If you depend on those tubes of cookie dough at the supermarket to make rolled sugar cookies, it’s time you learned how to make sugar cookies from scratch! Spoiler: It’s not hard. These homemade sugar cookies can be cut into any shape you like, embossed (or not), and dipped in chocolate (or not).
Making Sugar Cookies From Scratch
The ingredient list for making homemade sugar cookies is basic. Measuring and mixing doesn’t take much time at all. Rolling the dough and cutting out shapes takes a bit of time, but it’s always been a social event around here. Admittedly, we only make them for holidays and special occasions, but since we can all gather around and talk while we make them, I consider it to be bonding time, too.
What I like about these is that the embossed rolling pin does the work of making them pretty. Even a simple shape like a circle looks fancy. (And you don’t run the risk of losing a camel’s leg or a gingerbread person’s arm!)
Creaming the butter and sugar together assures that there are no butter lumps in the dough. This can be done with a stand mixer or a hand mixer, or even by hand. When making the dough by hand, I like to use a pastry blender. Once blended, you’ll add the eggs and vanilla, then mix in the dry ingredients.
You’ll need to allow time for this dough to chill. Give it a minimum of an hour in the fridge, but if you’re trying to get ahead of a long to-do list, you can make this cookie dough a couple days ahead of time.
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Related: Persimmon Cookie Recipe: A Sweet Treat Straight from the Tree
Shapes for Cookies
You can use a round cookie cutter (or a highball glass) to make circles, or choose a fun shape to celebrate a special person. A baker might love this stand mixer cookie cutter and your chicken-loving friend will appreciate this one. Have fun with it — making rolled sugar cookies is such a fun family activity!
Related: Chocolate Cut Out Cookies
Working with Rolled Sugar Cookie Dough
You can re-roll the dough that remains after cutting cookie shapes, but the more you work the dough, the less tender the cookies will be. Be sure to liberally flour the rolling surface to prevent sticking.
Chocolate Dipped Cookies
These cookies are pretty as-is, but to really indulge, you can give one edge of cookies a dip in chocolate.
★ Did you make these homemade sugar cookies? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below! ★
Chocolate-Dipped Embossed Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter
- 1 cup granulated organic cane sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 ¾ cups unbleached organic all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
Instructions
- Cream butter and sugar together in the bowl of your stand mixer, or in a large bowl Beat in egg and vanilla.1 cup butter, 1 cup granulated organic cane sugar, 1 large egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Combine flour and baking powder. Blend dry ingredients into wet ingredients in several batches. Be sure to mix thoroughly before adding more dry ingredients.2 3/4 cups unbleached organic all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder
- Refrigerate dough for an hour or so.
- Divide dough the dough in half. Roll dough out to 1/8-inch thickness on a floured surface. Use a patterned rolling pin to emboss the dough.
- Use a round cookie cutter or a highball glass to cut into simple circles, or use your favorite cookie cutter shapes.
- Place cut out cookies on an ungreased baking sheet. I like to line mine with one of these. Cool slightly then remove to wire rack. Cool completely before attempting to dip in chocolate.
- Pre heat oven to 400F degrees. Bake for six to ten minutes or until cookies are light brown around the edges.
To make chocolate dipped sugar cookies
- Melt one bag of chocolate chips in a double boiler stirring constantly. Chocolate can burn over high heat; a double boiler prevents this from happening. If you don't have a double boiler, you can set a small saucepan into a larger saucepan partly filled with water.
- (Be sure that you don't get any water in the chocolate.)
- Once the chocolate is melted, dip one edge of each cookie and set cookies onto a wire rack.
Notes
- Nutrition information doesn't include chocolate for dipping.
I love the embossed rolling but its currently unavailable. Hope it comes back soon. Cookies are beautiful without any particular effort. Excellant.
You mentioned you like to line your cookie sheets with “one of these.” One of these whats? Is parchment paper OK to use
Sorry, there is meant to be a link there. Yes, parchment paper will work great!
Dough was very dry, hoping I can roll it out.
Bought rolling pin for embossing. Can’t wait to use it.
Can you share the link you used as the one in the post is not working.
Thanks!
Try this: https://tidd.ly/3vKigCF
Aren’t Steps 6 & 7 mixed up?
There’s definitely some cut and paste errors there — thanks for alerting me to this!
how much flour is 2.75?
2-3/4 cup. Fractions don’t always translate in my recipe card form!
These were so good. They were also easy to make.