I grew up in Colorado where Christmas is indeed white. In my current neck of the woods, however, we’ve been experiencing a rather warm winter so far. There doesn’t seem to be any signs of snow either.
So what’s a Rocky Mountain girl to do other than kick up the winter spirit by baking snowflake sugar cookies?!
I had the joy of baking shark-shaped sugar cookies earlier this year for my son’s 4th birthday. I used the same delicious recipe for these snowflakes. The dough is pretty easy to handle and the cookies come out soft, light and yummy.
I also baked a batch for my son’s preschool class to decorate during their Christmas party. I was able to accomplish lots of the prep work ahead of time, which was a lifesaver. This is how I divided my time:
Day 1:
Made cookie dough and cut out snowflakes. Baked a few for us; froze the rest for my son’s party.
Day 2:
Made royal icing in white and light blue. Outlined and flooded cookies. Let dry overnight.
Day 3:
Piped details and decorated snowflakes. The perfectionist in me started nit-picking until the Chief kindly reminded me that they’re just sugar cookies — have some fun with it!
Day 4:
Baked cookies for preschool party. When I froze the cookies, I placed a square of parchment paper between each one, wrapped them in plastic wrap and placed them in a zip-top plastic bag. (Lots of extra precautions to ensure they didn’t dry out in the freezer.) I also placed the bag into a plastic bin so they wouldn’t break from any jostling that might happen when trying to get things in and out of the freezer.
When I was ready to bake them, I let them thaw on baking sheets lined with parchment paper at room temperature for about 30 minutes. The first batch needed a few extra minutes to finish. The rest were right around 7 minutes.
I admit that sugar cookies are a bit of work, but Christmas baking doesn’t seem complete without them. And with so many fun cookie cutter shapes, you can make a wonderful tradition of decorating cookies each holiday season. Enjoy! — v.
The 12 Baking Days of Christmas 2015
Day 1 ❄︎ Cookies For Santa
Day 2 ❄︎ Cranberry Bliss Bars
Day 3 ❄︎ Saltine Toffee Bark
Day 4 ❄︎ Holiday Baked Brie
Day 5 ❄︎ Grinch Crinkle Cookies
Day 6 ❄︎ Baked French Toast Casserole
Day 7 ❄︎ Gingerbread Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
Day 8 ❄︎ Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Blossoms
Day 9 ❄︎ Cherry-Rum Biscotti
Day 10 ❄︎ Cinnamon Roll Casserole
Day 11 ❄︎ Snowflake Sugar Cookies
Day 12 ❄︎ Vanilla Cake with Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting
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Snowflake Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2-3 tsp almond extract
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (+1/4 cup, if necessary)
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp kosher salt
ROYAL ICING- 3 3/4 cups powdered sugar
- 2 1/2 Tbsp meringue powder
- 4-6 Tbsp warm water
- 1-2 tsp almond or vanilla extract
Directions
- Step 1 For the cookies: Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line cookie sheet(s) with parchment paper.
- Step 2 In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and powdered sugar. Crack egg into a measuring cup and add almond extract. Pour into mixing bowl and combine well.
- Step 3 In a separate large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Add dry ingredients into mixing bowl little by little. The dough is ready when most of it sticks to the paddle. You may add up to 1/4 cup of flour if the dough remains too sticky. Let stand 10 minutes.
- Step 4 Roll out on parchment paper or a lightly floured surface to about 1/4 inch thick. Use flour for dusting as necessary. Cut and bake for 6-7 minutes, removing from oven before edges start to brown.
- Step 5 For the royal icing: Gently whisk together powdered sugar and meringue powder by hand in the bowl of an electric stand mixer. Add almond (or vanilla) extract into half of the water and slowly stir into sugar mixture using the paddle attachment.
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Step 6
Continue to add remaining water (this may or may not be the entire amount) until the mixture reaches a thick, honey-like consistency. Increase speed to medium and whip until icing is thick and fluffy, 2-4 minutes. Icing is ready when it forms soft peaks.
Sugar cookie and royal icing recipes are from Sweet Sugarbelle.
