Amish sugar cookies are prepared to the traditional recipe discovered in an Amish cookbook. These are great fun to make with the kids!
Sugar cookies are timeless treats — enjoyed by everyone and perfect for every occasion!
What’s more, there are countless varieties of sugar cookies — each with a unique little twist — and it’s always fun to try new recipes.
These Amish sugar cookies are traditional and are the real deal! The recipe initially came from an Amish cookbook and this recipe is a modern take on that.
These lovely little Amish sugar cookies have the perfect combination of textures — crisp on the outside, but with a cake-like texture in the middle.
Topped with crunchy sugar, you’ve got yourself a winner at any bake sale, potluck or just for a family treat!
Amish baking tips
The Amish, despite not using electricity, do a great deal of baking. So what are some of their greatest secrets when it comes to baking?
Here are some general tips for fantastic results when baking cookies, bread and pies…
- To keep cookies fresh for longer, store them in an airtight container. The trick is to make sure there is a little piece of bread in the container too – this will absorb the moisture!
- When baking with cherries, always use vinegar in the filling to help play up the tartness of the fruit.
- Before you transfer bread to the oven to bake, brush the top of it with melted butter to make it softer and help give it that lovely golden color with a crispy crunch.
- Soften brown sugar by placing a small chunk of bread or apple into the bag with the sugar; leave it for ten to fifteen minutes for the magic to happen.
And our favorite tip of all… Always double the recipe! These Amish sugar cookies are so good we are pretty confident that none will go to waste if you do.
Note: This recipe calls for an electric mixer for speed. Of course, the Amish wouldn’t have used this, so you can easily skip it and put some elbow grease into mixing if you’d prefer!
TIP: Explore more of our favorite easy holiday and Christmas cookies!
Amish Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup Unsalted Butter
- 1 cup Granulated Sugar
- 2 medium Eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
- 3 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 2 teaspoons Baking Powder
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- Decorating Sugar and milk, or Royal Icing
- 2 pounds Confectioners Sugar
- 8 1/2 tablespoons Meringue Powder
- 3/4 cup Water
Instructions
- In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar with an electric mixer. Beat in the eggs and vanilla.
- In a separate bowl, mix the dry ingredients – flour, baking powder and salt. Stir the dry mixture into the butter mixture, one cup at a time. Chill the dough in the fridge for 3-4 hours.
- Preheat your oven to 350 deg F and line a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Roll the chilled dough out and cut shapes or circles with a knife, or by using the rim of a glass.
- If you wish to decorate your cookies, brush the tops with milk and sprinkle on some coloured sugar. If you wish to frost with royal icing, bake plain.
- Bake for about 10-15 minutes or until the cookies are just beginning to brown around the edges.
- Transfer to a wire cooling rack and cool. If you are using royal icing, cool completely before frosting.
- Using a large bowl, mix 3/4 cup water with confectioner’s sugar and meringue powder. Use an electric mixer to mix slowly until peaks begin to form. The icing should have a thick consistency and be a pure white color. If your icing is fluffy or bubbly, it has been overbeaten and need to be left to settle, before using a spatula to beat and smooth out the frosting.
- If you are colouring your icing, add up to 1 tbsp food coloring and mix with a spatula until the color is mixed throughout. Icing can be stored at room temperature, covered with plastic wrap.