Easy Cut-Out Sugar Cookies
Serves 30
This easy sugar cookie recipe is a perfect treat for Christmas, Valentine's Day, or any festive occasion. The cookies have crisp edges, soft middles, and a delicious buttery flavor. Have fun cutting them out into your desired shapes and decorating them with icing!
Ingredients
- 2¾ cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter, 2 sticks, at room temperature
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- Royal icing, for decorating, optional (recipe in the notes below)
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or using an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and mix to combine, then mix in the vanilla and almond extracts.
- Gradually add the dry ingredients, mixing on low speed until combined. The dough will be soft.
- Divide the dough in half. Form each half into a ball, then flatten into a 1-inch-thick disk. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 2 days.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface until about ¼-inch thick. If the dough is too firm to roll right away, let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes to soften. Use cookie cutters to cut out desired shapes, then transfer the cut-outs to the prepared baking sheets, re-rolling the scraps as necessary.
- Bake, one sheet at a time, for 9 to 11 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies are just beginning to turn golden brown. The cookies will seem underdone in the middle, but they will set up as they cool. The exact timing will depend on the size of your cookie cutters.
- Let cool on the baking sheets for 2 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Once cool, decorate with royal icing or as desired.
- Makes about 30 cookies. Exact yield will vary based on the size of your cookie cutters.
Notes
Royal icing (recipe adapted from Wilton): Sift 4 cups powdered sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer. Add 3 tablespoons meringue powder and 5 tablespoons water. Mix until smooth and glossy. Transfer half of the frosting to a piping bag with a #3 tip for piping thin lines and for outlining filled-in shapes. For flooding/filling in cookie shapes, add more water, ½ teaspoon at a time, to thin the icing to a runny consistency. Add food coloring as desired.