Made with a traditional sugar cookie dough, the cookies are then cut out in holiday shapes and baked to perfection. They have a buttery and slightly sweet flavor that perfectly compliments their festive frosting and decorations.
Prep Time20 minutesmins
Cook Time10 minutesmins
Chill Time1 hourhr
Total Time1 hourhr30 minutesmins
Course: Christmas Cookies
Cuisine: American
Keyword: decorated sugar cookies, Traditional Christmas Cookies
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, cream together the softened butter and sugar until light and fluffy, using a hand mixer or stand mixer.
Beat in the egg and vanilla extract until well combined.
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing until a dough forms. If the dough is too crumbly, you can add a little milk, a tablespoon at a time, until it's manageable.
Transfer the dough to a sheet of plastic wrap. Wrap tightly and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Place a sheet of parchment paper on your work surface and dust it with flour. Roll out the cookie dough to about ¼-inch thickness. Use your favorite Christas cookie cutters to cut out shapes from the dough. Carefully transfer the cut-out cookies to the prepared cookie sheet, leaving some space between each cookie.
Bake the cookies for 8-10 minutes, or until the edges are lightly golden. Be careful not to over bake. Remove from the oven and let them cool on the baking sheet from 5 minutes, then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
In a medium bowl, whisk together powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract until smooth and creamy. If the icing is too thick, add a little more milk. If it's too thin, add more powdered sugar until you reach your desired consistency. If you want to make different colors of icing, divide the icing into separate bowls and add food coloring to each bowl.
Once the cookies are completely cool, use a small spatula or a pastry bag to ice the cookies with the prepared icing. Add sprinkles or edible glitter on top of the icing, if desired.
Allow the icing to set for a few hour or overnight until it hardens.
Once the icing is set, your Christmas cookies are ready to be enjoyed!