Description
Delightfully festive Snowman Sugar Cookies perfect for holiday celebrations. Soft yet sturdy sugar cookies decorated with vibrant royal icing in red, black, and orange hues to create charming snowman designs. This recipe includes step-by-step instructions for making the dough, chilling, baking, and decorating with colorful royal icing detailing the scarves, hats, eyes, buttons, and noses. These cookies keep soft for days and can be frozen for extended storage, making them ideal for gifting or holiday parties.
Ingredients
Scale
Cookie Dough
- 2 and 1/4 cups (281g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled), plus more as needed for rolling and work surface
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup (12 Tbsp; 170g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract (optional, but recommended for outstanding flavor)
For Decorating
- Royal Icing
- Red gel food coloring
- Black gel food coloring
- Orange gel food coloring
Instructions
- Mix Dry Ingredients: Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.
- Cream Butter and Sugar: In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat the softened butter and granulated sugar on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes.
- Add Egg and Extracts: Add the egg, vanilla extract, and almond extract (if using) to the butter mixture and beat on high speed until well combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the bowl sides and bottom, then beat again if needed.
- Combine Dry and Wet Ingredients: Add the dry ingredient mixture to the wet ingredients and mix on low speed until incorporated. The dough will be slightly soft; add 1 more tablespoon of flour if too sticky.
- Divide and Roll Dough: Divide the dough into two equal parts. On lightly floured parchment or silicone mats, roll each dough portion to about 1/4-inch thickness, adding flour as needed to prevent sticking.
- Chill Dough: Lightly dust one rolled dough with flour, place a piece of parchment on top, then stack the second rolled dough on it. Cover with plastic wrap or foil and refrigerate for at least 1 to 2 hours or up to 2 days.
- Preheat Oven and Prepare Baking Sheets: Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
- Cut Out Cookies: Remove the top dough sheet carefully. Use a snowman cookie cutter to cut shapes, reroll dough scraps to use all dough. Place cut cookies 3 inches apart on baking sheets.
- Bake Cookies: Bake for 12 minutes or until lightly browned around edges. Rotate sheets halfway during baking if necessary. Cool cookies on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Prepare Royal Icing Colors: Divide royal icing into 4 parts: leave one white and tint others with red, black, and orange gel food coloring to desired shades.
- Pipe White Icing: Fit piping bag with Wilton tip #5 or #4; pipe a border and flood the edges of each cookie with white icing, leaving space for the black hat. Refrigerate cookies to set icing faster.
- Pipe Colored Details: Using Wilton tip #1, pipe black hat, eyes, mouth, and buttons. Using the same tip, pipe the orange nose. Use Wilton tip #4 or #5 to pipe the red scarf.
- Set and Serve: Allow icing to fully set at room temperature for 2 to 3 hours before serving. Store cookies covered at room temperature for up to 5 days or refrigerate up to 10 days.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: Freeze plain or decorated cookies for up to 3 months. Ensure icing is completely set before freezing. Thaw in refrigerator or at room temperature.
- You can also freeze the divided dough disks wrapped tightly in plastic wrap for up to 3 months and thaw in refrigerator before rolling.
- Room temperature butter is crucial for proper creaming; it should be cool to the touch, not melted or too soft.
- For varied flavor, substitute almond extract with maple, coconut, lemon, or peppermint extracts or add spices like cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice.
- Use parchment paper or silicone mats to prevent sticking and ease cleanup during rolling and baking.
- Decorate with different piping tips and layering of royal icing colors for festive effects. Allow complete icing setting for best results.
- Snowflake cookie cutters and sparkling sugars can be used to create alternative festive designs.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 150 kcal
- Sugar: 12 g
- Sodium: 80 mg
- Fat: 7 g
- Saturated Fat: 4 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 20 g
- Fiber: 0.5 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Cholesterol: 30 mg
