These decorated Penguin Sugar Cookies start with the most delicious (and easy) vanilla bean sugar cookies, and they’re topped with royal icing.
So, I’m just going to put this out there – I love the holidays. And I especially love holiday cookies.
The holidays and I, we’ll all I can say is that we are a match made in heaven.
I think my love for this time of the year can be attributed to a few things.
First and foremost, it stems from my love of giving people gifts. And more than just buying gifts, I love making handmade creations for the people in my life. Surprise, surprise, those homemade gifts often include winter themed sugar cookies like this set of Penguin Sugar Cookies.
I’m definitely not knocking anyone for buying gifts. I just take advantage of the holidays to try all the handmade projects I’ve been stacking up on my Pinterest boards.
Another reason that The Holidays + Me = LOVE is the fact that winter holiday food is the best. It’s the legit season of cookies. And everything includes chocolate and/or peppermint. How could you possibly go wrong?
And then there’s the holiday spirit. I know – it’s cheesy, but I really believe that events like holidays remind us to be thankful for those in our lives we love, and it reminds us that we are blessed in one way or another.
So for me, the holidays mean showing how much I care for those who I appreciate and love.
These cutie pie Penguin Sugar Cookies were made for a cookie social at my daughter’s school.Families in our school community volunteer to bake cookies, and then we set them up in the faculty room. And throughout the day, every faculty and staff member grabs a bakery box, and loads it up with their selection of cookies. It’s such a simple event, but it brings so much joy to those in the school community that help create a sense of community and trust that allows my child (and her peers) to focus on learning and growing.
Who can resist a bundled up penguin on a cookies? Or a sparkly snowflake?
Or a little double-decker action?
I have a few more holiday treats up my sleeve, so stay tuned!
- For the Sugar Cookies
- 1 cup, unsalted butter, softened
- 1½ cups confectioners’ sugar
- 1 large egg at room temperature
- 1 tbs good quality vanilla extract
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- For the Royal Icing
- 5 tbs meringue powder
- ¾ cups water
- 1 tbs good quality vanilla extract
- Pink Gel Food Color (I used a very tiny bit of AmeriColor Deep Pink)
- Green Gel Food Color (I used a very tiny bit of AmeriColor Electric Green)
- Black Gel Food Color (I used AmeriColor Black)
- White Sanding Sugar
- Special Equipment
- #2 piping tip
- #1.5 piping tip
- Disposable piping bags
- Couplers
- 3-inch round cutter
- 3-inch snowflake cutter
- 11/2-inch medium snowflake cutter
- 1-inch tiny snowflake cutter
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- In a large bowl, sift the all-purpose flour and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar.
- Once fluffy, add the egg and vanilla. Mix until just combined.
- Add the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined.
- Place the dough in a bowl, and allow it to rest for about 15 minutes. Do NOT refrigerate this dough. The cookies must be rolled out and baked right after the dough is made.
- Line sheet pans with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Lightly flour a work surface and roll the dough out to about ¼ inch thickness. Cut out desired shapes and bake for about 7 to 8 minutes. If you’d like soft cookies, make sure that the cookies do not brown.
- Once the cookies are baked, allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheets for about 5 minutes. Then transfer the cookies to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- For the Royal Icing
- In the bowl of a mixer place the meringue powder and water. Whisk by hand for a few minutes until the powder is dissolved and the mixture bubbles.
- Add the vanilla and hand whisk for an additional minute.
- Place the bowl in the mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.
- Add all the confectioners’ sugar at once.
- Mix on medium speed for about 5 to 7 minutes. You know the mixture is ready when it’s white, fluffy, and stiff enough to hold peaks.
These look so cute!!
Thanks so much Lauren! My girls loved the little guys bundled up for the snow 🙂
Those are the prettiest sugar cookies I have seen. Love the cute penguin!!!!
Thanks so much Jocelyn! The penguins all bundled up are helping me feel cozy in this frigid weather 🙂
these are just the cutest cookies ever!!
Thanks so much Nicole!