Decorated Sugar Cookies with Royal Icing

About ten years ago I was co-hosting a baby shower and we wanted to serve decorated sugar cookies…one look at the price and I decided I’d invest that money on the tools to learn myself.

Now I make them for any special occasion and every Christmas. The designs don’t always turn out perfectly, but the flavor hits every time. This is not your almond-y, dry sugar cookie, it’s the perfect mix of soft, sweet, salty, and vanilla. I hope you try it and enjoy!

Sugar Cookie Recipe

1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 egg, room temperature
2 teaspoon vanilla extract (I use the brand Adams Extract)
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Method

Making the Dough

Cream the butter and sugar together in the bowl of a stand mixer on medium-low speed for one minute. Don’t mix longer or faster as it will add too much air into the dough and it will not hold its shape when baked.
Add egg and mix for about 15 seconds, stop mixer, scrape down the side of the bowl and mix again for another 15 seconds.
Add vanilla extract and mix until just combined.
Sift your flour and baking powder together.
Add all of the flour mixture to the bowl and mix on low until flour is absorbed. You can turn mixer up to medium-low and mix until the dough starts forming and sticking to the paddle.

Rolling and Cutting

Roll the dough between 2 large pieces of parchment paper until it is 1/4 inches thick.
Refrigerate the dough for 20-30 minutes so it will hold its shape when cutting.
Cut out cookie shapes and place on cookie sheet leaving about 1 inch of room around each cookie so they don’t spread into each other when baked.
Put cookie dough shapes back into the refrigerator for 10 -30 minutes to chill again. They will then hold their shape better when baked.

Baking

Preheat your oven to 350°F.
Bake cookies for 8-12 minutes or until the edges become golden brown. The baking time will depend on the size and thickness of your cookie.
Allow cookies to cool to room temperature and then decorate!

It’s only fair to give you a warning: icing the sugar cookies can be tedious and time-consuming. If you only make them once, it won’t be because of the cookies – it’ll be because you don’t want to labor over the icing again. Put on your favorite music or podcast, settle in, and find your flow.

Royal Icing Recipe

2 tablespoons meringue powder
1/4 cup water + more for thinning
4 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (Adams Extract)

Method

In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the meringue powder and water until a foam forms.
Add in the powdered sugar and vanilla and mix until icing becomes combined and shiny looking. If it is very thick and not mixing well, add 1 tablespoon of water at a time. *See consistency notes below.
After you have achieved the consistency you want, divide into bowls and color as needed.
Spoon into piping bags and decorate!

Stiff consistency: used for flowers and decorations with details. Add no additional water. You’ll know it’s right if you drop a spoonful and it holds its shape.
Piping consistency: used for writing letters, lines, and general piping work. Add tiny bits of water until it is easier to stir but still holds its shape well.
Flooding consistency: used to fill in large areas, i.e. the background of the cookie. Add enough water that if you drag a toothpick across the surface the icing comes back into a flat surface in 10 seconds.