Failproof Pinterest Sugar Cookies — Decorating sugar cookies for Christmas? But aren’t so great at decorating them? Then, these no fail sugar cookies are just for you then!
I can hand paint macarons for days, whip up a unicorn cake no problem, and even cook up Tetris cookies.
But slaving over holiday cookies is just NOT for my short attention span. Especially when I see the Monet’s of sugar cookie art on Instagram from the cookie pros.
So then I decided “hey, if you can’t make them perfect, make them crazy”! I wouldn’t say that’s a great motto to live life by or anything, but with cookies, it’s a winner!
Alas, I ended up with these sweet everything sugar cookies…that are Pinterest failproof, my friends!
Why, you ask? Because you can’t really go wrong sprinkling just about any dessert topping you find sitting in your cabinets.
The best part? Your kids and friends will think you’re either really awesome or that you’re a big unicorn fan, both of which are awesome in my book.
First things first, when you’re going crazy with the sprinkles, you might as well mix it up on your sugar cookie shapes. I used vintage cutters that I’ve been collecting, but the sky is the limit here!
Ingredients Needed For Failproof Sugar Cookies
Yields 3 dozen sugar cookies, depending on cookie size:
- 1 Cup of softened butter
- 1 Cup white sugar
- 3 cups of all-purpose flour (plus some addition flour for rolling the dough)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 room temperature egg
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
Decorated Pinterest Cookies | How to Make Failproof Sugar Cookies
1 — Preheat oven to 350° F.
2 — With a mixer, combine butter and sugar until creamy, then mix in the egg.
3 — In a dry bowl, whisk baking powder and flour together, then add a little at a time to the mixer.
4 — Lightly flour a work surface to roll the dough on, then use cookie cutters to cut out your favorite shapes. In order for the cookies to withstand the weight of your sweet everything decorations, be sure to make them extra thick! We made our about 1/2 inch thick!
5 — Place on a baking sheet, and bake for 6-8 minutes. Let cool on the cookie sheet then transfer for them to the cooling rack once they’re firm enough to move.
6 — Let cookies cool completely before decorating. Store in an airtight container.
Ingredients Needed For Royal Icing
Yields 4 cups:
- 4 Cups powdered sugar
- 3 Tablespoons meringue powder
- 1/3 Cup warm water
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
How To Make Royal Icing
1 — In a mixer combine the meringue powder and powdered sugar on low.
2 — Slowly add in the water and extract on medium speed for about 6 minutes. The icing should be forming small peaks and will be thick when it’s ready.
Decorating Your Sugar Cookies
Once you have you the cookie and icing made, use a piping bag and round tip to pipe an outline around the edges of your cookie shapes, and the fill in the middle with the thick icing rather than flooding the cookie with a water down icing.
The reason for this is that you need PLENTY of extra icing to get all of your decor to stick well, plus you don’t want your candies to bleed into the white icing and get all gross in color!
Just be sure to add in each of your sprinkles to every cookie right after it’s iced so that it doesn’t harden before it gets a good bond.
Once you’ve got them all decorated, now it’s time to indulge yourself… or very generously gift them! And with that, our blog cookie exchange extravaganza! Don’t forget to share your cookie recipe images with our hashtag!
Easy Sugar Cookies
Easy Sugar Cookies Recipe
Equipment
- Hand or stand electric mixer
- Mixing bowl
- Baking sheet
- Cookie cutters
- Piping bag and round tip
Ingredients
For the sugar cookies:
- 1 cup butter softened
- 1 cup white sugar
- 3 cup all-purpose flour plus some addition flour for rolling the dough3
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1sp almond extract
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 egg room temperature
For the royal icing (yields 4 cups):
- 4 cup powdered sugar
- 3 tbsp meringue powder
- 1/3 cup warm water
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
Instructions
To make the sugar cookies:
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- In a large bowl, mix together the butter and sugar until until creamy and smooth. Then, beat in the egg, vanilla and almond extract.
- In a dry bowl, whisk together the baking powder and flour.
- Slowly blend in the dry ingredients to the mixer with the wet ingredients.
- Lightly flour a work surface to roll the dough on. Use cookie cutters to cut out your favorite shapes. In order for the cookies to withstand the weight of your sweet everything decorations, be sure to make them extra thick! We made our about 1/2 inch thick!
- Place your cut cookies onto un-greased baking sheets, and bake for 6-8 minutes or until golden.
- Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheet for 2 minutes. Transfer for them to the cooling rack once they’re firm enough to move. Allow the cookies to cool completely before decorating.
To make the royal icing:
- In a mixer, combine the meringue powder and powdered sugar on low.
- Slowly add in the water and almond extract on medium speed for about 6 minutes. The icing should be forming small peaks and will be thick when it’s ready.
To decorate the cookies:
- Once the cookies and icing are complete, use a piping bag and round tip to pipe an outline around the edges of your cookie shapes.
- Fill in the middle with the thick icing rather than flooding the cookie with a water down icing. The reason for this is that you need plenty of extra icing to get all of your decor to stick well. Plus, you don’t want your candies to bleed into the white icing.
Notes
- Mini candy canes
- Crushed candy canes
- Mini marshmallows
- Sprinkles in assorted shapes and sizes
- M&M's
Nutrition
