Sweet Saturday: Sugar Cookies with Royal Icing

Happy Saturday, my sweet friends! A card yesterday and a treat today... I'm so happy to be posting! :o)

Despite the lack of sugary posts, I had a few fun baking adventures over the holiday season. The weekend before Christmas I finally faced a baking fear: royal icing! I've admired it for years, but stayed away from it partially due to rants of how impossible it can be, how it takes eons to get a good result, and how bad it can taste.  Thankfully I decided to stop listening to negative commentary and dive right in! You never know until you try, right?

So try I did... and they tasted amazing. While the designs aren't perfect, I was beyond ecstatic with my first attempt at decorating cookies!

Aren't they adorable? I used my favorite sugar cookie recipe, which I've neglected to post until now. I wanted to keep the shapes simple and colors to a minimum for my first try, so I opted for pink and pale blue snowflakes and sweet peppermint candies. :o) (I saw the peppermint candy idea at Bake at 350.) My icing is tinted in varying shades of AmeriColor Soft Gel Paste food coloring.

For the candies, some had marbled royal icing for a swirling peppermint effect while others are happy little polka dots. (Oh the joy when the colors didn't bleed together!) The snowflakes are simple designs while I practiced piping straight lines and fun little loops, and were given a touch of holiday cheer with sparkling cake sprinkles in the centers. :o) I cannot tell you how much fun I had making these. I am eager to play with royal icing again soon to improve! I need to be ready for some fun summer cookie decorating. :o)

I did a LOT of reading on tips, tricks, and tutorials on royal icing before cookie day, which I will always recommend to anyone who wants to try. Perhaps it was my commitment to that research that made my first attempt so much more successful than I expected. The recipe is below, after the sugar cookies.

The cookies themselves are a family favorite! Technically they appear to be a cross between a sugar cookie and shortbread, which we happen to love. I've used this recipe for all my cut-outs since finding it a few years ago. The almond is perfectly suited for the holidays and the lack of leavening agents permits the cookies to retain their shapes while baking. (There are tweaked flavor alterations for other seasons that I'll be trying this year, such as Vanilla Bean-Lemon for Easter!)

Thank you for visiting! I hope your weekend is filled with blessings, love, and sparkly sweet confections. :o)

Ella's White Sugar Cookies
Yield: Depends upon cookie cutter sizes... I prefer doubling for a nice big batch

Ingredients:
1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 large egg
1½ teaspoons almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla
2½ cups sifted flour
1 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Cream together the butter and confectioners' sugar on medium-high speed until smooth, 1-2 minutes. Beat in the egg, almond, and vanilla until blended. Mix in the flour and salt on low speed just until incorporated. Form the dough into a ball and wrap tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate until chilled and firm, at least 1-2 hours.

When ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 375º F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Roll out the dough on a well-floured work surface to about ¼-inch thickness. Cut with cookie cutters as desired and transfer to the prepared baking sheets.

Bake 8-10 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through baking, until fully cooked but not at all browned. Allow to cool on the baking sheet 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Decorate as desired.

Source: Annie's Eats
***

Royal Icing
The amount needed will vary based on cookie sizes and how many colors you need. I halved this recipe since it was my first try, but will not do that again since I know this recipe is flawless and want to do a lot of cookies. (If you halve it, I'll save you some hassle by telling you half of 1 kilogram was about 4 cups plus 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons of confectioners' sugar)

Ingredients:
6 ounces (¾ cup) warm water
5 tablespoons Meringue Powder
1 teaspoon cream of tartar (I eliminated this since my MP has cream of tartar in it)
1 kilogram (2.25 lbs) confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon CLEAR vanilla if your meringue powder has no vanilla/vanillin powder

Directions:
In a mixer bowl, pour in the warm water and meringue powder. Mix it with a whisk by hand until it is frothy and thickened, about 30 seconds.

Add the cream of tartar and mix for 30 seconds more.

Pour in all of the confectioners' sugar at once and place the bowl on the stand mixer.

Using the paddle attachment on the LOWEST speed, mix slowly for a full 10 minutes. Icing will get thick and creamy.

Cover the bowl with a dampened tea-towel to prevent crusting and drying.

Tint with food colorings or thin the icing with small amounts of warm water to reach the desired consistency.

Source: Sweetopia