Soft Frosted Christmas Cookies

Thick, soft sugar cookies topped with a layer of sweet homemade buttercream frosting.

• Yield: 18 cookies
• Prep time: 15 minutes
• Cook time: 10 minutes
• Rest time: 30 minutes
• Total time: 55 minutes

Ingredients

Sugar cookies

• 0.5 cup (113 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 0.5 cup (99 g) granulated sugar
• 1 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1.5 cups (180 g) all-purpose flour, measured properly*
• 0.5 teaspoon baking powder
• 0.38 teaspoon salt

Buttercream frosting

• 0.38 cup (85 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1.25 cups (142 g) confectioner's sugar
• 1 tablespoons heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 0.5 pinch salt
• food coloring & sprinkles, optional

Instructions

Sugar cookies

1. In a large bowl, add room temperature butter and sugar. Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat until light and fluffy, for about a minute. Add eggs and vanilla extract and beat until fully incorporated and fluffy, about a minute.
2. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually stir (or use a mixer on low speed) dry ingredients into butter mixture until just combined.
3. Cover bowl and chill dough in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Refrigerating allows time for flavors to meld and also creates a firmer dough that's easy to roll into balls.
4. Preheat oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
5. Remove dough from refrigerator. Scoop dough using a medium cookie scoop and roll into 1.5 inch balls.
6. Place cookie dough balls 2 inches apart onto prepared baking sheet. As dough balls bake in the oven, the dough will spread and flatten into cookies. Optionally, flatten balls slightly using your hands or the bottom of a glass dusted with flour (to prevent sticking). This helps your cookies spread more and makes a flatter top for frosting. Note that excess flour will cause cookies to dry out and toughen.
7. Bake for about 10-12 minutes, or until tops look set and edges barely begin to brown (times will vary based on your own oven and size of cookies). Allow to cool for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Buttercream frosting

1. In a medium bowl, add room temperature butter, confectioner's sugar, heavy cream, vanilla, and salt. Whip until frosting is smooth and spreadable. Add more heavy cream as needed to achieve desired consistency.
2. Spread frosting with a knife onto completely cooled cookies (warm cookies will melt frosting). Or use a piping bag with decorating tip.

Notes

• How to measure flour properly: For most accurate results when measuring flour, use a kitchen scale to measure flour by weight. If you don't have a kitchen scale, use the spoon and level method. Stir the flour (especially if it's been packed down in a bag/container), then gently spoon the flour into a measuring cup, leveling off the top with a knife. Scooping with a measuring cup compacts flour into the cup and adds up to 25% extra to the recipe, resulting in flat, bland cookies that don't spread properly.
• Frosting alternatives: If you don't want to add frosting to your cookies, roll them in granulated sugar instead. The cookie base is lightly sweetened on its own and well balanced with the sweetness of the frosting.
• Storing dough: Cookie dough will keep in refrigerator for 2-3 days, or up to 3 months in the freezer.
• Storing cookies: Cookies will keep for up to 5 days in a tightly sealed container at room temperature or in the freezer for 3 months. Add a slice of bread to the cookie container to help keep cookies moist. Replace as needed (bread will dry out).

Nutrition Estimate

• Serving: 1 cookie | Calories: 179kcal | Carbohydrates: 22g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Potassium: 31mg | Fiber: 0g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 303IU | Vitamin C: 0.01mg | Calcium: 11mg | Iron: 1mg