Ugly Sweater Cookies Recipes

NOT-SO-UGLY SWEATER COOKIES

Steps:

• Make the cookies: Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a medium bowl. Beat the butter and granulated sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined. Reduce the mixer speed to medium low and beat in the flour mixture in 2 batches until just combined. Divide the dough between 2 large pieces of plastic wrap. Flatten into disks and wrap. Refrigerate until firm, at least 4 hours or overnight.
• Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Roll out 1 disk of dough on a lightly floured surface until about 1/8 inch thick, dusting with more flour as needed. Cut out sweaters using a 3- to 3 1/2-inch cutter. Gather the scraps, reroll and cut out more cookies. (If the dough becomes too soft, refrigerate 15 minutes.) Arrange the cutouts 1 inch apart on the prepared pans. Refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes.
• Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven; preheat to 350˚. Bake the cookies, switching the pans halfway through, until lightly browned around the edges, 15 to 18 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes on the pans, then remove the cookies to racks to cool completely.
• Meanwhile, make the icing: Whisk the confectioners' sugar and meringue powder in a large bowl. Beat in 5 tablespoons water with a mixer on medium-high speed until soft, glossy peaks form, adding the remaining tablespoon water if needed. You'll need 2 consistencies of icing: a thicker icing for outlining and a thinner, runnier icing for filling (flooding). Adjust the consistency with water as needed. Tint with food coloring, if desired. Transfer to resealable plastic bags, snip the corners and decorate the cookies. Sprinkle with coconut, if desired. Let set, at least 1 hour.

UGLY SWEATER COOKIES / SWEATER WEATHER COOKIES

Steps:

• Begin by preparing the cookie dough. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
• In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together the vegetable shortening, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Once combined, add half of the dry ingredients. Begin to mix and pour in the buttermilk. Then add the remaining dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Refrigerate the dough for at least four hours or overnight.
• After your dough has chilled, preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.
• On a well-floured surface, roll out about a quarter of the dough to a 1/8 - 1/4-inch thickness, depending on your preference. Cut out the dough using a sweater-shaped cookie cutter. Transfer each cut out to an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 8-10 minutes or until the first sign of browning appears on the surface of the cookies. Remove from the oven and transfer the cookies to a cutting board or your counter top to cool completely.
• While the cookies cool, prepare your frosting*. With a mixer, cream together the vegetable shorting and butter. Slowly add the confectioner's sugar, one cup at a time. Mix in the vanilla extract. Add milk as needed for a smoother consistency. Divide the frosting into smaller bowls and add gel food coloring to achieve the desired colors.
• Place the frosting in a piping bag with the desired tip. A small star tip is great for the sweater texture, and a round tip is recommended for details and dots.
• Once your cookies have cooled, use the prepared piping bags to create designs on your sweater cookies.
• Allow the frosting to set before packing and storing the cookies in an airtight container.

CHRISTMAS TIE-DYE SWEATER COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Mix the sugar cookie mix according to the package instructions and divide the dough into 3 equal dough balls. Color one dough ball red and the other dough ball green so you have 1 plain, 1 red and 1 green.
• Tear teaspoon-sized pieces of each color dough and drop them on a piece of parchment or a silicone baking mat, alternating colors close together so it looks like confetti. Place a sheet of parchment or wax paper on top of the dough pieces and roll out to 1/4-inch thick. Refrigerate the rolled out dough for at least 20 minutes or up to 1 hour (this helps keep the cookies from spreading).
• Using a sweater cookie cutter, press out as many sweaters as you can and place them on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Re-roll the leftover dough and keep punching out cookies. (Note, the more you roll, the cooler the dough pattern will be, but if you over-roll it, it will become a muddy color.)
• Bake just until the bottoms start to brown, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely before decorating.
• Mix the royal icing according to the package instructions. Divide the icing into three bowls. Leave one bowl white, dye another red and the last green. Add the icing to piping bags or squeeze bottles. Outline a cookie with one color, then another inside the first outline, working in from the perimeter and alternating colors until the whole cookie is covered. Drag a toothpick from the center of the cookie out to the edges to create a tie-dye effect. Repeat with the remaining cookies. Let set until dry, 20 to 30 minutes.

UGLY SWEATER COOKIES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Combine flour and baking soda. Beat butter and granulated sugar in large bowl with hand mixer until light and fluffy. Blend in dry pudding mix and egg. Gradually add flour mixture, mixing well after each addition. Transfer dough to lightly floured surface; mix with your hands until ingredients are well blended and come together to form smooth ball.
• Divide dough into 4 pieces; roll each into ball. Flatten each slightly into disk. Roll out dough, 1 disk at a time, on lightly floured surface to 1/4-inch thickness; cut into sweater shapes with 2-inch cookie cutter, rerolling scraps as necessary.
• Place, 2 inches apart, on parchment-covered baking sheets.
• Bake 10 to 12 min. or until edges are lightly browned. Cool on baking sheets 1 min. Remove to wire racks; cool completely.
• Mix powdered sugar, water and meringue powder until blended. Spoon into separate bowls to match desired number of colored frostings. Tint frosting in each bowl with desired food colorings. Spoon frosting from 1 bowl into piping bag fitted with small piping tip, such as a number 2, 3, or 4. Repeat with remaining frostings to fill additional piping bags fitted with small piping tips.
• Use piping bags to pipe line of frosting around edge of each cookie, then gently squeeze frosting back and forth over top of cookie to cover with frosting. Decorate with sprinkles as desired. Let stand until frosting is firm.

UGLY SWEATER COOKIES

Steps:

• Cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Beat in egg and molasses. In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt and spices; gradually beat into creamed mixture. Divide dough in half; shape each into a disk. Cover and refrigerate until firm enough to roll, 4 hours or overnight., Preheat oven to 350°. On a lightly floured surface, roll each portion of dough to 1/8-in. thickness. Cut with floured 3-1/2-in. sweater-shaped cookie cutters. Place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. , Bake cookies until edges are firm, 8-10 minutes. Remove to wire racks; cool completely., Place first 5 icing ingredients in a small bowl; beat on low speed just until blended. Beat on high until stiff peaks form, 4-5 minutes. Thin with cream to desired consistency. If desired, tint with food coloring., Pipe icing onto cookies and decorate as desired. (Keep unused icing covered at all times with a damp cloth. If necessary, beat again on high speed to restore texture.) Let cookies stand at room temperature several hours or until frosting is dry and firm.