Easy Halloween Sugar Cookies
Seven basic ingredients to make bakery style sugar cookies, perfect for cut-outs and decorating for any holiday! Thick, buttery, with a hint of vanilla, and just crisp enough to hold their shape with a bit of chew.
Equipment
- 1 Large Mixing Bowl
- Stand Mixer or Hand Mixer
- Cookie Sheet
- Cookie Cutters
- Parchment Paper
Ingredients
- 2 Sticks Softened Butter (16 Tbsp)
- 2/3 Cup Finely Granulated Sugar
- 1 Large Egg
- 1/4 tsp Baking Powder
- 1/8 tsp Salt
- 1 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract or Vanilla Powder
- 2 1/3 Cups All-Purpose Flour
Icing
- 2 1/2 Cups Powdered Sugar
- 1 tsp Vanilla Powder (optional)
- 3 Tbsp Heavy Cream
Instructions
- Soften butter to room temperature.
- In a mixing bowl or with a mixer, beat butter and sugar together until very fluffy and well blended. Add egg, milk, and vanilla. Beat until well combined.
- Gradually stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt into the butter mixture until blended and smooth.
- Divide dough in half. Place each half on parchment or wax paper with a little flour and roll out to 1/4" thick, getting it as even as you can on all sides.
- Keeping the paper in place, transfer to a baking sheet, layer the two halves on top of each other, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 350° and line cookie sheets.
- Working with one portion of the dough at a time, cut out the cookies using your cutters and transfer to the cookie sheet with a spatula. Roll out the scraps to use the rest of the dough. Don't let it get too soft!
- Bake for about 10 minutes. The baking time will depend on how large your cookie shapes are, so try to group the same shapes together and watch for the cookies to look just done. Pull them right as they start to brown on the edges or just before, and let the cookies finish baking on the warm cookie sheet for about 10 minutes out of the oven.
- While the cookies are cooling, make the icing. To a medium-sized mixing bowl, add powdered sugar, vanilla powder (optional), and a pinch of salt if desired. Stir to combine. Add heavy cream and stir until smooth and creamy. Stick with it! It will take a bit of stirring before becoming creamy. If it seems too thick, add more milk or cream, 1 tsp at a time. If it's too watery, add a bit more powdered sugar until you get a thick but spreadable consistency. Work quickly, as the icing will set.
- Ice and decorate the cookies! This is the fun part. Get creative, you can't go wrong!
Notes
The recipe as shown will make about 15 cookies, but can vary greatly depending on the size of your cookie cutters.