Sugar Cookies For Loved Ones

Sugar cookies for loved ones is the kind of recipe handed down from grandmother to mother to daughter. Two methods, one dough: drop them by teaspoonfuls for soft pillowy cookies, or roll and cut for decorating. Either way, you get the same gentle nutmeg-scented cookie that hits both the kid and grown-up palates.

The sour milk is the old-fashioned move that makes these so tender. The acid in soured milk reacts with the baking soda to create lift, while also tenderizing the gluten so the cookies stay soft instead of crisp. No buttermilk on hand? Stir 1 ½ teaspoons of vinegar or lemon juice into ½ cup of regular milk and let it sit five minutes.

The nutmeg is the small detail that separates this from a generic sugar cookie. A teaspoon is just enough to register as warm and aromatic without overwhelming the sweet butter base. Skip it and the cookies taste flat.

For cutout cookies, chill the dough for an hour before rolling. Cold dough holds its shape and the edges stay sharp. Roll on a lightly floured surface to ⅛ inch and cut with floured cookie cutters.

Watch the bake. Pull at 10 minutes for the softest cookies, 12 for cookies with golden edges that hold up to icing.

Pro Tips

• Dip the cookie cutter in flour before each cut to prevent sticking.
• Bake on parchment paper rather than greased sheets. Cleaner release and even browning.
• Use room temperature eggs. Cold eggs solidify the shortening and make the dough hard to mix.
• Reroll scraps once. Twice-rolled dough turns tough.

Variations

• Add ½ teaspoon of almond extract along with the eggs for a wedding-cookie flavor.
• Brush rolled cutouts with beaten egg white and sprinkle with colored sugar before baking for sparkly cookies.
• Decorate with royal icing or buttercream once cooled for a custom design.