CHRISTMAS SUGAR COOKIES
Picture biting into a freshly made sugar cookie, the perfect amount of sweetness blending with buttery richness. Sugar cookies are a treasured classic that elicits comfort and brings back fond memories, whether you consume them in their classic round shape or adorable seasonal designs.
Ingredients
- ¼ cup Softened Unsalted Butter
- ¼ cup Sugar
- ¼ tsp Salt
- ¾ tsp Vanilla
- ⅛ tsp Almond Extract
- ¼ tsp Baking Powder
- 1 cup Flour + ½ -1 tbsp for dusting
- 1 Med Egg Yolk See Recipe Notes
- 1 tsp Milk See Recipe Notes
Instructions
- Using a mixer, cream your butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
- Next, add in your remaining wet ingredients and mix until combined.
- Add in your salt and baking powder, then add in your flour in three parts. Mix until well combined.
- Optional - cover and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
- Lightly flour your surface for your dough then roll it out to 1/4" thickness, then cut out with your desired cookie cutter. Re-roll the dough as needed until all the dough has been used up. You may have a bit of dough left over that is too small for cookie cutter. I usually just roll it into a ball and flatten it into a cookie shape.
- Place them on a lined baking sheet, ensuring to leave space in between them.
- Optional - Place them back in the fridge for 15 minutes before baking.
- Preheat your oven at 350°F and bake for 9-10 minutes. They will be ready when the edges start to brown. They will be soft when you take them out. We don't want to over bake them, otherwise they will end up dry. The cookies will firm up during the resting period.
- Rest for 10-15 minutes on the tray then move to a wire rack.
Notes
You can substitute the medium egg yolk and 1 tsp milk with 1 large egg yolk.
You can also just use a whole large egg, but your dough will be stickier. If you choose to use a whole egg, refrigerate the dough for the specific time, as mentioned in the instructions. You will need a bit more flour for dusting (try to limit to 2-4 tbsp for dusting).
I find the dough made with the whole egg easier to roll out as it is softer and the cookies hold their shape more. But when I am in a rush, I prefer just using the egg yolk as I can bake right away. For the latter, you just have to be more careful as the cookies are more delicate. You could add an extra tsp of milk to the batter, but you don't want it too sticky or it would need to go chill.
For the decoration, I bought icing gel to use, but I wouldn’t recommend. They are harder to work with, especially for a beginner like myself. They also leave the cookies sticky and soft after a while.
I ended up with 13 cookies, but you may have more or less depending on the size and shape of your cookie cutters.