I adore spending far too long decorating each individual cookie. Luckily, this year I had some help from my mom! The beautiful boot and left Christmas tree are her handiwork.
Here is my simple recipe for sugar cookies and frosting, so you can spend less time baking and more time decorating!
You will need:
2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/8 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup (solid stick) margarine or 3/4 cup butter
2 eggs
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
Egg-Free (Faux) Royal Icing Recipe:
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
1. Cream margarine and sugar until completely combined.
2. Add eggs and vanilla to mixture and combine.
3. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt.
4. Slowly add and mix dry ingredients to the wet mixture.
5. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours or until stiff.
6. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface. About 1/4 inch thick (or slightly thicker, your preference).
7. Bake at 400F/200C (or at a slightly lower temperature in a fan assisted/convection oven). I'm adding this note, as sugar cookies burn easily, in my opinion.
8. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Less for smaller/thinner cookies.
9. Allow to cool before frosting!
Egg-Free (Faux) Royal Icing Recipe:
3 cups icing sugar/powdered sugar
1/4 cup milk
2-3 Tbsp light corn syrup (add more if too dry)
1 tsp clear vanilla extract
Assorted food dyes and sprinkles/toppings for decoration
1. Combine all ingredients by whisking gently.
2. Separate frosting into separate bowls to create different colors (by adding food dye). The higher quality food dye you have, the more brilliant your colors will be. I have been burned by store brand food dye before.
3. Add frosting to piping bags with thin tips or plastic bags with a corner cut off (be sure not to cut too large of a hole o you will have a mess).
Note: To get the whimsical pulled-colors look to your frosting, simply flood your cookie with frosting and pipe lines of contrasting frosting over. Then drag a toothpick in the direction you want your frosting to be pulled.
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