Summertime is fun with sugar cookies shaped like cute farm animals! The classic sugar cookie never goes out of style and it’s always enjoyed by everyone. Sugar cookies are the perfect treat for themed birthday parties, showers and weddings. All you need is a cookie cutter suited for the appropriate event, and the rest is just having fun decorating!
My friend Amy asked me to make some farm shaped animal cookies for her son’s birthday party at the local farm. She wanted to give all the kids a fun loot bag suited to the theme, so we individually wrapped each cookie and dropped one into each loot bag. We also did a tray of farm shaped sugar cookies and a glass of milk for everyone to enjoy while at the farm.
For the icing, I like using buttercream because it tastes (way) better than royal icing, but you risk the icing getting squished! I’m not going to lie, it’s definitely more work and harder to keep the cookies from getting ruined. But I think it’s worth the extra work!! I also like to do an extra step by outlining the cookies with royal icing as well. It does also help with the cookies not getting squished and gives a dynamic look to the shaped animals.
Happy Farming 🙂
Farm Shaped Sugar Cookies
The classic sugar cookie never goes out of style and it’s always enjoyed by everyone. These cookies are crisp on the outside and have a softer interior. Then they are slathered in buttercream icing and piped with royal icing to give a 3D effect for each farm shaped cookie.
- Prep Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 10 mins
- Total Time: 2 hours 10 mins
- Yield: 24 1x
- Category: Treat
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 large egg
- 3 Tablespoons full milk
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a large bowl mix flour, baking powder and salt together. Set aside
- Using a mixer, cream butter and sugar together, add egg. Beat until light and fluffy. Add milk and vanilla, mix until combined. Slowly add your dry ingredients on low speed and beat until combined.
- Shape dough into two disks, and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30-60 minutes.
- Meanwhile, make your icing. See recipes below
- Preheat your oven to 350ËšF. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- On a floured work surface roll dough out 1/4 inch thick. Using a cookie cutter cut out animal shapes and place on your prepared cookie sheet (approx. 1 inch apart).
- Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the bottoms just start to turn golden brown. Remove from baking sheet and cool on a cooling rack.
- Once cookies are room temperature, ice using royal icing or butter cream icing
Buttercream Icing
This is a classic soft and buttery icing that can be used to ice cookies, cakes, and any treat your heart desires. Â Freeze leftover icing in an airtight container for up to 2 months.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 10 mins
- Yield: approx. 1 cup
Ingredients
- 2 cups icing sugar
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- food colouring
Instructions
- In a mixer, beat sugar, butter and lemon juice together. If your icing is too thick to spread add hot water by the tablespoon until you reach your desired consistency.
- Separate icing into smaller bowls and add drops of food colouring to make different colours.
- Use icing to decorate sugar cookies once cookies have cooled.
Royal Icing
This is a simple and quick way to make royal icing to pipe cookies.
- Prep Time: 8 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 8 minutes
- Yield: approx. 2 cups
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: British
Ingredients
- 2 large egg whites
- 2 cups sifted icing sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
- food colouring
Instructions
- Beat egg whites in a clean large bowl with the mixer on high, until foamy.
- Slowly and gradually add sugar then lemon juice. Beat on high speed until thickened and you’ve reached your desired consistency.
- If you need, add more icing sugar for a thicker icing, or add more lemon to thin the icing.
- Separate into smaller bowls and add food colouring to make desired colours.
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