Jennifer's Iced Sugar Cookies

By carvalhohm

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• One 1-pound box confectioners' sugar
• 3 tablespoons meringue powder
• 1/3 cup warm (80 to 90 degrees F) water
• Food coloring, optional
• Assorted sprinkles, colored sugar and small candy pieces

Details

Servings 15
Preparation time 25mins
Cooking time 105mins
Adapted from foodnetwork.com

Preparation

Step 1

Cookies: Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. In large mixing bowl, with electric mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg and mix until combined. Gradually add sifted dry ingredients, one spoonful at a time, until thoroughly combined. Add vanilla. Chill cookie dough in refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Roll out half of dough at a time, keeping remainder of dough in refrigerator. On lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/4-inch thickness and cut into desired shapes with cookie cutter. (For medium cookies, use 3-inch cookie cutter.) Place cutout cookies 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet and put cookie sheet in refrigerator for a few minutes before baking. This will help cookies to retain their shape. (You can roll out scraps to make few more cookies.) Bake until just before edges of cookies start to brown, 8 to 10 minutes (if baking two sheets at a time, rotate halfway through baking). Cool cookies for 1 to 2 minutes on cookie sheet before removing to wire racks to cool completely.

Icing: In medium bowl, combine confectioners' sugar, meringue powder and warm water with wire whisk. Stir until icing is smooth. Adjust consistency of icing by adding more confectioners' sugar or more water, as needed. Add food coloring, if desired, to the icing.

Spread icing on cooled cookies and then top with assorted sprinkles and candies.