i think i failed.
luckily i made 2 batches, and one seems alright so far. the first batch seems really dry, and they won't roll out smoothly. is there anything i can do to fix this? is it safe to add water or something to the dough to maybe make it more moist or something?
i haven't even baked them yet, and i'm already having trouble! lol.

any help is greatly appreciated!!

if it can't be fixed, at least i have one batch...hopefully.

and another question--is there a difference between these cookies made with butter and made with margarine?

thanks so much!!!
anjoli.

I have used both but not in my initial recipe. I used butter in the initial recipe but if i find the mix a little to dry I have put in a teaspoon or two of margarine and it seems to make it more pliable. Are you rolling it out between two sheets of parchment paper that way you don't have to add flour as that makes it really dry. I always roll my dough between two sheets of parchment and never add flour. Only once did I need to add the extra margarine I think I may have measured the flour a little more freely than I should have . I would not add water to this as it will not turn out well. Good luck, Merry Christmas and I hope this works for you.
Kathy

I seldom add the full amt of flour. I add flour until the dough feels right, usually have about a cup of flour left. I also roll mine out between parchment paper. Good luck!

Thanks so much for your help!!!

I just made my first batch of dough. I sifted the flour and it is really nice and moist. I'll let you know how they turn out. Maybe by sifting the flour first I ended up adding a lot less.

Judi

Pillsbury.

Mine is a tad bit dry but it ends up nice and moist after I work it for a bit. I also roll it out using parchment paper and then chill.

No fail sugar cookies are suppossed to seem a little dry when rolling them out. I know that once refridgerated, they seem hard and dry but just work with the dough, they will turn out. I use silpat to roll mine out. I did not like the consistency either, so after several times of making them, I tried a differant recipe and WHAT A MISTAKE! The dryness of NFSC allows the cookies to hold their shape and not spread, which is especially important for detailed cookies. The cookies made with the other recipe spread a bit and were not as detailed, I will now ALWAYS stick to the NFSC. I would not reccomend using margarine as this does not taste as good and margarine has more water content which could mess with things! Good luck!

Just an idea regarding the parchment paper- I put saran wrap over my cookie dough when I roll it. Saran seems to be cheaper than parchment.

Thanks, everyone. I ended up using the second batch, and they were awful...the taste alone. It could be because I used margarine instead of butter though, so thanks for helping me with that.

I really want to make pretty sugar cookies, so I hope that next time I attempt this, they will turn out better.

i have done these cookies a few times. They don't always turn out good for me. I have noticed that i'm really bad at following the recipes to the T. Or forgetting to add something. that's when they come out crumbly & dry. I have noticed sometimes i don't add the full amount of butter it's required, simply cause i get confused w/measuring the bars. I learned i need to make sure i let the butter & sugar cream well. make sure i don't forget the egg. It's terrible, but even with the recipes in front of i never fail to forget one little tiny small detail.

Using real butter is going to make a huge differance in taste, at least in my opinion!!

Try Martha Stewarts sugar cookie recipe instead.

I used this recipe last night. These are the cookies that came out for the first time (ever) for me. Try using real butter, my husband and daughter love them. I am new to cookies so if I can make these look pretty I am sure you can!

I ALWAYS use Butter in cookies...it's the only way to go!
Jacqui