Perfect Iced Sugar Cookies Recipe

This Perfect Iced Sugar Cookies Recipe is a holiday standby.

By Karen Keb
Capper’s Farmer Holiday Special, Winter 2012
Iced Sugar Cookies
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These perfect iced sugar cookies are classic: crisp, buttery, with hardened icing on top.
Photo By Karen Keb
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These iced sugar cookies are classic: crisp, buttery, with hardened icing on top. To bake the best sugar cookies, work in a cool or cold kitchen, and work quickly.

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To easily cut and transfer cookies to the baking trays, the butter must remain chilled and the dough stiff (like when making pie dough). When the dough warms up and the butter gets soft, the dough sticks and cut-outs will become distorted when you transfer them.

The biggest factor for success with sugar cookies is the surface on which you roll out the dough. There are many things that work well. I use a large slab of Corian countertop. If you have hard, cold, solid-surface countertops like granite, quartz, marble or Corian — not butcher block or laminate — or better yet, an island, work directly on top of it, making sure to wipe it down with water first, then dry it thoroughly. If you don’t have such a surface, commandeer a large work space and tape parchment paper to it. You also can use a silicone mat (look for the special oversized versions made for rolling out pie dough).

Lightly dust the surface with flour, then roll out the dough quickly. Don’t over-flour the surface or dough, or you’ll end up with tough cookies. If you need more flour to prevent sticking, switch to confectioner’s sugar.  

As for special equipment, you’ll need a large bench scraper for picking up the dough cutouts and a small offset spatula for spreading the icing.

MAIN ARTICLE:
Make These Christmas Cookies Recipes for Holiday Gifts 

Perfect Iced Sugar Cookies Recipe

Cookies:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 sticks butter
2/3 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or extract
1 teaspoon lemon zest

Icing:
1 1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar
4 teaspoons meringue powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons water
Wilton Icing Colors (special food coloring), optional
Colored sprinkles, optional

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