INGREDIENTS
For the Sugar Cookies:
- 4.5 cups oz all-purpose flour (4.5 cups)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 3/4 granulated sugar
- 8 oz unsalted butter (1 cup) at room temperature
- 2 large eggs at room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract (can substitute lemon or almond extract)
- 2 TBSP buttermilk
For the Royal Icing:
- 6 Tbsp Merengue powder
- 3/4 cup water
- 6 cups powdered sugar
- 1.5 tsp light corn syrup
- 1/2 tsp almond extract (can substitute lemon or clear vanilla extract)
- Gel food coloring of your choice.
INSTRUCTIONS
To Make the Sugar Cookies:
In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt, and set aside.
In the bowl, combine the butter and sugar, and mix everything together on medium speed until fluffy and well-mixed.
Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition, then add the vanilla extract and buttermilk. With the mixer running on low, add the dry ingredients, and mix until they're just about incorporated. Stop the mixer when only a few streaks of flour remain. Finish mixing all the dough by hand.
Divide the dough in half and press each into a thin disc, wrapping well with plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firmer but not hard, about 30 minutes.
When you’re ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place a disc of dough between two sheets of parchment or waxed paper, and roll out until it is about 1/4-inch thick. Use a heart cookie cutter to cut out your cookies and place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Combine the scraps and re-roll the dough to cut more cookies. Put the sheet in the freezer for 10 minutes before baking to help the cookies hold their shape.
Bake the trays of cookies for 10-12 minutes, until the edges are just starting to take on color and they have lost the raw shine in the middle. Let the cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then remove them to wire racks to cool completely before decorating them.
To Make the Royal Icing:
Combine the meringue powder and water in the bowl. Mix them together on medium-low speed until frothy. Add the powdered sugar, corn syrup, and flavoring extract, and mix on low until the powdered sugar is moistened.
Turn the mixer speed back to medium-low and mix for 5 minutes, until the royal icing is shiny, stiff, and voluminous. Do not mix on high speed, and do not mix for very long or you may incorporate too many air bubbles and change the texture of your royal icing.
Separate out half of the icing to leave plain white, and press a piece of cling wrap on top so that it doesn’t form a crust.
Decide how many icing colors you want, and divide the remaining icing into that many bowls. I chose red and pink. Add a few drops of gel food coloring to each bowl of icing and stir by hand until the color is evenly distributed.
The frosting consistency right out of the mixer is fairly stiff, but for most of the designs, you'll want a thinner consistency. If you want to make this design, separate out a portion of stiff frosting in the colors of your choice, and store it in an airtight container for now. For all of the other designs, you'll thin the frosting colors out by adding a spoonful of water at a time, and stirring slowly until it’s incorporated. You have the right consistency when you lift up a spoonful of icing, let it drip back into the bowl, and it takes about 15 seconds for the trail of icing to fully disappear in the bowl. Add water a little bit at a time to each color until you achieve this consistency.
Now for the fun part—DECORATING
Using your thicker icing (your choice of color), pipe an outline on each of the cookies and allow it to set. Given the consistency of your icing should take at least 10 minutes, probably longer. Then thin the remaining icing with a little bit of water and flood each of the squares.
Allow the cookies to dry overnight—Patience is a virtue. Unfortunately, it's one I do not have. Waiting is painful.
Once your cookies have set, take your leftover icing and color it something different than what you flooded the cookies with. Now take your icing and pipe your messages, let set for a few hours and give to your loved ones!
Isn't love grand?