Fail-proof Sugar Cookie Recipe for Decorating - Plating Pixels (2024)

FAQs

How to decorate professional looking sugar cookies? ›

Start by outlining the cookie with piping-consistency icing in any color you choose. Then, use flooding-consistency icing to fill the outlined area, starting by flooding around the edges and working your way towards the center. If the flooding is inconsistent in thickness, redistribute the wet icing with a toothpick.

Sugar cookies, to me, should have a buttery dryness to them, but crumble easily. I've used shortbread cookie dough to make decorated sugar cookies and they turn out great. They're rigid enough to survive handling, but have a nice buttery chew.

The extra-large nozzles are typically used for buttercream cakes and cupcakes. If you are decorating the large floral cookies though, they are used as well. If you already have these down, a different kind is the Russian tips. They do have mini ones that are perfect piping tips for sugar cookies.

Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating. I like to decorate cookies directly on baking sheets so I can stick the entire baking sheet in the refrigerator to help set the icing. So place the cooled cookies back on baking sheets.

Room Temperature:

Baked and decorated cookies can be stored at room temperature in a sealed container for up to 2 weeks. Make sure that your icing has hardened completely before stacking the cookies, and adding a layer of parchment paper between cookie layers is always a good idea for some additional protection.

My favorite way to decorate sugar cookies—especially for holidays and special occasions—is by using royal icing. The secret to getting precise lines, dots, and other details with royal icing is using a squeeze bottle.

Light corn syrup.

Not to be confused with high fructose corn syrup, this ingredient gives my sugar cookie frosting a glossy, shiny finish and helps it to to set firmly. If you must leave it out, I've included notes in the recipe on how to do so, but for best results I recommend using it.

Should you refrigerate sugar cookie dough before baking? ›

Chilling the dough is a key step in making sugar cookies, especially when you're making cut-outs. Even if you're tight on time, make sure to get the dough in the fridge, or even the freezer, even if it's only for a little while. Skip this step, and the dough will be sticky, and much harder to work with.

As a general rule of thumb, you should refrigerate cookie dough for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours. More than that, and you won't see a noticeable difference in the final product. Once the dough has chilled, let it warm up at room temperature until it's just pliable (about 5 to 10 minutes).

Popping your dough in the fridge allows the fats to cool. As a result, the cookies will expand more slowly, holding onto their texture. If you skip the chilling step, you're more likely to wind up with flat, sad disks instead of lovely, chewy cookies. Cookies made from chilled dough are also much more flavorful.

Instead of piping cookies while the base layer is wet, you'll let the base dry completely. Using a slightly stiffer royal icing—just add in some extra confectioners' sugar—you can pipe on whatever design you like with either a piping bag or the decorating squeeze bottles.

You can never go wrong with layering your cookies on a simple plate or board! Most of the time, especially when I just bake up one batch of cookies, I will display the cookies on a serving plate, raised stand, or a domed serving plate. One of the new trends floating around on social media is a cookie board!