Easy Sugar Cookies Recipes

EASY SUGAR COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). In a small bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla. Gradually blend in the dry ingredients. Roll rounded teaspoonfuls of dough into balls, and place onto ungreased cookie sheets.
• Bake 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden. Let stand on cookie sheet two minutes before removing to cool on wire racks.

EASY SUGAR COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit or 175 degrees Celsius.
• Mix the flour, baking powder, and baking soda together in a bowl; set the mixture aside.
• Cream the butter and sugar.
• Beat in the egg and vanilla extract.
• Once combined, slowly blend in the dry ingredients until evenly mixed.
• Searate dough into tablespoon-sized balls.
• Place onto an ungreased cookie sheet.
• Place on center rack and bake for 5 to 7 minutes (or until golden brown). Let the cookies sit for 2 minutes before cooling on wire racks.

BASIC SUGAR COOKIES

Steps:

• In large bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, and salt. With an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture; beat until combined. Divide dough in half; flatten into disks. Wrap each in plastic; freeze until firm, at least 20 minutes, or place in a resealable plastic bag, and freeze up to 3 months (thaw in refrigerator overnight).
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment. Remove one dough disk; let stand 5 to 10 minutes. Roll out 1/8 inch thick between two sheets of floured parchment, dusting dough with flour as needed. Cut shapes with cookie cutters. Using a spatula, transfer to prepared baking sheets. (If dough gets soft, chill 10 minutes.) Reroll scraps; cut shapes. Repeat with remaining dough.
• Bake, rotating halfway through, until edges are golden, 10 to 18 minutes (depending on size). Cool completely on wire racks. To ice cookies, spread with the back of a spoon. Let the icing harden, about 20 minutes. Decorate as desired.
• For the icing, sift confectioners' sugar into a small bowl. Whisk in milk, water, or lemon juice, 1 tablespoon at a time, until smooth and thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. If too thin, whisk in more sugar; if too thick, add more liquid. Spread over cookies with back of a spoon. Add other decorations, if desired. Let the icing harden, about 20 minutes.

CLASSIC SUGAR COOKIES

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.

3-INGREDIENT SUGAR COOKIES

Steps:

• In large bowl, beat softened butter and granulated sugar with spoon until well mixed. Stir in flour until moistened, using hands to mix if needed (dough will be crumbly). Knead 5 to 10 times or until dough is smooth.
• Divide dough in half; shape each half into a log, 5 inches long by 2 inches in diameter.
• Spread 2 tablespoons of the nonpareils or decorating sugar on plastic wrap; roll one log in nonpareils to cover. Repeat to cover remaining cookie log in nonpareils. Wrap dough logs tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate about 1 hour 30 minutes or until firm.
• Heat oven to 350°F. Unwrap 1 of the dough logs; cut into 1/2-inch slices. On ungreased cookie sheet, place slices 2 inches apart, reshaping if necessary.
• Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until edges are set. Cool 2 minutes; remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack. Unwrap remaining dough log, and repeat slicing and baking. Cool completely, about 40 minutes.
• To make Powdered Sugar Icing Drizzle: In small bowl, mix powdered sugar and 2 teaspoons of the milk until well blended. If too thick to drizzle, add additional milk, 1/4 teaspoon at a time. Tint with food color. Drizzle over tops of cooled cookies. Sprinkle with nonpareils or decorating sugar. Let stand about 1 hour or until drizzle is set.