Perfect Sugar Cookies with Glaze Frosting

It is Selection Sunday this Sunday, just in case you were wondering.  I LOVE this time of year, not only because I absolutely love spring, the warmer weather, longer days, flowers, trees budding, baseball, sandwiches & salads, etc. but also for March Madness!  It's a family tradition for everyone to fill out brackets and battle it out to see who gets the most right.  We love the upsets, but also love our Kentucky Wildcats!  They are almost always picked to at least make it to the Final Four if not win it all by almost everyone in our family.  If we don't, my Kentucky born & raised Mom threatens to kick us out of the will.:)

So if you're March Madness addicts like we are, these cookies will be perfect for you!  This is the best sugar cookie recipe I have found over the years of trying about fifty-thousand different ones! (I exaggerate just a bit).  But honestly these are so soft & delicious.  Add a little lemon or almond extract and you can just eat these plain...so good!

Or, you can make this glaze frosting and turn them into something special!  Like a basketball.  I like this frosting because it actually tastes good.  Most glaze (or royal icing) frostings I've tried look beautiful, but turn super hard and not to tasty.  This one is not classified along with those in the taste department, but it still looks as beautiful.  The great thing about glaze frosting is that it hardens (not quite as hard as regular royal icing) so they can be packaged and the icing won't get all messed up like a buttercream frosting would.  

We made a bunch for my son's basketball team with their numbers on them for the end of the season party they had.  We tied them in celophane bags with green and white ribbon, their team colors.  (picture at end of post)  You could do the same with your family's favorite team colors for the tourney.  

Doesn't that sound nice...March Madness with a big soft delicious cookie!

Perfect Soft Sugar Cookie with Glaze Frosting

PRINT RECIPE

 

1 cup butter, softened

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla

5 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Mix in eggs, sour cream and vanilla until combined.  Add flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt and mix until dough forms.  Dough will be quite sticky.  Place dough in container and chill in refrigerator at least 1 hour.  

When ready to bake cookies, flour surface generously and roll dough out about 1/4 inch thick.  Cut into desired shapes and place on ungreased baking sheet.  

Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

Glaze Frosting:

3 3/4 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons milk (any variety works)

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons light corn syrup

1 teaspoons almond extract

Combine sugar and milk until smooth using a whisk.  Stir in the corn syrup and extract.  Color about 3/4 of the frosting orange and the rest black.

First, you need to pipe the outline of your cookie.  This glaze needs to be a little more stiff than what you will use for "flooding" the cookie.  Take about 1/3 of your orange frosting and add a little more powdered sugar until it runs off of your whisk in a slow, thick stream.  Pipe the outline of your cookie.  Let sit until hardened.

Now use what's left of your orange glaze and "flood" the cookies.  The piped outline will help it from running over the sides, just place a little amount in the middle of your cookie and use a toothpick to spread it to the edges.  If glaze is too thick to pipe just add a little more milk until it runs smoothly and quickly off your whisk in a thin drizzle.  Let sit until hardened.

Now thicken your black frosting to same consistency as what you used to pipe the outline.  Pipe on your basketball lines (and "x" and then curves on each side).  You can then put on players #'s or not...your choice.:)  Let sit until hardened (overnight is best) and then place in celophane bags and tie with ribbon of your choice.  You can also make little tags to go with it.  FUN. FUN. FUN.

(That's my boy...#7!!)

Glaze recipe adapted from Our Best Bites