Cut Out Sugar Cookies with Almond Icing

I didn’t grow up in a Christmas cookie making family.  In fact, we didn’t even leave Santa cookies, we left him a BLT (which just happened to be one of my dads favorite foods…and yet somehow I never put that together). 

I started making Christmas cookies myself in my early 20s and have tweaked and perfected them over the years. It rolls out beautifully, holds it’s shape without spreading, and has a perfectly soft texture.  I’ve had the actual cookie recipe written and been able to give it out to those who ask for a few years now but I never actually measured out everything for my icing until just this past week to be able to post it. I’ve always just done it without measuring so I had to finally dial it in, but I think I’ve got it. 

Before I set you free with the recipe, I wanted to go over a few things that’s a are key to getting these cookies perfect.

Dough

Don’t overwork your dough. After you’ve added in all the flour, let it mix just enough to incorporate through but don’t let it go forever in the mixer.  Your dough will be very sticky and you will wonder how in the hell you will be able to roll this sticky mess out.  Scoop the dough out onto a large piece of plastic wrap. Using the plastic, form it into a ball and press down lightly to create a disc. Wrap tightly and refrigerate overnight (which is what I do) or at least 3 hours until the dough is very firm.

Oven Temperature

I bake my cookies at 325 because my oven is vintage and small, so 350 is too high for such a small amount of space.  I’m not telling you that you HAVE to bake your cookies at 325 (instead of the 350 people think they must bake everything at), I just encourage you to assess how powerful and hot your oven gets. You want to be able to bake your cookies all the way through without them getting too brown. A super hot oven will brown them too much before the centers are cooked.

Bake Time

I bake my cookies for 9 minutes. Every. Single. Time.  That’s what’s I’ve figured out for my oven, but yours might very slightly. I’d say 9-11 minutes is the range, but check at 9. You can always pop them back in if they aren’t done but there’s no unbaking (I’m making that a word) an over baked cookie.  
I feel like most people over bake their cookies across the board. I took some pictures to show you want to look for. As you can see, the bottoms are quite light. Some are darker than others due to their size and being on the edges of the pan versus the center, bit overall none are very dark. A lot of times people have this idea that the entire bottom must be brown for the cookie to be done but that’s not the case with these at all. They can be quite light and still be cooked all the way through and soft. 

Icing

This is a crusting icing. Crusting is a gross word isn’t it? Lol So what does that mean when it comes to icing? It means that the top “crusts” or hardens just enough that the cookie won’t smudge and after they have been allowed to sit and crust over they can eventually be stacked up on each other without issue. Basically, the icing won’t stay a sticky mess (think how canned storebought frostings always stay soft) but also won’t get as hard as a Royal icing would. This is right in the middle. 

Rolling

Allow the dough to sit for about 5 minutes out of the fridge before rolling. It will be stiff at first but once you get rolling it will be easy. I like to roll my dough out on lightly floured parchment paper or wax paper. It just makes clean up easier but you can do it directly on the counter too.
I roll the dough out to about 1/4 inch thick, maybe a little more (but not 1/2 inch) This thickness will result in a thick and soft cookie that will hold up well while icing without breaking. 

Icing

I always made the icing without a recipe by mixing it up in a bowl and waiting 15 mins or so to make sure the top crusted over. If it didn’t, I would add a bit more powdered sugar and try again. Now that I have the ratio down I won’t have to do that anymore!  The icing will be thick and almost elastic in texture but this is what is necessary in order for it to crust properly and set up. 

Divide it up and add food coloring as desired. Personally, I keep it pretty simple and do 3, maaaaayybeee 4 colors and let the sprinkles do the rest of the jazzing up.  Make sure you sprinkle quickly after frosting so that they stick before it starts to set up.

I think that’s all the tips I have.  Enjoy your cookie baking and decorating!

Cut Out Sugar Cookies

Dough

3 sticks butter, softened 
2 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract 
2 tsp. baking powder 
1 tsp. salt 
5 cups all purpose flour 

Icing 

4 cups powdered sugar 
4 tb. corn syrup (it will make the icing shiny)
3 tb. milk, nut milk, or water 
1 1/4 tsp. almond extract


Cream your sugar and butter in mixer until fluffy and pale in color, scraping down the sides at least twice to ensure everything is creamed together well. 

Once the butter and sugar mixture is light and fluffy, add your eggs one at a time until incorporated evenly. Then, stir in your vanilla. 

In a separate bowl, whisk together your flour, salt, and baking powder. 

Add the dry flour mix gradually into the wet ingredients (try adding in thirds), scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed until it is all incorporated. Don’t over mix. 

Scoop the dough out onto a large piece of plastic wrap. Form into a ball and then press down lightly to create a disc. Cover tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight, or at least 3 hours until the dough is fully chilled and stiff.

When ready, roll out onto a lightly floured surface to about 1/4 inch thick (can be slightly thicker too). Cut with cookie cutters and place on an ungreased cookie sheet (the scraps can be rolled back up and chilled again for rerolling) 

Bake in a 325 oven for 9-12 minutes or until center’s are set and bottoms or very lightly browned. Do not over bake. 

Allow to cool completely before icing. 

To make the icing, mix all the ingredients together in a bowl. Allow it to sit out for about 15 minutes uncovered and check to make sure it crusts. To test, touch the top surface of the icing lightly with your finger. If it sticks, it did not crust and you will
need to add a little more powdered sugar.  Divide up and add food coloring as desired. 



If you're looking for a thin and chewy sugar cookie as opposed to this thick and soft recipe, I have you covered there too! Check out my soft and chewy sugar cookies

I didn’t grow up in a Christmas cookie making family.  In fact, we didn’t even leave Santa c