One thing I never had time for in my full-time working mom days was baking. I didn’t do it. Like, ever. Honestly, my family was lucky if they got a home cooked dinner.
Baking a sugar cookie recipe for dessert wasn’t even on my radar.
Since my family has relocated to Vermont and I now primarily stay home with the kiddos, I’ve found lots of time to do things I never had time for before. Like, baking. We’re now in the habit of baking about 2-3 times a week.
I’m not super at planning ahead. So, even though we are baking pretty frequently, I haven’t always thought out what we’ll bake and when, and I definitely haven’t bought the proper ingredients. Typically, baking isn’t even my idea. My four-year-old will walk up to me and ask, “What we gonna make today?” And, I’ll open the pantry, assess the food sitch, and devise a plan. Needless to say, I’ve gotten creative.
I start with the same base Sugar Cookie recipe (Courtesy of Ebony at Her Life on Purpose). I like this recipe because it does not call for cream of tartar. Because, seriously, who’s got that?! And then I jazz things up based on the rando foodstuffs I have on hand.
This is the Sugar Cookie recipe from which all of my delicious creations start:
Here are 5 delicious add-ins to spice up your average Sugar Cookie Recipe:
Creamsicle Cuties:
For this, I simply add the zest and juice from half of a cutie (or Halo or Clementine or whatever you call it) to the dough. Then I top the cooled cookies with a creamsicle glaze. This is made from ½ a cup of powdered sugar and 2 tablespoons of milk. Stir it together with a fork and then add the zest and juice of the other half of the cutie.
Craisin Pistachio
This one is seriously easy… just add a ¼ cup of craisins and a ¼ cup of pistachios. To kick it up a notch, top the cooled cookies with a lime glaze. Use the same glaze recipe from above, just swap the cutie juice and zest for lime juice and zest.
Gooey S’Mores
For a deliciously gooey cookie, add a ¼ cup of mini marshmallows and a ¼ cup of dark chocolate chips. I like the dark chocolate chips as they are bitter and the cookies are already super sweet. You can also opt to leave out the teaspoon of vanilla and replace it with a ½ teaspoon of cinnamon (for more of a graham cracker flavor).
Double Chocolate
Throw 2 teaspoons of cocoa powder into the dry ingredients for the dough and fold in ½ cup of white chocolate chips. Done and done.
Maple Walnut
My favorite! Fold a ½ cup of finely chopped walnuts into the cookie dough. Top with a drizzle of a simple maple glaze: ½ cup of powdered sugar with ¼ cup of Vermont maple syrup.
Bonus Recipe: Check out this Chocolate Peanut Butter Sugar Cookie Recipe!
Share your go-to cookie recipe or baking hack in the comments!
