NCP Blog: Decorating Sugar Cookies for the Holidays

Fun Facts About Sugar Cookies

• Sugar cookies date back to 7th century Persia. According to Bakerpedia, the sugar cookies we enjoy today were first made by Protestant settlers in the Nazareth colony in Pennsylvania. They created the dough in the shape of a keystone, the state’s emblem.
• July 9 is celebrated as National Sugar Cookie Day. I’m surprised this day isn’t in December!
• The main ingredients in sugar cookies are sugar, flour, butter, eggs, vanilla, and either baking powder or baking soda.
• In the 1930s, sugar cookies became popular in the United States as a thank you gift to Santa Claus for bringing presents.
• Cookie cutters were introduced to the US in the 17th century by German and Dutch settlers. 

Decorating Sugar Cookies

You can decorate sugar cookies in so many different ways! Many people (like my husband) prefer to eat them plain, without any sweet treats on top. Those of us with a sweet tooth, however, love to add a special touch to sugar cookies with icing and decorations.

 

It’s easy to buy a can of frosting or icing and simply spread it on the cookies after they’ve been baked. You can also add food coloring to white frosting to make new colors. Or, make your own royal icing with confectioner’s sugar and egg whites! Royal icing hardens to a candy-like texture, which makes it ideal for creating designs on cookies.

 

Be sure to let your cookies cool before starting to decorate them! Warm cookies will quickly become a mess if you start too soon.

 

Want to create beautiful snowflakes, snowmen and Christmas trees out of your sugar cookies? Sally’s Baking Addiction has step-by-step instructions you can find here.

 

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Holiday Gifts for Pets

 

 

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