Sugar Cookies

Sugar cookies are an absolute delight to bake and I cannot think of an easier cookie to make, especially around the holidays. You can make it a family affair if you choose. Kids love to bake.  I have fond memories of being in the kitchen with my mom while she was baking and being her little helper. I loved cracking eggs; but this recipe is so easy, it only calls for one egg. I love the buttery taste of this simple sugar cookie. The steps are so simple!

There are only six simple ingredients in this recipe and about 10 minutes of baking time in the oven. It is as simple as that. 

Sugar Cookies

3.8 from 92 votes
Recipe by Madison
Course: DessertDifficulty: Easy
Servings

24

servings
Prep time

40

minutes
Cooking time

10

minutes

Ingredients

  • 2 cups flour, sifted

  • 1 cup granulated sugar

  • 1 cup butter, softened

  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

  • 1 large egg

Directions

  • In a large bowl, mix sugar and butter together.
  • Add vanilla, salt and egg.
  • Mix in flour and form into a disc. Wrap disc in wax paper and place in freezer for 30 minutes.
  • Remove from freezer, flour the dough and roll out with a rolling pin. Cut into your desired shapes.
  • Bake 1-inch apart on a cookie sheet in a 350° F (177° C) oven for 10 minutes.
    Remove from oven and allow to cool 5-10 minutes before eating as is, or decorating as you desire.

Notes

  • I used a 2-inch circle cookie cutter and a 3×5 inch gingerbread man cookie cutter.
  • A 2-inch circle cookie cutter makes 24 cookies.
  • I add sprinkles by mixing 1 egg white and 1 teaspoon of water. I then use a toothbrush to brush the mixture onto the baked/cooled cookies and add sprinkles.

You mix the ingredients in a mixer or bowl, roll out the dough on wax paper and place in the freezer for 30 minutes to harden a little. Then, take the cookie dough out of the freezer to prepare for baking. 

Rolled out and floured sugar cookie dough

Sprinkle a little flour on the hardened dough and start shaping your cookies with a cookie cutter. You can use any cookie cutter or if you do not own cookie cutters, no need to go buy any. Why? Because you can use a small wine glass or a small jar. Simply flip the top of the glass ring down on the dough and press into the dough with the down-turned glass or jar.  

Once the edges start to brown, it is then time to grab your oven mitt and take them out of the oven to cool on your countertop.

Here’s a little tip: If you leave them on the cookie sheet to cool for about 5-10 minutes; they will continue to bake. You can choose to eat them as they are; or put sprinkles of your choice on them. 

Here’s another tip:  To keep the sprinkles from falling off the cookie, use an egg white and water mixture and brush on each cookie with a small baking brush or even an unused toothbrush will do too. You only need a little of this to allow the sprinkles to stick. Get as creative as you want here. I sometimes will have red sprinkles on one half of the cookie and green on the other half. If you have young kids or grandkids, they too will have a blast helping with this fun and easy recipe!

I tend to keep extra cookie dough in my freezer just in case I get a craving. This dough will last in the freezer for up to 1 year, so bake away! However you choose to decorate your cookie, one thing we will all agree on: They are a delight to bake but even more delightful to eat. It reminds me of the Lay’s potato chip: “You can’t eat just one.”

Enjoy every morsel because the baking was fun and easy.  Be sure to share with your family and friends, especially this recipe. Since most of us are home for now, you can even have a Zoom party with your family and friends to see who decorates the best sugar cookie. I’m sure they will have a blast; because this cookie will be a hit and a MUST BAKE for years to come.

Happy Baking and Decorating!

-Madison

8 thoughts on “Sugar Cookies”

    • I have been baking sugar cookies for about 60 years now. I always use regular flour, not self-rising. if you keep your flour in a flour bin, shake it up or use a large spoon to aerate it before you use it. Never scoop the flour into a measuring cup. Using a spoon, gently drop the flour in a measuring cup and level off with a knife. Scooping even two cups of flour almost pack it in the cup and could add up to 1/2 cup more flour than called for. This can ruin any recipe. I usuallly make about 144 cookies at a time (a quaddruple batch with my recipe) and frost them with my frosting; 1/2 cup of flour for every four cups of powdered sugar. 1-2 tsp of vanilla, a pinch of salt and mix until butter is incorporated. Then slowly add milk until you get to a spreadable consistency. If you want, separate frosting into 4 bowls and use drops of food coloring until you get your red, green, blue, yellow and keep some of the frosting white. Never roll your cookie dough thin, I keep it about 1/8″ to almost 1/4″ thick. Do not over bake. Leave on cookie sheet and they will finish cooking. I spread the frosting thick and then use all colors of sprinkles for the season. I am known as cookie lady around here and at my church. But all of our employees love the cookies he does not want (can have almost no brown outside once baked. I don’t know why I just don’t send him unbaked cookies.

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  1. I was hungry for the sugar cookies my sister makes and found this recipe. I don’t know about raw egg on the cookies. Did you do the sprinkles before baking? I can go back and look at the recipe. Rather than rolling out the dough, my sister rolls pinches of dough into cherry tomato sized balls and then presses them down on baking sheet with the bottom of a small drinking glass. They come out perfectly round and it does save the clutter of rolling out the chilled dough.

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