CLASSIC SUGAR COOKIEfeatured

When I was growing up we made the road trip to visit my great Grandma in Alberta, Canada every summer. When I was 6 I figured out that in her basement she had a separate refrigerator and without fail, she always jar of Betty Crocker cream cheese frosting. So yeah, I found plenty of excuses to sneak downstairs with a spoon in my pocket. By the time we loaded up the station wagon to make the trek home, the jar of frosting would be long gone. Grandma never called me out on it, but every summer there was a new jar in the downstairs fridge so I’m guessing she had a pretty good idea what was up.

I love frosting. All of it. I know I should be above the grocery store neon pink butter cream frosting, but I’m just not. I mean, it’s not my first, second or even my third choice, but I’m not above it is all I’m saying.

Sometimes you don’t want to mess with perfection. Sure, I could add a fancy frosting to this cookie and it would be awesome, but there is something to be said for the quintessential, classic sugar cookie with classic frosting. It’s pretty hard to beat. I like them thick and soft with plenty of frosting and this recipe does not disappoint.

Recipe: Classic Sugar Cookie  |  Soundtrack: The Temptations

• COOKIE DOUGH
• 2 cups unsalted butter
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 4 eggs
• 2 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 6 cups flour
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 2 1/4 tsp salt
• FROSTING
• 4 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
• 1/4 -1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 tsp almond extract (you can use vanilla if you prefer)
• 5-7 cups powdered sugar

Directions:
In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment cream (mix) the butter and sugar until it’s fluffy and light yellow. Add the eggs one at a time mixing well between each one. Add the vanilla. Mix until incorporated.

Add the flour, baking powder and salt. Mix until thoroughly combined. Remove the bowl from the mixer, put dough into a plastic bag and place in the refrigerator. Refrigerate dough for 2 hours or overnight. This is an important step. The butter needs to get hard again or else the cookie will not turn our properly.

Preheat oven to 350º. Lightly flour a clean surface. Take the dough out of the fridge and on the floured surface, roll out the dough to 1/2 inch thick. Using a cookie cutter of your choice, cut out dough and place cut our cookies onto baking sheet. Leave plenty of room between cookies as they will grow when they bake.

Bake for 8-12 minutes. This is all dependent on how large or small, thick of thin you choose to make your cookies. I would set your timer for 8 minutes and start checking at that point. The cookies should be light on top but not shiny. Remove them from the oven. Let cookies sit on the baking sheet for a 2 minutes. After 2 minutes, using a spatula, remove cookies and place on a cooling rack. Allow to cool completely.

To make the frosting:
In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment beat the butter until it’s smooth. Make sure it’s softened. If it’s not, you will have butter chunks in your frosting. Add the milk, almond extract, salt and the powdered sugar until it’s the right consistency. *Add more milk or powdered sugar as you go to get it just right. Feel free to add a little food coloring if you would like.

*My rule of thumb for sugar cookie frosting is that it should be thick enough that if you dipped a knife into the frosting and scooped some up, it should hold it’s place when you turn it so the frosting is hanging upside down. It shouldn’t move or drip. Add more milk or powdered sugar as you go to get it to this point. Too thick? Add more milk a tbsp at a time. Too thin? Add more powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time. However, if you prefer more of a glaze on your cookies, keep it runny by using less powdered sugar.  There is no right or wrong. Additionally, if you like it really almond-y like I do, you can add a bit more flavoring.

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