Easy Sugar Cookies

In this instructable I will teach you how to make Sugar Cookies. Sugar cookies are an awesome holiday treat, but you can certainly make them at any time. This sugar cookie recipe is really easy to make if I can make them you can make them. Decorate the cookies however you like! Let's get baking!

If you have any questions or comments put them down below and I will get back to you as soon as I can.

Follow the easy steps or watch the video tutorial, or do both! :)

Print the recipe here.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of softened unsalted butter
• 1 cup of white granulated sugar
• 3 cups of all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp. of vanilla extract
• 2 tsp. of baking powder
• 1 egg

Icing: (per color)

• 1 cup of powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp. of vanilla extract
• 2 to 2 1/2 tbsp of milk (desired thickness)

Helpful tools:

• Small funnel
• Squeeze Bottles
• Artisan Mat (Silicone Baking Mat)
• Electric Mixer
• Rolling Pin
• Cookie Cutters
• Food coloring

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First let's preheat our oven to 350 Degrees F (176 C). Now let's cream together our butter with our sugar using a mixer. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula when finished. We want to make sure to incorporate all the sugar with the butter.

Now let's add our vanilla extract and our egg, then mix together until well combined. Again, scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula when done.

Now let's add our baking powder to our flour and whisk it together, or you can use a sifter too if you like. Next add the flour mixture a little bit at a time to the bowl. Mixing in between, until all the flour has been added. I usually do it about a fifth of the flour at a time. Scraping the sides of the bowl in between. The dough will form.

Now clean off the beaters, and with your hands smash the dough together. Then transfer to a floured countertop or table and knead it together a bit, not as long as you would with yeast based dough, only 20 to 30 seconds, you are just getting it all nice and compacted and pushed together, until it gets smooth. Now roll it out with a rolling pin. You will want to roll it out until you get your desired thickness, around 1/8th to 1/4th of an inch thick.

Now we just cut out our cookies with cookie cutters. You can use whatever cookie cutter you want. For round ones, you don't even need a cookie cutter, you can use the end of a glass or cup. Next place on a cookie sheet, I like to line mine with an Artisan Mat (Silicone Baking Sheet). You can use parchment paper too if you like. Now bake the cookies at 350 degrees F, for 6 to 8 minutes. If you want them really crisp/crunchy let them bake for 9 to 10 minutes until you see a bit of brown around the edges. I prefer the 6 to 8 minutes myself, for a little softer cookie. Store remaining dough that you don't use, by wrapping it in plastic wrap and putting it in the refrigerator. When you want to use it again, take it out and leave it at room temperature for about 10 minutes, it will be fairly hard, you will want to knead it in your hands for a few seconds to soften it up enough to roll out.

When the cookies come out of the oven let them cool for about 5 minutes on the cookie sheet, then transfer them to wire racks to cool the rest of the way. Now time to decorate them! :)

Now let's make our decorating icing, or you can buy professional Royal Icing. Or if you want to you can just use traditional frosting. For this icing we need 1 cup of powdered sugar, 2 Tbsp of milk and 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract. Or you can use any flavored extract. I am making white colored icing first. Then mix with a fork or whisk and pour into a squeeze bottle. I love using squeeze bottles for decorating cookies with icing, because I have more control, but you can just a piping bag too, or plastic bag with the corner snipped off.

Now I like to make borders with white icing first. This will give a nice look to the cookie as well as act as a little wall to help keep my colored icing in. I just trace around the cookies with the white icing. Then make any designs that I want with the white icing.

Now we follow the same steps and make another batch of icing, then add food coloring, as many drops as needed to get the desired color we want. Start with a few drops though, then mix with a fork. Then finish up decorating your cookies. Use the colored icing and then "flood" the cookies inside the borders. You can use different colors for the borders, not use borders at all, it is totally up to you how you decorate these cookies. They are yours after all! :) Enjoy!

Print the recipe here.

Now check out the steps in action and watch the video tutorial!