{Melt In Your Mouth} Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies

 

Happy Hump Day!

Last week, Adam was “star student” in his classroom, so I needed to bring in a treat for his classmates on Friday.

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I immediately thought about making some of the most delicious cookies that I have ever eaten.

It’s a recipe that my mom loved and even wrote about when she was the food columnist for the Richmond Register when I was growing up.

You can read about her article HERE.

When I picked Adam up at school on Friday, he jumped in the car and said with a big smile on his face, “Mom!  Everyone LOVED them!”    He also said his teacher wanted the recipe.  She wrote a note in his folder to tell me they were FABULOUS.  (And she wrote “fabulous” in all caps.)  SmileSo I have concluded that the cookies were a hit!

The great thing about this recipe is you can use it for any season.  I’ve used heart cookie cutters for Valentine’s Day, Shamrock cookie cutters for St. Patrick’s Day, and Cross cookie cutters for Easter.

Since it is fall, I decided to use my leaf cookie cutter.

Here is the recipe.  I hope you enjoy it!

cream cheese sugar cookies

 

Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies

1 cup sugar

1 cup margarine or butter, softened

3 oz. package of cream cheese

1/4 tsp Salt

1/2 tsp Almond extract

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 egg yolk (reserve white)

2 cups all purpose flour

Blend together sugar, margarine, cream cheese, salt, almond extract, vanilla, and egg yolk with mixer.  Mix in flour until well blended.

cream cheese sugar cookies

Refrigerate dough two hours.

cream cheese sugar cookies

Heat oven to 375 degrees.  Roll out dough, one third at a time, on a lightly floured surface.  Using a cookie cutter dipped in flour, cut out cookies as close together as possible.

cream cheese sugar cookies

Place the cookies one inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.  To prevent breaking, move cookies to and from baking sheets with a wide spatula or pancake turner.

Leave cookies plain or, if desired, brush with slightly beaten egg white and spring with colored sugar.

Bake for 7 to 10 minutes or until bottoms of cookies are a light golden brown.  Cool completely.

{My mom always told me the most important part of making sugar cookies was to take them out as soon as they were even slightly brown on the bottom, or not at all.  I took mine out before they had even browned and left them on the cookie sheet to cool.  That made them extra soft and delicious.}

If desired, use the almond glaze below.

 

Almond Glaze:

{I made my glaze a little thicker by adding more confectioner’s sugar.  I also didn’t add the almond extract to the glaze because I wasn’t sure if the students would like the taste of almond.  But if I were making these for another occasion, I would definitely use the almond extract.}

1 cup confectioner’s sugar

1/4 tsp. almond extract

2 Tb. water

4 drops of food coloring

almond glaze

Stir all ingredients until smooth.

MOM’S RECIPE:  Pour 1 teaspoon of glaze on each sugar cookie.  Use the back of the teaspoon to spread glaze evenly over cookie.  Let glaze dry.

MY ADAPTATION:  I made my glaze thicker and poured it into a ziplock bag.  Then I cut a very little piece of the corner of the bag and squeezed the glaze on the cookie that way.

cream cheese sugar cookies

I also used a toothpick to outline the veins in a leaf.

Yum!  Yum!

They seriously melt in your mouth!

cream cheese sugar cookies

This is a recipe you will love!  Let me know if you try it!

Have a blessed day.  Smile

42 Comments

  1. Wow! These look sooo good! I have been wanting to find a good sugar cookie and have never found one that I can do well. I think the cream cheese must be the key. Thanks for sharing!

  2. Thank you SO much for posting this recipe – it is a definite must try. The timing is perfect, too, since I just burned to a crisp the slice and bake sugar cookies you buy in the store – we’re talking set off the fire alarm – smoke pouring out of the oven burnt (and I even baked them for the shortest time the label said! Oh well, I’m just a much better cook than baker. Thanks again for posting these and have a blessed day!

  3. I love to bake during the holiday season so I’ll be trying these for sure!
    A lot of schools these days won’t let you bring in homemade treats – they have to be store bought. Sad but understandable I guess.

  4. Thank you so much for sharing!!! I just added these cookies to my short list for my son’s 4th birthday party – I’m having it here at home and only doing a “cupcakes and crafts” party after school.
    I’ll serve these leaf beauties alongside the cupcakes – they are just too pretty not to make!
    (and yes, only ice cream dixie cups allowed at my son’s school – no baked goods!!)

  5. Gonna make these this weekend . . . or maybe today!!!! I love how you decorated them. Very cute. Looks like you spent hours decorating them. The Longaberger in your fridge made me think of something else (gosh, we “style” a lot alike, I have the same one). Willow House (and I KNOW you love them) announced that the decor line has come to an end and they will be selling out all of their decor inventory in the next few months. They will concentrate on their jewelry line and next year, they are delving into the children’s clothing industry! So if you see something you like, buy it now or you won’t be able to get it except for maybe on eBay. I met the president of Willow House, Bill Shaw, at a party this week and he was telling me all about where the company is going.

  6. so I am a cake decorator and seriously avoid decorating sugar cookies. hard and not fun. BUT you make it look easy! I might just have to try your decorating method with my nieces – they would love it!

    and your cookies look great in all the bright fall colors and I am sure they taste great too :)

  7. Ok, I just made these tonight and they taste AMAZING!!!! Only thing is that when I baked them, they spread out all over the cookie sheet and totally lost their shape! I was trying to make pumpkins. I looked back through your directions and it looks like I forgot to split it into thirds and dip the cookie cutters in flour. Any other tips for me?? They seriously taste soooooo good! I know that I can get them to come out looking like yours – practice makes perfect!

  8. Traci – I just made these again last night and they turned out perfect! The key was keeping it in the fridge longer and more flour just like you said. Also I made sure to roll them out a little thicker. I realized that if I had just followed your directions from the beginning the first time they would have turned out perfect then. Hello, Val!
    Anyway, thanks again for sharing this recipe – it is delicious!!! My new favorite!!!

  9. I am trying these today but am a little short on time, could I put the cookie dough in the freezer for part of the time?

  10. I want to try your recipe…I have one similar that is really good but adding that almond has to make them divine! For those that haven’t tried the popcorn recipe provided, do it….it is delicious and oh so very addicting!!!!

      1. Julie, did you put the dough in the fridge to let it harden? Something definitely went wrong because this dough is so easy to use cookie cutters with.

  11. Hi!
    I read this over a couple of times. Did not see anything about how thick to roll these cookies. About 1/4 of an inch thick or so?

  12. Sorry…also wanted to ask if the dough can remain in the fridge a few days before cooking or do you need to use it right away? Thanks again!

  13. Can you replace the almond extract with vanilla extract for both the cookie dough and the frosting?? We are just a not a fan of almond.

  14. Can I just cook these without rolling them and using cookie cutters? I don’t have any cookie cutters but I want to make some yummy cookies.

  15. I too tried this recipe. I followed it exact and my dough turned out so soft and not runny, but there is NO way I could roll it out. I put it in fridge for at least 2 hrs and it didn’t firm up at all. i ended up just using it as a drop cookie. They taste great but no way i could roll it out :(

  16. Thanks for sharing this. I will be making them for Thanskgiving. They are adorable:)

    I actually ad 2 questions.

    What did you use to make the glaze thicker? more confectioner’s sugar?

    And how long did you let the glaze set before making the leaf veins?

    Thanks!

    1. Yes, I use more confectioner’s sugar to make the glaze thicker. I don’t remember how long I let the glaze set. Maybe a couple of minutes?

  17. These sound yummy. I’m wondering how much spread you get when they are baked or if they keep a good straight side ??

  18. They came out perfect for me at thanksgiving. Kids loved them. Making them again. Thanks for this wonderful recipe!!!

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