Sugar Cookies Perfect for Swaps, Santa, and Snow Days
For many home cooks, sugar cookies are the gateway treat to a lifelong love affair with baking sweets. This phenomenon can, at least in part, be attributed to the fact that in addition to being delicious they are probably one of the easiest cookies on the planet to make.
Don’t believe us? By definition, a sugar cookie is the combination of sugar, flour, butter, eggs, vanilla, and either baking powder or baking soda. All of the essential elements are staples typically found in one’s pantry. Yet results can vary depending upon your preferred preparation: molded by hand, rolled and sliced, or cut out into festive shapes.
From childlike spheres dusted with dyed sugar to graphic masterpieces trimmed with royal icing and accented with edible pearls, sugar cookies are a blank canvas upon which the home baker’s creativity can run wild. To wit, cookie cutters now exist in silhouettes for everything from Christmas trees to unicorns to Star Wars’ Yoda and Darth Vader.
Whether you’re searching for a family friendly project to leave out for Santa (and his omnipresent assistant — Elf on the Shelf) or a show-stopping stained glass snowflake variation to bring to your best friend’s annual cookie swap, we’ve culled a selection of recipes developed by our partners at Food52, Food & Wine, and Food Network, as well as beloved treats from renowned cookbook authors like Dorie Greenspan and Seton Rossini, that are sure to inspire some sweet creations over the holidays. Don’t be surprised if you’re inspired to try more than one.
Want more baking inspiration?
Turn Basic Sugar Cookies into Eye-Catching Christmas Pinwheels
The Ultimate Christmas Cookie Baking Tips and Tricks
The Secret to Beautifully Decorated Sugar Cookies
