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I love sugar cookies and really wanted to make a lighter version for you to enjoy this holiday season and for many more to come! I am thrilled to tell you that these cookies are lightened-up but taste just like classic sugar cookies. Also, the process of making them is enjoyable. Sugar cookies can be very time-consuming and stressful, at least for me in the past. I did not want to overcomplicate the cookies or the icing. The icing I made worked perfectly and it was easy to frost and decorate the cookies. I hope you enjoy making these stress-free classic sugar cookies for the holidays as much as I do. This sugar cookie recipe is definitely a keeper.
Table of Contents
Why You Will Love Healthy Sugar Cookies
- These taste just like classic sugar cookies and they are a lighter option.
- They are easy to roll out.
- We have simplified the process to make these easy to decorate.
- They are far less complicated and time-consuming.
- We made an easy icing to drizzle on top.
Ingredients Needed For Sugar Cookies With Icing
- Flour: Use all-purpose flour to make these cookies.
- Baking Powder: Helps the cookies rise.
- Salt: A small amount of salt for flavor enhancement.
- Sugar: We used sugar in this recipe.
- Butter: Use room-temperature unsalted butter.
- Egg: One room-temperature egg helps the dough come together.
- Vanilla Extract: Vanilla to add flavor.
- Milk: Use your milk of choice to soften the cookie dough.
- Powdered Sugar: Combine the powdered sugar with your milk of choice and vanilla extract to make the icing.
How To Make Sugar Cookies
Step 1: First, sift the flour, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl.
Step 2: In a separate large bowl, combine the sugar and unsalted butter with an electric hand mixer or stand mixer on low speed. Then, add the egg, vanilla extract, milk of choice, and combine.
Step 3: Next, thoroughly combine the wet and dry ingredients.
Step 4: Form your cookie dough into a flatter piece so it is easier to roll later. Then, wrap your cookie dough in plastic wrap. Next, chill the cookie dough in the refrigerator.
Step 5: Once chilled, sprinkle some flour on your work surface so the dough doesn’t stick. Then, roll out your dough with a rolling pin.
Step 6: After the dough is rolled out, use cookie cutters to make sugar cookies. Keep re-rolling the extra dough left over around the cut cookies.
Step 7: Place the cookies on a sheet pan with parchment paper and bake them.
Step 8: Let your cookies cool on a wire rack. Once cooled, combine the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and milk of choice to form your icing. After that, place your cookies on a cooling rack and drizzle the icing over your cookies. Decorate them to your liking and enjoy!
Make Mini Sugar Cookies
For this recipe, you can use your cookie cutters of choice. We used regular-sized cookie cutters as well as small cookie cutters to make mini cookies. Keep in mind that the mini cookies will cook slightly faster.
How To Decorate Sugar Cookies
Decorating sugar cookies can be a stressful and time-consuming process. That is why we have simplified the process to make it more enjoyable. To decorate these cookies, make our sugar cookie icing. If for some reason your icing gets too thin you can always add more powdered sugar to thicken it back up.
Next, separate your icing into smaller amounts and add your food coloring to each as desired.
Then, we recommend drizzling it over top instead of drenching each cookie in too much icing. This makes it way easier to frost and decorate the cookies.
For extra decoration, feel free to add some edible sprinkles to your cookies. The cookies dried perfectly using this technique and icing.
Expert Baking Tips
- How To Make Soft Cookies: To ensure that your cookies are soft, make sure not to over-bake them. They are done when the edges are lightly brown. Also, roll the dough about 1/4 inch thick. If your dough is too thin, the cookies will be crunchy, not soft. In addition, to ensure your cookies are soft you can cook them for 1-2 minutes less.
- Don’t Overcook Sugar Cookies: For this recipe, it is extremely important not to overcook the cookies. You want them to be on the softer side and easy to bite into. You don’t want your cookies to be rocks! Make sure they don’t overcook and don’t roll them too thin.
- Measure The Flour: Make sure to properly measure the flour for this recipe. For the most accurate results, weigh it on a food scale. You should have 2 1/2 cups of flour, which is 300 grams.
- Make Our Icing: Most sugar cookies are decorated with royal icing using either egg whites, meringue powder, or corn syrup. I did not want to use any of these to decorate the cookies and wanted to keep it simple. Instead, you can use powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and a little milk. This sugar cookie frosting without corn syrup works great for these cookies!
- Drizzle The Cookies With Icing: I used the drizzle technique to give these cookies the flavor of the icing, without having it be overpowering.
How To Store Sugar Cookies With Icing
Let the icing on the cookies dry before storing them. Then, store them in an airtight container on the counter. These sugar cookies with icing will last 3-4 days in an airtight container on the counter.
Frequently Asked Questions
When Are Sugar Cookies Done Cooking?
You will know your cookies are done cooking when they are lightly brown around the edges. You do not want them to burn or cook too long.
Why Chill Sugar Cookie Dough?
For this recipe, chill the sugar cookie dough in the refrigerator for 1-3 hours or overnight. Chilling the dough allows the fat and ingredients to cool and combine. Also, if you chill the dough, the cookies will hold their shape better and the flavor will have more time to develop. In addition, the chilled dough is much easier to work with since it is not as sticky. I like to shape it flatter like thick pizza dough and chill it that way so it is ready to roll easily.
Are Sugar Cookies Healthy?
These cookies have all of the delicious flavors of traditional sugar cookies, and they are a lighter option. Most sugar cookies have a lot of sugar and many sticks of butter in them. These cookies have a minimal amount of butter and only 3/4 cup of sugar for the whole batch. Also, we made icing without corn syrup.
More Recipes To Try Next!
- Healthy Cinnamon Sugar Cookies
- Healthier Peanut Butter Blossoms
- Oatmeal Chocolate Cookies
- Healthier Snickerdoodle Cookies
- Healthy Hot Chocolate
- Gingerbread Overnight Oats
If you try this recipe please be sure to leave us a comment and star rating ★★★★★ letting us know how it turns out for you. We hope you enjoy these sugar cookies with icing!
HEALTHY SUGAR COOKIES WITH EASY ICING
Ingredients
For The Sugar Cookies
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup sugar or monk fruit
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 5 teaspoons milk of choice
For The Icing
- 1 cup powdered sugar or powdered monk fruit sweetener
- 4 teaspoons milk
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- edible food coloring, optional
Instructions
- Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl.
- In a separate large bowl, combine the sugar and room-temperature unsalted butter with an electric hand mixer or stand mixer on low speed. Then, add the egg, vanilla extract, milk of choice, and combine.
- Add the dry ingredients to the bowl with the wet ingredients a little at a time until fully incorporated. Use your mixer and make sure the dough is thoroughly combined.
- Form your cookie dough into a flatter piece that is about 1-2 inches thick so it is easier to roll later. Think of a thick round pizza dough shape. Wrap your cookie dough in plastic wrap Then, chill the cookie dough in the refrigerator for 1-3 hours or overnight. You can place it in a small sheet pan in the refrigerator if that helps. If you chill the dough overnight, allow about 20 minutes before rolling.
- Remove your chilled dough from the refrigerator and place it on your work surface. Sprinkle some flour on your work surface so the dough doesn’t stick. Then, roll out your dough with a rolling pin. Make sure the dough is the same thickness throughout. If you would like softer cookies, roll the dough a little thicker, and roll it thinner if you want crispier cookies. Our dough was about 1/4 inch in thickness.
- Once the dough is rolled out, use cookie cutters to make sugar cookies. Keep re-rolling the extra dough left over around the cut cookies. Repeat until all of your dough is used. This recipe makes 28-32 regular-sized cookies, depending on the size of the cookie cutters used.
- Place the cookies on a sheet pan with parchment paper. Bake them at 350°F for 9-12 minutes depending on size, thickness, and softness desired. Make sure not to overcook them. They are done when they are lightly brown around the edges.
- Once cooked, let your cookies cool on a wire rack. Once cooled, combine the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and milk of choice to form your icing. Optional: Place some icing in separate bowls and add a few drops of edible food coloring to each bowl to make different colored icings. Once ready, place your cookies on a cooling rack and drizzle the icing over your cookies to decorate them. Decorate to your liking, let the icing dry, and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Storage: These sugar cookies with icing will last 3-4 days in an airtight container.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Just curious to know what would happen if you use monk fruit instead of sugar.
Hi Sandy, you can use monk fruit instead of sugar for the cookies. For the icing, you can use powdered monk fruit sweetener instead of powdered sugar. I hope you enjoy, let us know how it goes!