Cutout Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies

These Cutout Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies are a family holiday tradition at our house. The creamy batter makes spectacular sugar cookies for the holidays and can be used as a fun family project when baked and decorated for gift giving and sharing with friends and neighbors. Sprinkle with colorful sugar crystals prior to baking or decorate with your favorite frosting after they've cooled, for a sweet project kids of all ages are sure to enjoy.

Easy Cutout Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies Recipe

These cream cheese sugar cookies are so special I had to include the recipe in my cookbook.  It was my desire that they be in print for my children and their children to come and share them with your families as well. Imagine my surprise (and dismay) when I opened to the page on which they were featured and saw somehow there had been an omission of the sugar when the manuscript was edited for printing.  Sugar cookies with no sugar will never do. So, while I hadn't initially intended to share this cookie recipe here on my website, I wanted to so it would be available to everyone the way it's meant to be made, with the sugar. So, Merry Christmas from my sugar-filled cookie kitchen to yours.

How to Make the Best Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies Recipe

• Ingredients you'll need to make homemade cutout Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies: All purpose flour, nutmeg, salt, softened butter, plain cream cheese, vanilla extract, almond extract, large egg yolks and granulated sugar.
• Kitchen tools you'll need: A stand mixer or a hand mixer, measuring cups and spoons, a whisk, cookie sheets, a variety of Christmas cookie shapes.
• You can make the cookie dough, wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator one day in advance. Set up a decorating station and let the family all frost the cookies and decorate their own to suit their fancy.
• You can freeze this cookie dough for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator prior to using.
• You can make these cookies into festive shapes for any occasion. Cut them into hearts for Valentine's day, bunnies or flowers shapes for Spring or Thanksgiving pumpkins. You can also cut this delicious sugar cookie dough into ghosts, spiders or jack-o-lanterns for Halloween.
• Store Cutout Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week.

How to Make Royal Icing for Cutout Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies

Begin this step making sure your bowl and beaters are completely free of grease. Also, depending on the climate where you live, you may need to add more or less warm water. It's imperative that you beat the royal icing until it reaches the proper consistency. I use a ratio of 2:1 (2 cups) powdered sugar to (1 Tablespoon) meringue powder. You can easily scale this recipe to suit the amount you need.

• 6 cups powdered sugar
• 3 Tablespoons meringue powder
• 1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon almond extract
• ½ cup warm water (additional as needed)

Instructions:

• Sift together powdered sugar and meringue powder.
• Using and electric stand mixer or hand mixer, mix dry ingredients on low speed until combined.
• Add vanilla and almond extracts.
• While mixing on low speed, slowly add warm water to sugar mixture. Add one half (¼ cup) water then continue to add one tablespoons at a time, allowing it to fully incorporate before adding more.
• Let mix for several minutes until fully blended and icing forms peaks. (This can take 5-7 minutes with a stand mixer on medium speed and up to 10 minutes with a hand mixer on high speed)
• If icing is too thin, add more powdered sugar. If too thick, add warm water 1 tablespoon at a time.
• Also note, you may want thinner frosting for flooding and slightly thicker frosting for outlining.
• Frost cookies and decorate as desired. (Makes around 4 cups)

More Cookie Recipes to Make

I realize that most people tend to bake around the holidays, but, I'm a year-round baker. It has been a tradition at our house since my boys were tiny, that I bake on Fridays. Cookies rank high on the list for requests. More cookie recipes you may also like to try:

• Gingerbread Cookies are edible art for the whole family.
• Kitchen Sink Cookies are filled to the brim with goodies.
• Snowball Cookies have one thousand names and each one spells delicious.
• Buttery homemade Pecan Cookies.
• Chocolate Dipped Pecan Lace Cookies are delicately delicious.
• Cranberry Walnut Chocolate Chip Cookies feature fresh cranberries.
• Stained Glass Cookies from that Skinny Chicken Can Bake.

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Helpful Kitchen Items:

• Mixing Bowls
• Baking Sheets
• Measuring Set
• Mixer

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Cutout Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time12 minutes mins

Dough chill time2 hours hrs

Total Time2 hours hrs 27 minutes mins

Course: Cookies, Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: best-sugar-cookies, cream-cheese-sugar-cookies, cut-out-cookies, sugar-cookie-recipes

Servings: 24 cookies

Author: Melissa Sperka

Ingredients

• 3 cup all purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 cup butter softened
• 4 oz cream cheese softened
• 2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• ½ teaspoon pure almond extract
• 1 ½ cup granulated sugar
• 2 large egg yolks
• Frosting sprinkles and seasonal pareils for decorating

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

• Sift together the flour, salt and nutmeg. Set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the softened butter, cream cheese, vanilla and almond extract. Beat for 2 minutes until fluffy and light.
• Add the sugar. Beat for 2 minutes or until fully creamed together.
• Add the egg yolks one at a time beating well after each addition. Beat for 2 minutes on high. The creamed mixture should be fluffy and light yellow in color.
• Gradually add the flour and mix on low speed until combined. Divide the dough in half and shape into a disc. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 2 hours or until firm.
• To bake preheat the oven to 375°F and line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
• On a floured surface, roll one disc of the chilled dough to ⅓-inch thickness. Cut into desired shapes using floured cutters. Place at least 1 ½-inch apart on the parchment lined cookie sheets.
• Bake for 10-12 minutes until the edges are golden. Cool completely on a cooling rack.
• When the cookies have cooled frost and decorate as desired.

Notes

• Decorating: Prior to baking cookies may be lightly brushed with egg wash and sprinkled with colorful sugar crystals, if desired. If using Royal Icing decorate while wet.
• To Make Royal icing:
  Begin this step making sure your bowl and beaters are completely free of grease. Also, depending on the climate where you live, you may need to add more or less warm water. It's imperative that you beat the royal icing until it reaches the proper consistency. I use a ratio of 2:1 (2 cups) powdered sugar to (1 Tablespoons) meringue powder. You can easily scale this recipe to suit the amount you need.
  • 6 cups powdered sugar
  • 3 Tablespoons meringue powder
  • 1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract
  • ½ teaspoon almond extract
  • ½ cup warm water (additional as needed)
  Instructions:
  • Sift together powdered sugar and meringue powder.
  • Using and electric stand mixer or hand mixer, mix dry ingredients on low speed until combined.
  • Add vanilla and almond extracts.
  • While mixing on low speed, slowly add warm water to sugar mixture. Add one half (¼ cup) water then continue to add one tablespoons at a time, allowing it to fully incorporate before adding more.
  • Let mix for several minutes until fully blended and icing forms peaks. (This can take 5-7 minutes with a stand mixer on medium speed and up to 10 minutes with a hand mixer on high speed)
  • If icing is too thin, add more powdered sugar. If too thick, add warm water 1 tablespoon at a time.
  • Also note, you may want thinner frosting for flooding and slightly thicker frosting for outlining.
  • Frost cookies and decorate as desired. (Makes around 4 cups)

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