Because Sugar Cookies are so much fun!
I have enjoyed decorating sugar cookies since I was very young. And I bet you did too!
My Grandma loved to bake and some of my fondest memories from childhood revolved around my Grandma’s cookies. She had a big plate of Christmas cookies on a table in her dining room. I could not stop staring at it. It was the focus of my Christmas Eve night. And that means a lot considering they competed with Christmas Eve festivities like listening for Santa’s reindeer bells!
I also remember my Mom buying the slice-and-bake sugar cookies from the grocery store. We would bake and decorate them ourselves.
Then when my children were young, I made my sugar cookies from scratch when I had time. Otherwise, I bought the slice-and-bake for convenience. And we kept the tradition alive. We made sugar cookies year-round.
Sugar cookies work for all the holidays, depending on how you decorate them! It just takes some icing and sugar decorations to make whatever theme you choose. Cookie cutters make them extra special, too.
But think of all the occasions for sugar cookies.
We decorate our sugar cookies for Christmas, Valentine’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, Easter, Independence Day, Halloween, and Thanksgiving. But that’s not all! We make cookies for birthdays, baby showers, anniversaries, fund-raisers, milestones, celebrations, autumn, winter, spring, and summer, too! Sugar cookies are good any old time. Rainy days, snow days, bored days, (and even teaching children about measurements), are all good reasons to make sugar cookies.
Witch sugar cookies for a Wicked movie night
Zombie and pumpkin sugar cookies
So what better time than now to make some cookies?
Let’s Get Started
If you already have a family sugar cookie recipe that needs to be veganized, we can work with that. Replace an egg with 1 tablespoon of ground flax seed and 3 tablespoons of water mixed. It’s my go-to replacement. There are also egg replacers like Bob’s Redmill Egg Replacer, sold at many grocery stores.
Now, replace any milk in a recipe with non-dairy varieties. I prefer Westsoy Soy Milk because it has more protein and only two ingredients- organic soy and water. Many non-dairy milks have added sugar and unwanted things like titanium, etc.
Some sugar cookie recipes have sour cream in them or buttermilk. That’s easy to substitute as well. Many vegan sour creams like Follow You Heart Sour Cream or Tofutti Sour Cream are readily available. Replace buttermilk with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice or apple cider vinegar for every cup of non-dairy milk. You’ll see it thicken and curdle in 5 to 10 minutes.
And of course, most sugar cookie recipes use butter or shortening. But vegan butter is easily found in grocery stores now too, thank the stars! Our favorites are Miyokos Cultured Vegan Butter, Violife Plant Butter, and Trader Joe’s Vegan Buttery Spread. We’ve also used Earth Balance. Also, if you need a substitute for shortening there is Nutiva Shortening.
Make Our Recipe Your Recipe!
But if you don’t have a sugar cookie recipe, have ours! We are so happy to share and we know you’ll like it. It works consistently and it’s made with easy-to-find ingredients. Plus, it tastes amazing.
So give this recipe a try. And have a happy sugar cookie day any day of the year.
Do You Need A Variety Of Cookies?
Then you must try some of our other cookie recipes!
Start with the Classic Chocolate Chip Cookie. That’s everybody’s favorite.
Then make our easy-peasy Peanut Butter Cookie.
And for a fancier cookie, we can help with that too! Make the Lovely Linzer Cookie to impress your guests.
Or create our Half-Moon Cookies for your next lunar event (solar eclipse, full moon, whatever!)
But if a healthier dessert is desired, make the Chocolate Chip Chickpea Cookie! It’s surprisingly good.
Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 3/4 cups flour (384 grams)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg optional
- 1 cup vegan butter or shortening (or a combination of both)- at room temperature (227 grams) (or use 1/2 cup butter plus 1/2 cup vegan sour cream)
- 1 cup organic sugar (200 grams)
- 2 tablespoons ground flax seed (meal)
- 6 tablespoons water
- 1 tablespoon vanilla
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
Vegan Royal Icing
- 3 cups confectioners sugar -sifted (360 grams)
- 1/4 cup warm water
- 1 tablespoon light corn syrup Make our corn syrup substitute recipe or use store-bought.
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
- few drops food color optional
Instructions
Cut-Out Sugar Cookie Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Mix together flax meal with water in a small bowl and set aside for about 5 minutes to gel.
- In a medium-size bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg.
- In a large bowl, cream together room-temperature butter (or butter and sour cream) with the sugar until mixed well. Add flax mixture and vanilla (and almond extract if using) and beat until light and fluffy.
- Add the flour mixture to the wet mixture and combine into a dough.
- Divide dough into 3 parts, wrap each one in cling wrap, shape into disk shape, and chill in the refrigerator for 1-3 hours. (overnight is okay, too. Or freeze the 3 wrapped dough pieces together in a freezer bag for up to 3 months, until ready to use.)
- Have two sheets of parchment paper ready. Remove chilled dough. Sprinkle a little flour on one sheet of parchment paper to prevent dough from sticking to the surface. Then place dough on the parchment and sprinkle a little more flour onto the top of the dough before adding the top sheet of parchment. Roll dough with a rolling pin, between the two sheets, to approximately 1/4-inch thick or a little thinner. Thinner than that will make a crispier, more fragile cookie.
- Next, remove the top sheet of parchment from the dough and set aside. Have a shallow bowl or plate with a little flour to dip your cookie cutter in so it doesn't stick to the dough. After dipping, start cutting out shapes in the rolled dough.
- Dip a thin and flexible spatula into a little flour, then gently lift cut cookie shapes onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. (Do not use wax paper in the oven.)
- Re-roll scraps of dough and repeat the process until it's all used. Then repeat the process with the other two disks of chilled dough.
- Bake cookies in the preheated oven for about 8-10 minutes depending on the size and thickness of your cookies. You should start to see a little light golden shade around the rim. After taking them out of the oven they will continue cooking on cookie sheets so don't overbake.
- When done, cool the baking sheet of cookies on a wire rack for a few minutes, then carefully transfer them off the baking sheet to the wire rack with the thin spatula to finish cooling.
Royal Icing Instructions
- In a small bowl, stir warm water, corn syrup, and extracts until all are dissolved together. Add the food coloring now if using only one color.
- In a large bowl, sift your confectioner's sugar.
- Add the liquid mixture to the large bowl with the sugar and beat together until smooth. Frost cookies and let dry overnight.
- * If using more than one food color, divide icing into separate bowls according to how many colors you are using. Add a few drops of individual colors to each bowl and mix well.
- ** If using decorations like sprinkles, add to iced cookies while the icing is still wet so they will stick to the frosting.
- *** Icing can be stored in an air-tight container at room temperature, away from heat and light, for up to a week. Stir well before using.
