Hi again. I promised you these cookies yesterday so here they are! I’ve always been super fascinated with Sweet Bake Shop’s sugar cookies so I knew I had to make them this holiday season. Obvvvv I put my own twist on it because who doesn’t love brown butter & cinnamon?! Also, I had EVERY INTENTION…
Hi again. I promised you these cookies yesterday so here they are! I’ve always been super fascinated with Sweet Bake Shop’s sugar cookies so I knew I had to make them this holiday season. Obvvvv I put my own twist on it because who doesn’t love brown butter & cinnamon?!
Also, I had EVERY INTENTION of decorating them with pastelly pinks & blues like she does but I just couldn’t once I saw the white! I also was going to add ornaments to the trees & decorate my stockings & candy canes, etc. you get the point. I don’t know why I love things so white & plain & simple. I really was going to try & give these cookies life with all the colors but I failed. But they’re beautiful, aren’t they?!
While I’m being transparent here for a second, I’m not the biggest fan of these photos. I’ve been making lots of cookies lately & I feel like I’m on a bit of a creative struggle bus with taking my photos. I don’t want them all to be the same & it’s especially hard when you’re making like a million different cookie recipes. I also struggle when I shoot more than like 2-3 in a day because I feel kind of rushed by the sun! Not cool. Yesterday I shot 6 recipes but I think I’m going to redo a couple because let’s be real, slow & steady wins the race. I rushed & I wasn’t a fan so I’m going to redo them & then never shoot 6 recipes in a day again. Lesson learned.
Ok my ranting is over & I’d really like for you to try these cookies. I realize that a lot of my recipes for 25 days of Christmas, so far, were adapted from other sources but let’s be real, there’s a base recipe FOR EVERYTHING ALREADY so I’m not going to waste time coming up with the same one. I’m just going to Christmas-fy it & put my own touch on it because these are things that I’ve always been inspired by & what better time to make them?! I still have like 20 more to go & I promise some are only my own! kthanks for not judging, love you all! As always,
Love, B
P.s. make sure to tag @baranbakery or #bakewithb if you make anything from here!
Begin with browning the butter (preferably the night before so it can re-solidify) by placing the butter in a saucepan on medium heat, slowly stirring until small brown flakes begin to form and the smell turns 'nutty'. Remove it from the heat and place it in a heat resistant bowl in the refrigerator or put it in the freezer for a little to help it cool off.
1 cup (227g) unsalted butter
Once the butter is solid again and at room temperature (you want to be able to push it but you don't want it to be greasy looking), use a flat beater to mix the butter with the sugar until they are fully combined. Add in the vanilla and egg, and beat until combined.
3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar, 1/2 Tbsp vanilla, 1 large egg room temperature
Mix the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt together and then add them into the butter mixture, beating until fully combined.
3 cup (360g) all-purpose flour spooned and leveled, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp salt
Split the dough in half, place each half between two sheets of wax/parchment paper, and roll them both out evenly to about 1/4" thick. Refrigerate them for at least 30 minutes. Remove the dough from the wax paper and cut out shapes for the cookies. Refold scraps of dough to make more (refrigerate again if it's too soft).
Preheat the oven to 350F/177C convection (325F/163C conventional). Once the cookie shapes are all cut out, flash freeze them for 10-15 minutes so they keep their shape while baking.
Bake the cookies for 13-15 minutes, just until the edges are completely set. Let them cool on the cookie sheet for a couple of minutes until they can be moved without falling apart.
Icing
Clean a mixing bowl and utensils with a little vinegar (don't skip this step).
Using the whisk attachment, combine the powdered sugar, meringue powder, vanilla, and cinnamon in the mixing bowl. With the mixer on low speed, add in the water, a little at a time, just until the icing is fully wet and silky. Beat for 10 minutes on low speed, until the mixture holds a soft peak (if it's too soft, add more sugar).
3/4 cup (90g) powdered sugar spooned and leveled, 1 Tbsp meringue powder, 1 tsp vanilla, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 cup (60mL) water
Use an icing piper with a tiny tip to pipe all the borders of the cookies. The icing should be thin enough to pipe smoothly but thick enough to keep from running off the edge of the cookie.
After all the borders are piped, add a little more water to the icing, 1 tsp at a time, until the consistency is soft and runny for 'flooding' the cookies.
Use a small spoon or another icing piper to fill the centers of the cookies. The icing should be thin enough to spread throughout the cookie but not run past the border.
Let them set for a few hours (preferably overnight) before stacking. Store them in an airtight container.
Notes
If you want to color your icing, do it after step 4.Before your cookies are fully set, you can add sprinkles and such.If you want to continue decorating your cookies after flooding the centers, make sure to save some of the thicker-consistency icing for this (or just add some extra icing sugar to the thin one). Do this only after the icing is COMPLETELY set!
Keyword: brown butter, brown butter cookies, christmas cookies, cinnamon cookies, cookie decorating, fall baking, fall cookies, holiday baking, holiday cookies, sugar cookies
I made these over Christmas time and they were SO yummy! Mine turned out so so good and everyone loved them. We didn’t have any leftover even though the recipe makes a lot of cookies.
I made these over Christmas time and they were SO yummy! Mine turned out so so good and everyone loved them. We didn’t have any leftover even though the recipe makes a lot of cookies.