Sugar Cookies with Royal Icing

I used to love making sugar cookies when I was young. My mom had a huge basket full of seasonal cookie cutters and always let my brother and I help her make cookies for various holidays. I have been making sugar cookies ever since but never really had a recipe that was hands down the best. It seems that my dough is either too sticky or too dry, and is always a bear to roll out. I liked my moms Betty Crocker recipe growing up but it is a bit too crispy for me, I prefer a slightly softer cookie. I have tried so many recipes and I think that I have finally found the perfect sugar cookie recipe! Cake and Allie's sugar cookie recipe is by far the best I have come across. The dough rolled out beautifully and the cookies are the perfect combination of crispy outside and soft center.

I love the look of royal icing and have tried using it a few times now with mediocre results. My aunt Shelly makes the most beautiful sugar cookies with royal icing, honestly they would make Martha Stewart jealous. I need to spend some time in the kitchen with her and get a few pointers but until then I have been checking out the "how to's" on various blogs. My cookies aren't perfect but I thought they turned out pretty cute! Mastering royal icing and decorating the cookies definitely takes some patience, a steady hand and more patience! If you are considering making sugar cookies I suggest checking out the blogs I mention at the end of this post and following their directions on how to decorate with royal icing.

The sugar cookies after I have outlined them with the stiff royal icing

The sugar cookies after I have flooded the inside and added finishing touches with the stiff icing.

In preparation of my upcoming trip to France, Eiffel Tower cookies!!!

Sugar Cookies
** from Cake and Allie

Makes about 3 dozen cookies

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp almond extract
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups flour

In a large mixing bowl, or in the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter until soft and creamy. Slowly add the powdered sugar and beat until combined. Add in the egg, almond extract, vanilla, salt and flour and continue to mix till smooth and all ingredients are incorporated. Cover dough with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least an hour.

Preheat over to 375. Line a couple of cookie sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

On a well floured surface roll out a third of the cookie dough at a time. Put the rest of the dough back in the fridge so it stays cool. Roll dough till it is about a 1/4 inch thick and cut out cookies using floured cookie cutters. Carefully transfer the cut out cookies to the baking sheets and bake for 6-8 minutes. Cookies should not brown, remove them before they start to get brown on the edges. Remove cookies from the pan and cool on a kitchen towel covered with wax paper. Let the cookies cool completely before icing.

Royal Icing

2 Tbs meringue powder (can be found at Michaels, JoAnn Fabrics, or Hobby Lobby)
4 cups powdered sugar
6 Tbs water

Place all ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the paddle attachment, beat frosting until matte and smooth, about 7-8 minutes.

*** For decorating instructions I suggest checking out Cake and Ella and Annie Eat's blogs- both give an excellent tutorial!

Pomegranate White Chocolate Chip Cookies

It's holiday baking season!  I love this time year and all of the good food and fun festivities it brings. The other day I came across a recipe for these cookies on Two Peas and Their Pod and I thought it sounded like the perfect recipe to kick off my holiday baking.  I made them last night and brought them into work for a friends birthday and came home with empty tupperware, a sure sign that they were a winner!  The cookies were soft and chewy and the combination of the white chocolate and pomegranate seeds was unique and a nice change from the typical holiday cookies I usually make. 

Pomegranate White Chocolate Chip Cookies
** from Two Peas and Their Pod
print recipe

Makes about 2 1/2 dozen
Prep/Cook Time: 30 minutes

1/2 c. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 c. light brown sugar
1/2 c. white sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 c. all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 c. old fashioned oats
1 c. white chocolate chips, or white chocolate chunks
1 c. pomegranate seeds

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper and spray with cooking spray.

In bowl, cream butter and sugars together until smooth. Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix until well combined.

In a separate bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Slowly add flour mixture to the wet ingredients. Mix until just incorporated.

Stir in the oats and white chocolate chips. Spoon dough, about 1 tablespoon per cookie, onto the cookie sheet. Tuck about 6 pomegranate seeds in each cookie.  (I know seems tedious but it's the only to keep the dough from turning pink). Bake cookies for 8-10 minutes, until the cookies are golden on the edges. Remove from the oven and let cool on cookie sheet for two minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Best Chocolate Chip Cookies

Homemade chocolate chip cookies are pretty hard to beat.  Chocolate, sugar, butter, what's not to like? They make me think of baking with my mom and eating raw dough till I got a stomach ache (which I continue to do despite the fact that I can still hear my mom warning me about salmonella poisoning).

I was always a fan of the Nestle Tollhouse recipe. That all changed a few years ago when I came across this recipe on Allrecipes.com.  These cookies were amazing and instantly became my favorite go to chocolate chip cookie  recipe.  Over the summer I came across a recipe that claimed to be the best, I figured I would give it a try and ended up being deeply disappointed.  From that moment I vowed to never try another chocolate chip cookie recipe again!

Award Winning Chocolate Chip Cookies
** adapted from Allrecipes.com

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10-12 minutes per cookie sheet
Yields: 36 cookies

2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 c. butter, softened
3/4 c. packed brown sugar
1/4 c. white sugar
1 (3.4 oz) package instant vanilla pudding mix
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
bag of semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Sift together the flour and baking soda, set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar. Beat in the instant pudding mix until blended. Stir in the eggs and vanilla. Blend in the flour mixture. Finally, stir in the chocolate chips and optional nuts. Drop cookies by rounded spoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake for 10-12 minutes in the preheated oven. Edges should be golden brown. (I only bake mine for 8 minutes but my oven temperature is always a bit off.)  Let cookies cool on wire rack or on a piece of parchment paper. Enjoy!