Easter Sugar Cookies Pastel (Printable Version)

Tender buttery cookies enhanced by pastel royal icing, ideal for spring celebrations and festive treats.

# What You’ll Need:

→ Sugar Cookie Dough

01 - 2.5 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 0.5 teaspoon baking powder
03 - 0.25 teaspoon salt
04 - 0.75 cup unsalted butter, softened
05 - 1 cup granulated sugar
06 - 1 large egg
07 - 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
08 - 1 tablespoon milk

→ Royal Icing

09 - 3 cups powdered sugar, sifted
10 - 2 tablespoons meringue powder
11 - 5 to 6 tablespoons warm water, plus additional as needed
12 - Gel food coloring in pastel shades (pink, yellow, green, blue, purple)

# Step-by-Step Guide:

01 - In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
02 - In a large bowl, beat softened butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, approximately 2 to 3 minutes.
03 - Add egg and vanilla extract to the butter mixture, mixing until well combined.
04 - Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, mixing on low speed. Add milk and mix until dough just comes together.
05 - Divide dough in half, flatten into discs, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
06 - Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
07 - On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 0.25 inch thickness. Cut into Easter-themed shapes such as eggs, bunnies, and chicks.
08 - Place cookies on prepared sheets, spacing 1 inch apart.
09 - Bake for 8 to 10 minutes until edges are just turning golden. Cool on sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
10 - In a large bowl, combine sifted powdered sugar and meringue powder. Add warm water, beating on low speed until smooth, then on high speed for 3 to 4 minutes until stiff peaks form.
11 - Divide icing among separate bowls and tint each with a different pastel gel food color.
12 - Transfer colored icing to piping bags. Decorate cooled cookies as desired. Allow icing to set completely before serving or storing.

# Additional Tips::

01 -
  • The dough stays tender because you're not overworking it, which means each bite practically melts on your tongue.
  • Royal icing sounds intimidating but the meringue powder does all the heavy lifting, turning what could be frustrating into something almost meditative.
  • You can make the cookies days ahead and decorate them whenever inspiration strikes, making this perfect for actually enjoying the holiday instead of stressing in the kitchen.
02 -
  • Over-baking is the enemy of tender cookies, so set a timer for 8 minutes and start checking them—they'll look slightly underdone and that's exactly how they should look.
  • If your royal icing is too stiff to pipe, add water one drop at a time until it flows smoothly, but resist the urge to add too much water because runny icing is heartbreaking.
  • Room temperature butter and eggs are not optional details—they emulsify properly and create the light, fluffy dough that makes these cookies special.
03 -
  • If you don't have Easter-shaped cutters, simple round or heart-shaped cookies decorated with pastel icing are just as beautiful and require zero fancy equipment.
  • Make extra icing because you'll inevitably want to adjust colors and test your piping technique on a few practice cookies before moving to the real ones.
  • Store your leftover icing in the piping bag with the tip in a small glass of water so it stays workable for several hours if you need to decorate in batches.
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