I tried out a sugar cookie recipe today because I want to make cookie favors for a party in 2 weeks. This is the recipe I tried, the dough and cookies taste awesome but the dough was falling apart, and the shapes kept breaking as I was trying to put them in the pan. Also, when they came out of the oven, the bottom was dark but the top still white. I need help from all of you cookie pros, help!

* 1-½ cup Butter (I Use Unsalted)
* 2 cups Sugar
* 2 whole Eggs
* 2 whole Eggs Yolks
* 4 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
* 2 teaspoons Almond Extract
* 4 cups All-purpose Flour
* 1 teaspoon Salt
* 1 teaspoon Baking Powder

Preparation Instructions

In a mixer, beat butter and sugar until well combined, about 2 minutes. Add in 2 eggs and 2 egg yolks and mix until combined. Add in vanilla and almond extract; mix until combined.

In a separate bowl, sift together flour, salt, and baking powder.

Slowly (about a cup at a time) add flour to butter mixture and combine. You can use a mixer or not, just depends on how strong you are.

I usually just mix ingredients until they are combined, as I have heard that if you over-mix this dough it will get tough.

Put dough on some Saran wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour.

When you are ready to bake, heat oven to 350 degrees. Roll dough out, cut out cookies, and bake for 6-8 minutes.

I bake my cookies on a silicone mat.
I bake them frozen (I cut out the pieces a few days in advance).

I suggest to add more flour. My recipe is about the same .. it's 4 whole eggs but I put about 6 cups of flours. And I don't have that much flavoring.

Try the NFSC recipe in the recipe section...Never fails..Great cookies everytime!!!

it is very hard to roll out fridged dough. you will get breaking and cracking (at the edges) of the dough.

i make mine and roll it out while still soft onto parchment paper. slide the parchment paper right onto a cookie sheet and leave them in the fridge to harden up (30 minutes or longer if i forget about them, lol) and then they go right from fridge to oven.

where did you find your recipe? 2 eggs plus 2 egg yolks seems odd.

unless your cookies are small, 6-8 minutes at 350 is not enough to get them done thru.

to help avoid browned edges, bake on a cookie sheet that has no sides.

i like to use the cookie craft sugar cookie recipe which is very similar to the NFSC but without the baking powder.
diane

I swear by the cookie craft sugar cookie recipe. It is the only one that I will use. I refrigerate mine usually overnite and then I let it sit on the counter for about 30 minutes to let it soften a little before I roll it out. Once I roll it out and cut out the cookies I put them on the cookie sheet and stick them in the refrigerator for about 15 minutes or until very firm and cold. Bake for 10-15 minutes depending on size of cookie. Perfect every time. Check my photos. All the cookies are made with the same recipe.

I was hoping someone would tell you what is wrong with this recipe. I'll give my opinion in that it is too much liquid in comparison to the amount of flour. The amount of extract is a lot of liquid.

One of two things you can do. 1. You can try and add more flour. The NFSC recipe has 2 cups of sugar and 6 cups of flour. I have used that recipe and they are delicious and moist. 2. You can use the NFSC recipe and instead of the one tsp of vanilla, you can add 1 tsp vanilla, and 1 tsp almond extract. I am sure you will get the same taste as the dough you used today. That is what I did and my kids loved them and made me swear that I would not try another recipe. I said okay, but did find a recipe for sugar cookies that have sour cream, so naturally I have to try this one too.

Good luck. Let me know which one you decide. Where did you get this recipe too?

i think linda is right.
the recipe i use has the same flour to sugar ratio: 3 cups flour to 1 cup sugar.
my liquids are 1 egg and 1-2 tsp extract.
seems like there are a lot of liquids to your flour and sugar.


linda,

i have made sour cream sugar cookies before and they are sooooo good but they are quire a bit softer than regular sugar cookies. moving them around while i was trying to decorate them was challenging , but boy oh boy did they taste good. i didn't make them again though, because they do spread and i have spread-phobia, lol.

diane

Diane -
Thanks for the info about sour cream cookies. I don't want a spread either. I saw this recipe on a blog (wish I could give credit, but I have long lost the source) and her cookies look beautiful. But if it is too much of a challenge I will stick with the NFSC. They are very, very good, as we all know!

I've heard about the silicone mats, maybe I should go ahead and invest in one. I'll also add some more flour next time.

Does anyone have a link to cookie craft sugar recipe? Here is where I found the recipe I used.

http://thepioneerwoman.com/tasty-kitchen/recipes/desserts/amanda-amazing-sugar-cookies-ii/comment-page-3/#cr

Thanks for all of the tips guys. I had refrigerated my dough for about 3 hours but next time I'll try to keep it in there overnight.

Maddyy,

I use your EXACT same recipe (how ironic!) It's worked like a CHARM every time for me. I let the dough refridgerate for about 1.5 hrs before I roll it out. After I cut the shapes with my cookie cutter, I place the tray in the freezer for about 10 minutes to prevent spreading. Also my recipe said 6-8 minutes, but trust me--they need to stay in for about 10-11 minutes. Hope this helps.

Maddyy,

I use your EXACT same recipe (how ironic!) It's worked like a CHARM every time for me. I let the dough refridgerate for about 1.5 hrs before I roll it out. After I cut the shapes with my cookie cutter, I place the tray in the freezer for about 10 minutes to prevent spreading. Also my recipe said 6-8 minutes, but trust me--they need to stay in for about 10-11 minutes. Hope this helps.

I use KHalsteads mofified NFSC. It is wonderful. Rolling the dough between wax paper and freezing before cooking helps a lot.