CLASSIC SUGAR COOKIES
As you might expect from Betty Crocker, these are the classic version of a sugar cookie-the kind your grandma or even great-grandma would recognize. These cookies are the originals that provided a sweet, universally lovable starting point for generations of bakers to riff on, and we stand by them just as they are. With a tender, short texture that comes from a good buttery base, they break with just the right balance of bend and snap. And the taste? When we recently baked up a few batches for pre-Christmas testing, person after person in the Test Kitchens said, "Now THAT is a sugar cookie." While flavor and texture are arguably the key criteria on which cookies should be judged, when it comes to sugar cookies, there's another important factor: how easy they are to decorate. It's crucial that sugar cookie dough can be easily turned into cookies that are equal parts decorative and delicious. During our most recent testing of this recipe, we also noticed that there were no instructions for a glaze in this recipe. Not wanting to leave you-or your cookies-high and dry, we tested a few glazes. The one we landed on is simple and made with common pantry staples, but the magic is in the ratio of ingredients-we ensured that it results in a glaze that's easily tintable, covers smoothly and dries firmly so that you can stack the finished cookies without fear of smudging them. However you chose to decorate them, dress these classic sugar cookies up in holiday style and they'll be the star of every Christmas gathering.
Provided by Betty Crocker Kitchens
Categories Dessert
Time 7h50m
Yield 55
Number Of Ingredients 13
Steps:
- In large bowl, beat 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, the softened butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla, the almond extract and egg with electric mixer on medium speed, or mix with spoon, until well blended. Stir in flour, baking soda and cream of tartar. Divide dough in half; shape dough into 2 disks, and wrap in plastic wrap. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours.
- Heat oven to 375°F.
- Roll each disk on lightly floured surface until 1/4 inch thick. Cut with 2- to 2 1/2-inch cookie cutters into desired shapes. On ungreased cookie sheets, place cutouts at least 2 inches apart.
- Bake 7 to 8 minutes or until edges are light brown. Cool 1 minute; remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks. Cool completely.
- In medium bowl, beat 3 cups powdered sugar, 3 tablespoons milk and 1/4 teaspoon vanilla with spoon until smooth and spreadable. If frosting is too stiff to spread, add additional milk, 1 teaspoon at a time. Tint with food color. Spread frosting on cooled cookies. Decorate as desired with colored sugar or candy sprinkles. Let stand about 4 hours or until frosting is set. Store covered in airtight container at room temperature with waxed paper between layers.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 90, Carbohydrate 14 g, Cholesterol 10 mg, Fat 1/2, Fiber 0 g, Protein 0 g, SaturatedFat 2 g, ServingSize 1 Cookie, Sodium 50 mg, Sugar 10 g, TransFat 0 g
CLASSIC SUGAR COOKIES (WITH VARIATIONS)
These are very easy to make and they are perfect for cutting into shapes and decorating. Pop dough back into fridge for 5 minutes if dough gets too soft to work with. Prep time includes chilling time. Cook time is 10 mins per batch. Update Dec22 2004: Instructions to make CHOCOLATE sugar cookies are below.
Provided by WaterMelon
Categories Dessert
Time 1h
Yield 42-48 cookies
Number Of Ingredients 7
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Cream butter and sugar in a medium bowl, using medium speed (electric mixer) until light and fluffy.
- Add egg and vanilla.
- Continue beating until well-combined.
- Combine flour, salt and baking soda.
- Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients.
- Mix on low speed until just combined.
- Wrap dough tightly with cling wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes.
- Turn dough out on lightly floured surface.
- Roll to about 1/8" thickness.
- Using cookie cutters/inverted wine glass, cut out cookies and transfer to prepared baking sheets.
- Sprinkle the tops with sugar, if desired.
- Bake until cookies are set but not brown, 8-10 minutes.
- Transfer to cooling racks.
- You may roll the dough into a log shape and freeze until firm, then slice and bake.
- LEMON SUGAR COOKIES- Add 1 tablespoon finely chopped lemon zest and 1 tablespoon lemon juice to butter and sugar.
- RAISIN SUGAR COOKIES- Stir 3/4 cup raisins into dough after dry ingredients have been combined.
- NUT SUGAR COOKIES- Stir 3/4 cup finely chopped (toasted) walnuts/pecans/other nuts into dough after dry ingredients have been combined.
- SUGAR AND SPICE COOKIES- Add 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg and a pinch of ground cloves to the dough along with the flour.
- FROSTED SUGAR COOKIES- Omit the sprinkling of sugar on top of cookies.
- Beat 1 cup icing sugar, 1 tablespoon water/milk, 1/2 tsp vanilla extract and a few drops of food coloring (if desired) with electric mixer, on HIGH speed.
- Frost cookies after baking, while still slightly warm.
- CHOCOLATE COOKIES- Melt 2 oz. bittersweet chocolate (I use 72%) in the microwave, stir until smooth, let cool slightly and add to the dough after the addition of vanilla.
- MARBLED/TWO-TONED COOKIES- Melt 1 oz. bittersweet chocolate (I use 72%) in the microwave, stir until smooth, let cool slightly. After the dough has been formed, divide it into two. Add melted chocolate into one part of dough, knead it gently to incorporate chocolate uniformly. Combine 2 doughs and roll out as usual.
CLASSIC SUGAR COOKIES
There's a special day during the holiday season when we close down the studio, turn on the music, and make dozens of holiday cookies. We used to make these with our daughters, put them in cellophane bags and deliver them to the people we care about. The recipe makes very delicate cookies you can decorate simply and elegantly (as we like to do). People will look forward to them all year long.
Provided by Canal House
Categories dessert
Time 5h10m
Yield 12 servings
Number Of Ingredients 9
Steps:
- Add the softened butter to the bowl of a standing mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment. Sift together the flour and salt and set aside.
- Cream the butter on medium speed. Add the egg and egg yolk to the bowl, and continue on medium speed.Add the sugars to the mixer, and mix on medium-high speed, until creamy and fluffy.Add the vanilla bean paste (or extract) to the mixing bowl, and continue to mix on medium-high, scraping down the bowl as necessary.With the mixer on low, add the flour in several batches, until it's all added.
- Cut 8 individual pieces of parchment paper and set aside.Divide the dough into 4 equal sized pieces, and roll each piece between two sheets of parchment paper, to less than 1/4-inch thick. Refrigerate the sheets of dough for at least 4 hours.
- Remove one sheet of dough from the refrigerator. Peel the top sheet of parchment paper from the dough, and cut shapes with cookie cutters. Move the cookies to a baking sheet (lined with parchment paper) with a very thin, metal spatula. Decorate with sprinkles, and return the sheets to the refrigerator to chill again, for 30 minutes. Repeat with the remaining sheets of dough.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Remove the sheets from the refrigerator and bake for 7 to 9 minutes, until the edges are golden brown and the center is set.
- Remove the cookies from the oven, and transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely. The cookies will keep for up to 2 weeks in an airtight container. Optional variations: Coconut Cookies: Follow directions for making Sugar Cookie dough, substituting 1 tsp coconut extract for the vanilla. Lemon Cookies: Follow directions for making Sugar Cookie dough, substituting 1 Tbsp freshly grated lemon zest and 2 tsps fresh lemon juice for the vanilla. Nut Cookies: Follow directions for making Sugar Cookie dough. Sprinkle the tops of the cut-out dough with ½ cup chopped nuts before baking. (Don't use toasted nuts; the raw nuts will toast while baking.) Orange-Rosemary Cookies: Follow directions for making Sugar Cookie dough, substituting freshly grated zest of 2 oranges (1½-2 Tbsp) and 1 Tbsp finely minced rosemary leaves for the vanilla.
GOOD HOUSEKEEPING'S CLASSIC SUGAR COOKIE
from the December 2009 magazine **Freezing the dough helps the cookies stay well defined while baking. Freeze for 10 minutes after rolling and for another 10 minutes after cutting out the shapes before baking.
Provided by 1031473
Categories Dessert
Time 1h42m
Yield 152 cookies
Number Of Ingredients 8
Steps:
- In a large bowl, whisk flour, baking powder and salt. In a separate large bowl, with mixer at low speed, beat butter and sugar until blended. On high speed, beat until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. On low speed, beat in eggs and vanilla, then flour mixture just until blended, scraping bowl with a rubber spatula.
- Divide dough into 8 equal pieces; flatten each into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On floured surface, with floured rolling pin, roll 1 piece of dough to scant 1/4-inch thickness; keep remaining dough cold. With floured 3- to 4-inch cookie cutters, cut dough into as many cookies as possible; reserve trimmings. Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.
- Bake until edges are golden, 12 to 15 minutes. With wide metal spatula, transfer cookies to wire racks to cool. Repeat with remaining dough and trimmings.
- When cookies are cool, prepare frosting and decorate cookies. Allow frosting to dry. Store cookies in tightly sealed containers with waxed paper between layers, at room temperature up to 2 weeks or in freezer up to 3 months.
CLASSIC SUGAR COOKIES
These are the familiar cookies, with crispy edges and a slightly soft middle. Superfine sugar gives them their crunchiness. The small amount of baking powder ensures that they puff just a little without spreading too much and losing their shape.
Provided by Food Network Kitchen
Categories dessert
Time 3h55m
Yield about 30 cookies
Number Of Ingredients 12
Steps:
- For the cookies: Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl.
- Beat the superfine sugar and butter with an electric mixer on medium speed in a large bowl until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes; beat in the egg, then the vanilla. Add the flour mixture and mix on medium-low speed until completely incorporated. Divide the dough in half, pat into 2 discs about 1/4 inch thick, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
- Position oven racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Let the dough sit at room temperature for a few minutes to make rolling easier. Roll out 1 disc of dough at a time between 2 pieces of parchment paper until 1/8 inch thick. Cut out shapes with cookie cutters and arrange about 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
- Bake until the cookies are golden brown on the bottom, 10 to 12 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets until firm enough to transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely.
- Gently gather any scraps of dough into a ball and press into a disc; wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate the disc until firm enough to roll, about 1 hour. Cut out as many cookies as possible and bake.
- For the royal icing: Beat the confectioners' sugar, meringue powder and 1/3 cup water with an electric mixer on medium-high speed in a large bowl until stiff peaks form. Beat in the food coloring if using. (The icing can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.)
- Decorate the cookies with the icing; top with decorating sugar and sprinkles if using.
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