The Buttery Sugar Cookie Recipe Everyone Will Love

Disclosure: Some of the links are affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a slight commission if you click through and make a purchase.

Sugar cookies are without a doubt my favorite thing to bake and my favorite dessert to eat. This is a super easy buttery sugar cookie recipe. It only requires six ingredients and the instructions are simple.

This past week was Teacher Appreciation Day/Week and I wanted to make something special for the teachers that work with my twins at their daycare. Since I’m me, I of course had to be “extra.” I didn’t want to just buy something or pick up a box of donuts for the teachers. No, I had to be an “extra” mom who stays up until 2:30 am baking and decorating homemade buttery sugar cookies. (Side note: these are super easy sugar cookies. But, if you want to decorate them, fair warning that will take some time.)

So I’ll start with my tried and true buttery sugar cookie recipe, and then I’ll go into the recipe for the royal icing I use to decorate them. The great thing about these buttery sugar cookies is that they taste really good even without icing on top. They’re super buttery and not too sweet. I’ve also tried these dipped in dark chocolate ganache, which I highly recommend trying.

For the buttery sugar cookies in this photo, I wanted to make something that was colorful and bright and spring-themed. I went with pink (my personal favorite color), light purple and teal. I also wanted to do the cookies in the shape of a heart to symbolize the love we have for our daycare teachers. And on top, I wrote “Thank You!” on each one.

I hope the teachers know how much I appreciate their help with the kids and their efforts to teach them every weekday. It takes a special person to mold such young minds and I can’t say thank you enough to the wonderful staff at our daycare. These easy sugar cookies were actually just Part 1 of my Teacher Appreciation efforts. I’ll share more on that in a separate post. Again, I feel a need to be “extra” at all times. So not even homemade decorated buttery sugar cookies were enough for me.

Before I get to my go-to buttery sugar cookie recipe, I’d like to offer a few tips that I’ve learned. I’ve made this recipe about a million times so I’ve learned somethings along the way.

Tips:

1. Before you make your buttery sugar cookies, take the butter and eggs out of the refrigerator to let them come to room temperature. Trust me, you want soft butter and room temperature eggs for this recipe. I try to take them out at least 30 minutes before I start baking.
2. If you choose to go the decorated route, plan out your decorations ahead of time. I like to sketch my design ideas out on paper before I start baking. This way I know how many cookies I need to make, what colors of icing I need, and what cookie cutters I plan to use.
3. Plan out where you’re going to leave the cookies to cool and dry if you decorate them. For the decorating part especially, you’re going to have to let the base layer of icing dry for several hours so make sure you have space. And when you roll out the dough, you’ll need to chill it in the refrigerator so make sure you have space cleaned out.

Buttery Sugar Cookie Recipe

Ingredients:

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 sticks unsalted butter (softened)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 large egg (room temperature)
• 2 teaspoons Madagascar bourbon pure vanilla extract

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and salt.
2. Using a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, mix together the butter and sugar until they’re fully combined and light and fluffy. Then, add in the vanilla and the egg to the butter/sugar combo.
3. Slowly add the flour mixture to the butter and sugar. Turn the mixer on low until all the ingredients are combined.
4. Divide the dough into three equal portions and roll them into three flat discs.
5. Place one disk onto a sheet of parchment paper (cut a few sheets the size of a cookie sheet to use for this). Place another sheet of parchment paper on top of the dough.
6. Using a rolling pin and 1/8″ rolling pin rings, roll the disc of dough out flat. The dough should be between two sheets of parchment paper.
7. Place the rolled out dough (still between the parchment paper) onto a cookie sheet. Repeat this process with other two discs. Place the cookie sheet in the refrigerator to chill the dough for 30 minutes.
8. While the dough is chilling, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
9. Once the dough is firm, pull out disk out at a time. Use your desired cookie cutters to cut shapes out of the dough and transfer the cut cookies to cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
10. Once you’ve cut all the cookie you can from the first disc, roll the dough back into a disc and flatten between the parchment paper. Then place that new disc back into the refrigerator. Grab a new disc and repeat the process until your cookie sheet is filled with cookies. (Space out cookies 1/2 inch apart on the sheet)
11. Bake the cookies on the middle rack of your oven for 13-16 minutes. (Mine are usually done around 15 minutes, but ovens can vary so be sure to start checking around 13 minutes.)
12. Cool the cookies completely before eating or decorating them.

If you want to enjoy these easy sugar cookies plain, you can stop here! And if you want to be “extra” like me, read on for the royal icing instructions.

Royal Icing Ingredients:

• 4 cups confectioner’s sugar
• 3 tablespoons meringue powder
• 6 tablespoons warm water
• 1-2 teaspoons Madagascar bourbon pure vanilla extract

Royal Icing Directions:

1. Place all the ingredients in your stand mixer bowl. Using the paddle attachment on your mixer, beat the ingredients on high for 5 minutes. (If you’re using a hand mixer, mix for 10 minutes.) For piping, the icing should be similar in consistency to toothpaste.
   1. When you’re ready to flood the cookies, add water to the icing 1 teaspoon at a time until the consistency is similar to heavy cream.
2. If you are coloring your icing, color it now and separate your colors in airtight containers.
3. Cut the tip off a pastry bag and attach a coupler. Then fill the bag halfway full and attach a number 3 tip. Outline all your cooled cookies with your royal icing. Allow that outline to dry before flooding.
4. Fill a squeeze bottle with your thinned out flood icing. Gently squeeze a small amount over a cookie and use a toothpick to help spread the icing up to the outline you created earlier.
5. You’ll have to let this bottom layer of icing dry for at least 2-3 hours. Do not cover the cookies as they dry, it will slow the dry time.
6. Once your base layer of icing is dry, use the piping consistency icing to pipe your designs on the cookie. You’ll have to let that icing dry before you stack and transport your cookies.

Let me know what your favorite cookie flavor is? Are you nuts for sugar cookies like I am?