmmm Im starving now….shouldnt read your post! 😉
http://doitnaturalnow.blogspot.com.es/
I love sugar cookies during the holidays. I usually go crazy with the red and green sprinkles though.
Carlee
http://almostendearing.blogspot.com/
Chocolate sugar cookies sound quite yummy. Thanks for the recipe. 🙂
Yummy. I just posted my recipe for sugar cookies and icing on my blog! And I actually used the same icing recipe as you except I used meringue powder!
Here’s the link to my sugar cookie recipe:
http://chocolate-coveredlove.blogspot.com/2012/12/christmas-cookies-and-smiling-faces.html
how cute are they? 😀
xx
http://www.ireneccloset.com
Royal icing…there’s not enough of it in my life!
Yes, this reminds me of when I was a child and baked with my mom 🙂
http://atleastblog.blogspot.co.uk/
yummy !!!
New post online, check it out : http://www.thestilettoholic.com/2012/12/05/white-in-winter/
Adorable and so yummy! xx
http://www.creativityandchocolate.blogspot.com
Looks really yummy!
xxx Lena
http://joyfuldiary.blogspot.de/
Yum! Love a good sugar cookie recipe! I will have to use this powdered sugar trick for next time!
yummiiii!!!
http://wishuponastarblog.wordpress.com/2012/12/05/some-christmas-ideas-for-him/
I love these, always one for a great homemade idea for Christmas. My candy canes may have to budge up on the branches this year! 🙂
I love your sprinkles! And great photos. I had a cookie decorating gathering for friends, and I used those squeeze bottles for the frosting for the first time – very handy because everyone can be really artsy with their cookies without needing any skills for handling a piping bag. And now I want to try the chocolate twist on sugar cookies…
Now i am feeling more hungry, mmmmmmmmmm
it´s about lunch time here!
cut and yummy!!
Kisses
<3 Val
http://www.beautyval13.blogspot.com (enter to my 1st giveaway!!)
this is very nice recipe.
So nice and yummy. Perfect for Christmas.
http://www.fashiondenis.com/
Squirt bottles are a great idea, but why couldn’t you have posted this last week?!? Just this weekend the kids & I used frosting bags with metal tips to decorate cookies – I’m definitely switching to the bottle method (easier clean-up too, I suspect)!
Where was this recipe 3 days ago? My friend & I randomly decided to make sugar cookies the other night (first time for both of us) so we scoured the internet for recipes. Ours turned out awesome – I made a simple frosting with lemon extract which made them even better. I’ll definitely use this recipe for my holiday party this weekend though, because the powdered sugar part sounds amazing. Thanks! 🙂
Yum! I’ve been looking for a good cookie recipe!
I agree, this time of year is the best to get creative with cookies 🙂
http://lyndajanecakes.blogspot.co.uk/
x
I’ve never found a sugar cookie recipe that holds up to the crappy break and bake stuff at the store (it’s sooo good though). This might work—I’m excited to try.
Sugar cookies are my favorite!
I’ve been on the hunt for a good royal icing recipe. I can’t wait to try this one out this holiday season!
They look so yummy and I love baking this time of year. This receipe is definitely going into the circular files.
Thanks! 🙂
Hey Elsie!
This is a great post! Those melt-in-your-mouth cookies are what make the holidays so great! Your blog has always been so inspiring to me! So much so, that have nominated you for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award! To accept this award, check out the rules on my blog:
http://wp.me/p2eedr-cu
Happy Blogging 🙂
I have never made sugar cookies, but they sound delicious so will definitely be giving it a shot! 🙂
Ammy x
These look SO YUMMY and I love that there’s a picture of a cookie with a bite taken out of it. Hehe. xoxo
Those look so great 🙂
These are so absolutely gorgeous! I have a tip for those who don’t have the ingredient or don’t want to make two types of icing. When I was in culinary school we would add a bit more powdered sugar to the royal icing that we planned to use to line the cookies. If the icing is too thick or you want to use the same batch to flood all you have to do is add more water.
I’m not a huge fan of how sugar cookies taste, but they are always so pretty! Such a great activity to do with kids too, because of all the ways you can decorate them.
Strive to Thrive,
Nic
http://www.Thriving-Wives.com
Im drooling!! I love Christmas and I love cookies and when you put them together it’s like you’re high on life!! Basically, this is my favorite time of years and I can’t wait to make these:)
Tessa Lynn
http://www.alavendersea.com
Stephanie Betthauser, Cool! I’m gonna have to try this next time. Thanks for the tip. 🙂
I love making sugar cookies this time of year, and I’m always looking for new recipes to try! I’ve also been searching high and low for a royal icing recipe so thank you for sharing that as well!
Yum! Sugar Cookies are my favourite!! These are adorable!
X
http://kendra-genevieve-rose.blogspot.com
looks delicious!
http://suspironews.blogspot.com/
Yum! I love sugar cookies, these are super cute!
Those cookies look amazing, I will have to try it out!
xx
Kelly
Sparkles and Shoes
i love baking in general, however i know that baking is essential during the Christmas season! i can say that it makes me feel alot warmer in my heart!
i actuatlly just made some biscuits and i’m hoping to make brownies tonight……i might try this recipe over the weekend as well!
Chi-Chi (London, UK)
http://www.thatgoodgirlchi.blogspot.com
mmmm! so delicious!
😀
http://inavintageworld.blogspot.com.es/2012/12/barroque-hair-style.html
OMG They look so good and they and they are so cute!
Love it!
http://www.limaswardrobe.com
Help! Where did the white chocolate and Nutella truffle recipe go?!?
Looks so good! I just got a kitchenaid mixer so I have been looking for goodies to make, I think these have made the list!
I just made these last night (both varieties) and they were amazing! The chocolate ones taste like chocolate Pop Tart crust. 🙂 we decorated them for our Ugly Christmas Swaeter Party last night!
I just made this recipe, and they are seriously are the best sugar cookies I have made yet! Firm, but soft, if you know what I mean. I made both the chocolate and the regular ones and everyone at work loved them!
http://www.etsy.com/shop/owleyevintage
Sugar cookies are my favorite. Cookies look so delicious and I am going to try your recipe very soon.
I made this cookies for my daughter’s friends and they were the best recipe! I am making another batch for our neighbors. Than you!
This year I gave this recipe you posted a try and my post went up today with some extra tips and tricks. Thanks for the great recipe, they are a hit!
http://128johnst.com/blog/holiday-2012-christmas-sugar-cookies-with-royal-icing#
Aha! So, I made your cookie recipe and refrigerated the cookies, actually I stuck them in the freezer for just a minute or two because I don’t have the room in my fridge, but anyway, the point is, I got them good & cold before popping them in the oven and “VOILA!”… they didn’t spread out all over the place! Thank you for the tip!