ROLL & CUT SUGAR COOKIES
These sugar cookies are amazing! The dough is easy to roll out, and the cookies are simply delicious as well as fun to decorate using the royal icing recipe. The hardest part is figuring out the correct cooking time for your oven as they can quickly over-bake — keep an eye on the first few rounds. The recipes (by Cindy Mushet, pastry chef & culinary instructor) were discovered in December 2008 issue of Food and Wine Magazine.
Ingredients
2 1/4 Cups All-purpose Flour
3/4 Cup Sugar
1/4 tsp Salt
2 Sticks Cold Unsalted Butter, cut into 4 inch pieces
2 Large Egg Yolks
2 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
- In the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with the paddle, mix the flour with the sugar and salt.
- Add the butter and mix at low speed until the butter is broken up into small pieces (about 2 minutes).
- Increase the speed to medium and mix until the flour and butter form small clumps (about 1 minute).
- Add the egg yolks and vanilla and mix at low speed until the dough comes together in a few large clumps
- Pat the dough into two 1/2 inch thick disks and wrap them in plastic; refrigerate until chilled but not firm (about 30 minutes).
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough 1/8 inch thick and cut out shapes as desired; placing on parchment lined backing sheets.
- Refrigerate the cutout cookies until chilled; about 30 minutes.
- Bake at 375° for 10 to 12 minutes, swapping sheets between top and bottom racks halfway through. Cookies should be lightly golden around edges.
- Let cookies cool on baking sheets for about 5 minutes, then carefully transfer to rack using a metal spatula until completely cooled (about 20 minutes). Decorate as desired.
ROYAL ICING
1 Egg White
2 1/4 Cups Confectioner’s Sugar
1 Tbsp Water
- In medium bowl with whisk attachment, beat the egg white at medium speed until foamy.
- Add the confectioner’s sugar 1 cup at a time and beat between additions until the sugar is completely incorporated.
- Add the water and beat at high speed until the icing holds its shape(about 5 minutes).
- Thin with water as needed. Color with food coloring.as desired.
Everything you need to know to start decorating iced cookies for the holidays
Want more recipes from Cindy Mushet? Her book The Art & Soul of Baking* is filled with fool-proof recipes and professional tips and tricks for the home baker. (IACP Cookbook Awards Winner & nominated for a 2009 James Beard Foundation Award) *[Zeester Media LLC may receive a small commission for a book purchase you make via this link to Amazon. This in no way affects the price you pay for the purchase.]
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