My Favorite Sugar Cookie Recipe for Decorating with Royal Icing

Hi everyone! This is how I make my cookies :) Now this is what works for me right now… I am still tweaking my recipe and learning new and better ways to bake, so check back often for any additional or new notes in the description. This cookie is pretty dense and may not be for everyone! Please see all of my notes below as well. Have fun!

RECIPE DETAILS
Ingredients:
- 480g all-purpose flour
- 200g sugar
- 30g corn starch
- 15g salt (see note about salt below)
- 1 cup/2 sticks/8 oz unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 2 large eggs (room temperature)
- 12g vanilla bean paste (can substitute vanilla extract 1:1)

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F
2. Prep all ingredients & set aside:
- In a large bowl, mix together flour, corn starch and salt.
- In a medium bowl, measure out sugar.
- In a small bowl, crack in the eggs.
- In a small bowl, measure out vanilla bean paste.
3. Using paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugar (I prefer to whip the butter a bit before adding the sugar). Beat on medium high until mixture is well-incorporated and is slightly lighter in color. It should be fluffy.
4. Add in the eggs and vanilla bean paste. Mix on low first to incorporate and the mixture is viscous, then beat on medium high until the mixture is fluffy again. Do not over mix!
5. Add in the flour mixture. Be careful not to over mix the dough, so you may want to add in all the flour at once (instead of in stages). The dough is done when it starts to clump on the paddle and pulls away from the sides.
6. Roll dough out to 5/16", cut out shapes and place on pan (I prefer to used perforated silicone baking mats).
7. Bake for 8-11 minutes at 375

**A single batch of dough makes approximately 18-20 3.5" cookies rolled at 5/16" (my perfect thickness is 5/16", but yours might be different!)

***I like a lot of salt in my dough. 15 grams is 2-3 times more than most common recipes, so if you prefer less salt I would start with 5 grams of salt.

****The corn starch helps to get the crisp edges on the cookies. If you prefer a softer cookie, use less corn starch. Alternatively, you can use more corn starch if you'd like even crisper edges.

*****I usually do not chill my dough, but if my butter and eggs are too warm or my kitchen is too hot, I will chill the dough for 30-60 minutes in the refrigerator before using.

********How long you will need to bake your cookies depends on how accurate your oven temperature is (link to an oven thermometer below), how evenly your oven bakes, what surface you are baking on (type of pans, parchment paper vs silicone mat, etc.), how thick you roll your cookies, how big the cookies are and how closely you've placed them together. I prefer to bake my cookies until they have just reached a bit of golden brown on the bottom.

**********Baking with perforated baking mats can take some getting used to. Make sure you read the instructions on the product website (listed below). For example, do NOT use a scented soap to clean them and make sure ALL of the soap is cleaned off (because of the perforations soap can get caught and make your cookies taste like soap). Alternatively, you can use standard silicone baking mats or parchment paper.

Royal icing recipe: https://youtu.be/uE5gYfihKpg
Royal icing consistencies (step by step): https://youtu.be/AObfqJGyXsY

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Perforated silicone baking mats (I use half sheet to go with my pans): https://chuacookie.com/shop/ols/products/pink-silicone-perforated-baking-mat

My fav pans: https://amzn.to/3DEwrLX (affiliate link)

Rolling pin: https://amzn.to/3CIQbg5 (affiliate link)

5/16" rolling guides: https://www.etsy.com/listing/533793487/pair-of-dough-sticks-for-uniform-cookie?ref=yr_purchases&variation0=768179048

Pre-cut parchment paper: https://amzn.to/3kS795R (affiliate link)

Vanilla bean paste: https://amzn.to/30O5d7j

My KitchenAid stand mixer: https://amzn.to/3wB5cOI (affiliate link) - matte velvet blue
-- this is a 6 quart mixer, which is a bit bigger than the standard size KitchenAid (usually 5 qts, although some models are even 3.5 qt)

Basic food scale: https://amzn.to/3kYU9v7 (affiliate link)

Amazon shop of my favorite things: https://www.amazon.com/shop/the.graceful.baker
*I do receive a small commission from items purchased from my shop.*

Music: https://www.bensound.com "Once Again"

FavoriteSugarCookie