• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • HOME
  • SHOP
  • BLOG
  • ABOUT CATHY
  • CONTACT

CZ Design

I’m no foodie, but… the best sugar cookie (and royal icing) recipe ever. Period.

February 16, 2015

I’m no foodie, but… the best sugar cookie (and royal icing) recipe ever. Period.

cathyzielske.com | the best sugar cookie recipe ever
First things first: I am no baker.

Sure, you are looking at the photo above thinking, “WHAT? I thought you always said you didn’t front? This looks like you’re fronting!” It’s true. I don’t front. What you see is mostly what you get but every time I post photos of my freshly made sugar cookies on Instagram or Facebook, people go crazy and say, “I DEMAND YOU TELL ME HOW YOU DO THIS!”

Today I will tell you how. True, I’m no master say, like my friend Shannon, whose work slays me, but my efforts are pretty impressive for a novice. And hella tasty, too.

When I say I’m no baker, I mean it. I don’t bake often because a) I don’t love to bake, and b) I tend to eat everything I bake while no one is watching. This is not good for my middle-aged waistline. That, and it’s just a ton of work. Let’s be real here.

But a few years back, I kept seeing my friend Susan’s cookies on the Facebook and for some Martha Stewart wanna-be reason, I decided to email her and ask her the very same question: TELL ME HOW YOU DO THIS! Susan, who is a veritable cookie-making master, agreed to share her time-tested baking secrets* with me and today, I share them with you. Let us all bow down before the Gods of confectioner’s sugar and give thanks for the miracle we are all about to witness.

*The recipe I’m sharing today originated from Sara Fehling, who shared it with Susan, who passed it along to me! I am literally no baker but this recipe makes it seem like maybe I am.

In December of 2013, I took my first baby steps into the world of iced sugar cookies using this adorable Christmas bulb cookie cutter and I ended up with a first batch that looked like this:

cathyzielske.com | the best sugar cookie recipe ever
I know what you’re thinking. They are the very essence of cookie perfection. How could a self-proclaimed non-baker like myself achieve such a high level of excellence? Two things. First, a great recipe, and second, a little life-changing gadget called The Cookie Thing. 

cathyzielske.com | the best sugar cookie recipe ever
The Cookie Thing has one purpose: to help you roll out perfectly even dough in the thickness of your choosing. That’s it. Susan simply uses 5/16″ dowels from the craft store to achieve the same end. True, they are much cheaper than The Cookie Thing, but some of us are suckers for a well-designed product.

I don’t have any well lit shots of me rolling out the dough but if you want to see this thing in action, watch this, made by The Cookie Thing’s creator. (This was the video that made me click BUY.)

Note: I used the second smallest of the slats to make my cookies. I always think I should go up to the next depth of slat. But nope, it’s that second to narrowest slat that works like a charm. It measures 4/16, for those who are curious.

Next you need to have the tools of the trade. Now I ain’t gonna lie. My KitchenAid stand mixer makes the process so much more do-able. I have bird wrists. I’m not a good by-hand mixer kind of gal.

But for achieving that smooth, flooded cookie look you need to have the following:

• disposable decorating bags (I use these)
• icing tips (I use No. 3 as my main size, and No. 2 and No. 1 for smaller detail work)
• couplers (I use these.)

I had to look up how to put the bags together on the YouTube. (This video is helpful, if this concept is new to you.)

You’ll also need to get gel coloring for your icing. I presently use this set and a few pots of Wilton, but plan to get some of the AmeriColor by Easter.

So now that you have all the tools and you’re ready to go, how ’bout I give you the recipe?

HERE YOU GO: SugarCookieAndIcingRecipe

A few extra things to note:

• When I make this cookie recipe, I halve it and make a double batch. Twice. As much as I love my mixer, it has a harder time handling the full 6 cups of flour the recipe calls for. I much prefer to make a half batch, roll out the dough, pop it into the fridge to chill and then tackle batch no. 2. Yes, it makes for more clean up (I start each batch with a clean mixer bowl and paddle) but it’s easier for me to manage.

• I prefer to roll out the dough using parchment paper versus wax paper. It’s less apt to stick to the dough.

• The icing recipe calls for almond extract, but I always flavor with vanilla. It’s a personal taste. I can’t stand the taste of almond extract in anything, though I adore almonds. Go figure.

• In the icing recipe, Sara divides her icing while it is still thick, then adds water to each bowl as she goes. I tend to get my icing a bit more fluid before I divide and conquer. So I add successive tablespoons of water to the mixer until it gets a bit thinner. The danger is that you’ll get it too runny, which you don’t want. I find the icing making stage is the most tedious. Both from getting the consistency right to getting the colors right. It takes time and if you get it too runny, you can always add more powdered sugar. There is a great tip for the right consistency in the PDF.

• Tie off your pastry bags very tightly. What has happened to me on numerous occasions is that I’m so focused on piping on that frosting, I don’t notice that I’m squeezing it up and out of the bag. And yes, that’s a messy clean up.

• Lastly, have fun. Experiment. Make mistakes and practice. Making cookies with Aidan is such a joy, especially on the holidays, so get a partner to help and have at it.

cathyzielske.com | the best sugar cookie recipe ever
This photo was from Christmas. It’s a total set up. You put wet paper towels in glasses to keep the icing from caking up and you get to work. We keep toothpicks handy to create fun designs. Sara explains how to do that in the PDF. It’s truly an all-day affair. I like to make the cookies the night before, and get to frosting the next day.

Of course, the best part about all of this is that if you like sugar cookies, you are going to love how they taste. Seriously. I don’t make these often because as was the case on Valentine’s Day, I pretty much ate cookies for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

What’s a few days out of the year lost to sugar coma, right?

Enjoy!

cathyzielske.com | the best sugar cookie recipe ever
Note: for my Valentine’s Day cookies, I used this cutter for the big hearts and this set for the smaller, scalloped-edge ones.

Note No. 2: I may have left the smaller cookies in the oven about a minute too long. I always tend to want to see brown edges, but honestly? They’re done before that happens.

 

 

 

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. heidig says

    February 16, 2015 at 7:30 am

    Very cool – but what is meringue powder?? Can you tell I’ve never made sugar cookies?!

    Reply
    • Cathy Zielske says

      February 16, 2015 at 8:05 am

      From the internet: We call for meringue powder in recipes that do not reach safe enough temperatures to use fresh egg whites, such as Royal Icing Recipes. Meringue powder is a dried egg white product containing a little sugar. You can find it where cake decorating supplies are sold.

      🙂 You can get it at Michael’s or Hobby Lobby. Or on Amazon! I had never used it either.

      Reply
  2. Lida says

    February 16, 2015 at 8:01 am

    By far the prettiest cookies I’ve ever seen! Now I need to make some!

    Reply
    • Cathy Zielske says

      February 16, 2015 at 8:05 am

      Thank you. Wait’ll you taste them! So good.

      Reply
  3. Renee T. says

    February 16, 2015 at 9:18 am

    Thank you! Your cookies are always so gorgeous, and I remember quite a while back you mentioning your “cookie thing”, but I could never remember the name of it! Now I need a tutorial regarding how you put that recipe sheet together! Seriously, your instruction is always so clear and detailed – you really have a gift.

    Reply
  4. Yolanda says

    February 16, 2015 at 9:33 am

    Thank you SO much for this. After seeing you Christmas cookies I totally loaded my Amazon cart with cookie decorating supplies and swore I’d learn how to make beautiful cookies in time for Valentine’s Day. That stuff is still in the cart.

    But now I have THE PDF OF COOKIE DOMINATION GREATNESS!!!

    Hello UPS Driver, I’ll be seeing you in two days shamrock cookies will be mine!

    Reply
    • Cathy Zielske says

      February 16, 2015 at 9:41 am

      Ha! Yolanda. I love it. This is the first time I have ventured beyond Christmas. I fully plan to do Easter because last year I bought the cutest carrot cookie cutter.

      Reply
  5. LisaAnn says

    February 16, 2015 at 9:36 am

    Thank you so much for all these deets!! They are GOR-GE-OUS, and now I can’t wait until Easter to give it a try. I had given up on iced sugar cookies many, many years ago after one super disastrous Valentine’s Day cookie baking event. Excited to try it again with proven techniques. Pinned!

    Reply
  6. Lisa Cole says

    February 16, 2015 at 9:43 am

    Thanks C! I’ve always wanted to try this, and I have to say, you tipped me over the edge. The recipes are fantastically detailed…. and your hearts? Swoon 😉

    Reply
    • Cathy Zielske says

      February 16, 2015 at 9:54 am

      Yes! Just make sure you download the recipe now. I had to change one thing. The extracts are not supposed to be alcohol free. Doh! It’s hard to find a good vanilla extract that is alcohol free.

      Reply
  7. lori says

    February 16, 2015 at 10:10 am

    Awesome – love all the detailed tips! a fun project for me and my daughters!

    Reply
  8. Kelly says

    February 16, 2015 at 10:44 am

    The freakishly analytic geek in me notices that “The Cookie Thing” doesn’t come with 5/16″ slats. So… are you using 5/16″ dowels you bought or one of the sizes of slats that are included in the “Cookie Thing”?

    Because you know… that tiny 1/16″ can make or break my cookies! 🙂

    Reply
    • Cathy Zielske says

      February 16, 2015 at 10:49 am

      Hey Kelly, I use the second to smallest of the slats for my cookies and it works like a freaking charm! Not using the dowels, but that is what Susan uses for her original recipe!

      Reply
  9. Linda says

    February 16, 2015 at 10:56 am

    Thanks Cathy!!! I never thought of dowels from the craft store!! I love The Cookie Thing but at the moment can’t get one. Going to try the dowel idea. And your cookies are beautiful! Thanks for sharing!!

    Reply
  10. Jenny B. says

    February 16, 2015 at 11:42 am

    YAY! I’m so glad you took the time to put all this info together! We do not have a stand mixer, so I’m hoping my husband (who does ALL the cooking and baking) can pull it off with a hand mixer. 🙂

    Reply
  11. Kim L says

    February 16, 2015 at 11:45 am

    Thank you! I can hardly wait until Easter to try this. Maybe I’ll make some green shamrocks for St. Patty’s Day!

    Reply
  12. keely says

    February 16, 2015 at 12:40 pm

    Thank you for sharing!! You have been pinned!!

    Reply
  13. Dianne says

    February 16, 2015 at 1:15 pm

    I had to giggle at your almond extract comment. I LOVE almond extract in any sort of sweet thing. But I cannot stand actual almonds. I’ve never known anyone out there at the other end of the almond extra spectrum. 😉

    Reply
  14. Nancy says

    February 16, 2015 at 1:17 pm

    thank you for sharing, I might just give these a try for Easter. I used to make sugar cookies all the time for Christmas, but not decorated so well. I will probably just get myself some painter stirrers from the hardware store to roll them out… that’s what I used to do back in the day with paper clay! But the cookie thing looks amazing!

    Reply
  15. Marilyn says

    February 16, 2015 at 3:27 pm

    You are so impressive. Thanks for the recipe and specific, detailed instructions…I can’t wait to try it. One question: you said that you put cookies on top oven rack, then rotate them when another tray goes in oven. Does this mean the very TOP rack? Like way up there close to the broiler?

    P.S. If you ever get tired of your day job, you could moonlight cookies!

    Reply
    • Cathy Zielske says

      February 16, 2015 at 3:30 pm

      Marilyn, I’m not sure if that is what Susan does. I neglected to mention: I do one tray of cookies at a time. My oven is far to irregular. 🙂

      Reply
  16. Meghan says

    February 16, 2015 at 5:25 pm

    Surely you didn’t eat this cookie art? They are just too gorgeous! Picasso would be envious!

    Reply
  17. DIANE says

    February 16, 2015 at 6:37 pm

    Thanks for the recipe. Definitely want to give it a try. Cookie Thing is interesting (although I really don’t need it) … and $50. Maybe you could get the Cookie Thing lady to share a promo code with your followers… just an idea… I saw on her Facebook page that she has done a 25% promo in the past.

    Reply
    • Melony Coalson says

      December 7, 2020 at 11:15 am

      I can’t find how to purchase the Cookie Thing. Do they still make it?

      Reply
  18. jofromidaho says

    February 17, 2015 at 1:26 am

    You can also get meringue powder at JoAnn’s Craft Stores.

    Happy baking!

    Reply
  19. Teri F. says

    February 17, 2015 at 1:45 pm

    Oooh thanks so much! I have been searching for this recipe for awhile. You rock (and the cookies look amazing)!

    Reply
  20. Abby P says

    February 17, 2015 at 2:22 pm

    Wow – gorgeous! Once again, you are rockin’ the world, one craft at a time! Thanks for the tips

    Reply
  21. Amy says

    February 17, 2015 at 6:28 pm

    Thank you for this!!!!

    Reply
  22. Christine (A&M Momma) says

    February 17, 2015 at 8:28 pm

    I’ve long admired your beautiful cookies! Thanks for sharing the recipe and all the tips. Now I just need to steal my daughter from her dorm so we can make these together. Best blogpost ever! 🙂

    Reply
  23. Tanja says

    February 19, 2015 at 12:51 pm

    I have simply adored scrolling over your cookie photos in the past, you had me at the lightbulbs! Thank you for sharing, I can’t say mine will look anything like this but I’ll give it my best.

    Reply
  24. Nicky says

    February 26, 2015 at 10:28 am

    Thank you so much for this! I have had many sugar cookie failures. I’ve accomplished many baking triumphs in my time…sugar cookies is not one of them. I am trying recipe today. I purchased a cheaper Williams Sonoma rolling pin as my tool of choice. I am very excited and hope that the results are as beautiful as yours and as tasty as they look!

    Reply
  25. ARC says

    February 27, 2015 at 11:29 am

    WOW! Those are some gorgeous looking cookies. My girls love to make (and decorate) cookies so I am totally going to try this in the hopes that people will be able to tell which ones are mine and which ones are theirs, because right now it’s a toss-up (and they’re 2 and 5!). Sigh.

    Reply
  26. Shannon says

    March 25, 2015 at 11:15 am

    How did I miss this??!! I must have been buried in cookie dough! Thanks so much for the shout out! Your cookies look fantastic! Be careful…it can get addicting! (especially the eating dough part;))

    Reply
  27. Elizabeth says

    May 4, 2016 at 12:50 pm

    My icing is very thin. What did I do wrong?

    Reply
    • Cathy Zielske says

      May 4, 2016 at 2:13 pm

      Maybe too much liquid?

      Reply
  28. Dani says

    May 24, 2016 at 9:08 pm

    I’m having the same problem. Icing is very liquid. I have followed all the directions. Are we really supposed to use paddle attachment? Elizabeth, did you solve the problem?

    Reply
    • Cathy Zielske says

      December 3, 2016 at 12:50 pm

      I just realized I never replied to this comment. You can always add more powdered sugar. 🙂 It’s kind of by feel. I do it differently than the woman I learned it from.

      Reply
  29. Shawna says

    June 17, 2016 at 3:42 pm

    I’m looking for an icing that is firm enough to travel with (to a party) but soft enough to eat. Would you say these are like that? I fee like the harder frosting doesn’t taste good but if it’s soft the design get ruined or sticks to the packaging I transport in. I’m new to this, any help would be great! Also, great blog post! Very helpful 🙂

    Reply
  30. Michele says

    August 7, 2016 at 9:14 am

    Do you use unsalted butter? The recipe calls just for butter. I notice you do add a teaspoon of salt, which seems to imply you’d use unsalted butter?

    Reply
  31. kathy says

    December 3, 2016 at 12:43 pm

    can you cut sugar cookie recipe in half? Do you still use 1/8 tsp baking powder?

    Reply
    • Cathy Zielske says

      December 3, 2016 at 12:49 pm

      I would, yes.

      Reply
  32. Colleen Melton says

    December 4, 2016 at 4:53 pm

    where do I find your sugar cookie and good tasting royal icing recipes.

    Reply
    • Cathy Zielske says

      December 5, 2016 at 7:05 am

      Colleen, up above there is a link in the body of the blog post, but that said, go this the following post. The recipe was slightly modified by the creator.

      https://www.cathyzielske.com/2015/12/sugar-cookies-holidays/

      Again, there will be a link in the body of the post.

      Reply
  33. Brandi says

    December 8, 2016 at 7:42 pm

    Hi Cathy, what is the dough supposed to look like after it is mixed? Mine looks crumbled like a big bowl of crumbs. It took a while to smash it all together before I was even able to roll it into a ball. What am I doing wrong? I took a picture of it if you have an e-mail address I could send it to. I am worried that when I go to cut the cookies that they will just completely fall apart.

    Reply
  34. rikki says

    January 18, 2017 at 1:26 pm

    hi there, in the pdf of the recipe for the icing she calls for 5 ‘T’ of meringue. is that teaspoons or tablespoons?

    Reply
    • Cathy Zielske says

      January 18, 2017 at 2:29 pm

      Hey Rikki, a capital T stands for Tablespoon. Small t, tsp. 🙂

      Reply
  35. Crys says

    April 19, 2017 at 8:37 pm

    Can these be made and frozen? I have a party coming up but don’t want to be baking the entire night before and want to keep the cookies as fresh as possible. My mother in law freezes chocolate chip cookies and they turn out fine, just wondering about these.

    Reply
    • Cathy Zielske says

      April 20, 2017 at 6:42 am

      I don’t know, to be honest. I have never frozen any dough. But what I do, is half the full recipe. Not sure if that would work for you. : )

      Reply
  36. Janelle says

    October 2, 2017 at 1:55 pm

    Does this recipe produce soft or hard sugar cookies?

    Reply
    • Cathy Zielske says

      October 2, 2017 at 1:56 pm

      They are hard enough to frost, but not hard and crunchy. They are a very tasty final cookie.

      Reply
  37. Cortney lockamy says

    October 8, 2017 at 7:08 pm

    Do you use all purpose or self rising flour?

    Reply
  38. Lisa Jones says

    February 8, 2019 at 3:03 pm

    How far ahead of an event can I make these and have them still taste good?

    Reply
    • Cathy Zielske says

      February 8, 2019 at 4:19 pm

      Honestly? We have still been munching on ours a week after and they are delicious! Just keep them in an airtight container!

      Reply
  39. Lisa Johnson says

    November 23, 2019 at 5:58 pm

    I made these last year and they were incredible. I tried two different batches today and they spread way out and lost their shape. Any suggestions? It’s so sad.

    Reply
  40. Laura says

    September 25, 2020 at 3:19 pm

    Hi Cathy,
    I want to try out your royal icing recipe 🙂 I just have a question.
    In the royal icing recipe, does the big T mean table spoon and the little t mean tea spoon?
    ( 5 T. meringue power; 1t cream of tartar)

    Thank you

    Reply
  41. Cherish says

    December 19, 2020 at 5:23 am

    When halving the recipe, I noticed in the comments you said to keep the 1/8 tsp of baking powder so would I keep the 1tsp of salt or half it to 1/2 tsp? Excited to try these! Thank you for all the detail!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest

Categories

  • Cards
  • Crafts
  • CZ Life
  • Free Downloads
  • Products & Classes
  • Project Life
  • Scrapbooking
  • Tutorials

Archives

Footer

About

I'm Cathy Zielske and this is one of my homes on the World Wide Web. Want to learn more about me? By all means, click the link below:

  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest

Let’s Connect

If you have specific questions that can’t be answered by stalking me on social media, please click below:

Categories

  • Cards
  • Crafts
  • CZ Life
  • Free Downloads
  • Products & Classes
  • Project Life
  • Scrapbooking
  • Tutorials

Copyright © 2023 Cathy Zielske · site by bello via design