Valentine's Day Sugar Cookies (2024)

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Pretty in pink, these Valentine’s Day Sugar Cookies start with an easy sugar cookie recipe that is topped with the perfect pink buttercream and lots of holiday sprinkles.

If you love Valentine’s Day, make sure to check out all of my Valentine’s Day recipes!

Valentine's Day Sugar Cookies (1)

And sugar cookies are perfect for Valentine’s day.

This is actually the same cookie recipe I use for my favorite sugar cookies, but these get a pink and red makeover.

These are fun to decorate with sprinkles, but they are great cookies for the kids to help decorate, as well. Break out the conversation hearts and heart candy and let them go crazy!

Valentine's Day Sugar Cookies (2)

Ingredients

  • Butter: I like to use unsalted butter. You will need it for both the cookies and the frosting. If you do use salted butter, you’ll want to cut back on the amount of salt you use.
  • Sugar: You need granulated sugar for the cookies and powdered sugar for the buttercream frosting.
  • Eggs: For the best results, use eggs that are at room temperature.
  • Milk: You will need a little bit of milk for the cookies. Plus you can use milk in the buttercream if you need to thin it out.
  • Baking Powder: The baking powder gives the cookies the lift and structure that they need.
  • Vanilla: I like to use a good quality vanilla so the flavor really shines through.
  • Salt: I like to use sea salt. Especially for the buttercream. If you are using table salt, I would cut the amount of salt in the frosting in half.
  • Flour: I have only tested this recipe using all-purpose flour.
  • Food Coloring: I like to use a gel food coloring, but liquid works as well. I only used 1 drop of red gel coloring to get the pink on my cookies. You can also leave the buttercream white and not use any food coloring at all!
  • Sprinkles: It’s usually pretty easy to find Valentine’s day sprinkles at most grocery stores around the holiday, but you can also order them online.
Valentine's Day Sugar Cookies (3)

How to Make Valentine’s Day Sugar Cookies

Start by making your sugar cookie dough. Cream the butter and sugar together, then add in the eggs one at a time.

Mix in the milk, baking powder, vanilla, and salt.

Add in the flour gradually until you have a soft, but not sticky dough.

Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for half an hour.

Roll the dough out on a floured surface and cut with cookie cutters. I used a heart and lips.

Bake the cookies, one tray at a time, until just set. This should take between 8-10 minutes. Let the cookies cool.

To make the buttercream, beat the butter until it is light and fluffy, then mix in the vanilla and the salt.

Start adding in the powdered sugar until you have your desired consistency. If it gets too thick, you can thin it out with some milk. Add in your food coloring, then beat the buttercream until it is nice and light and fluffy. I usually beat mine for 3 minutes minimum.

Decorate the cookies with the buttercream and the sprinkles.

Valentine's Day Sugar Cookies (4)

Tips and Tricks

  • If you over bake the cookies, they will be hard. If you underbake the cookies, they will deflate some. You want to take them out of the oven when they have puffed up and have just started to set around the edges.
  • I like to bake the cookies one tray at a time to make sure they all bake evenly. They bake pretty quickly, so it doesn’t take too long.
  • You’ll want to store the cookies in the refrigerator, but I prefer to eat these when they are at room temperature.
  • You can always refrigerate the dough for longer than 30 minutes. And if you don’t mind if the cookies spread a little bit, you can skip the refrigeration of the dough.
Valentine's Day Sugar Cookies (5)

Change Them Up

If you don’t have shaped cookie cutters, you can make the cookies round. Of if you don’t have a cookie cutter at all, you can use a glass or a thin lid to cut the dough into circles.

You don’t have to make the frosting pink! Leave it white, or make it red or purple or any other color you’d like.

You can also decorate these with sugar cookie icing like I do on these cookies.

Valentine's Day Sugar Cookies (6)

More Valentine’s Day Desserts

Chocolate Mousse
Strawberry Mousse
Butterscotch Budino
Chocolate Sugar Cookies
Red Velvet Cupcakes

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Valentine's Day Sugar Cookies (7)

Valentine’s Day Sugar Cookies

★1 from 1 review
  • Author: Deborah Harroun
  • Prep Time: 30 minutes
  • Chill Time: 30 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
  • Yield: about 24 cookies 1x
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: Baked
  • Cuisine: American

Print Recipe

Description

Pretty in pink, these Valentine’s Day Sugar Cookies start with an easy sugar cookie recipe that is topped with the perfect pink buttercream and lots of holiday sprinkles.

Scale

Ingredients

Cookies:

  • 1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 eggs, at room temperature
  • 1 tablespoon milk
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Frosting:

  • 1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 to 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 12 tablespoons milk, if needed
  • Red or pink food coloring
  • Valentine’s day sprinkles

Instructions

Make the cookies:

  1. In a large bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until they are lighter in color.
  2. Add in the eggs, one at a time, mixing just until combined and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
  3. Add in the milk, baking powder, vanilla, and salt.
  4. Start adding in the flour, 1/2 cup at a time, mixing until the dough is soft but not sticky.
  5. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
  6. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Line baking sheets with silpat liners or parchment paper.
  7. Sprinkle a counter with flour. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and remove the plastic wrap. Place the dough on the floured surface and roll until it is 1/4” thick, using extra flour as needed.
  8. Use cookie cutters to cut the dough into shapes, then transfer the dough to the prepared baking sheets, keeping the cookies about 1 inch apart.
  9. Re-roll any dough and cut into shapes, using extra flour, as needed.
  10. Bake the cookies, one sheet at a time, for about 8-10 minutes, or just until set. Do not overbake.
  11. Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool completely.

Make the frosting:

  1. In a large bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter until it is smooth and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla and the salt.
  2. Add in the powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, until the frosting is a spreading consistency. If it is too thick, add in some milk to thin it out.
  3. If using food coloring, add a drop or two. Beat the frosting until it is smooth and fluffy, at least 2-3 minutes.

Decorate the Cookies:

  1. Frost each of the cooled cookies with the buttercream frosting, then add some Valentine’s Day sprinkles.

Recipe Notes:

Nutrition information provided as an estimate only. Various brands and products can change the counts. Any nutritional information should be used as a general guide. Nutrition information is calculated with 24 cookies and 2 tablespoons of sprinkles.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 cookie
  • Calories: 197
  • Sugar: 18 g
  • Sodium: 205 mg
  • Fat: 9 g
  • Saturated Fat: 5 g
  • Unsaturated Fat: 2 g
  • Trans Fat: 0 g
  • Carbohydrates: 29 g
  • Fiber: 0 g
  • Protein: 2 g
  • Cholesterol: 36 mg

Keywords: valentine’s day sugar cookies, valentines day cookies, sugar cookies

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Welcome to Taste and Tell. Here you will find easy, fast and family friendly recipes. I am a believer that anyone can cook and that dinner doesn’t have to be complicated. Come join me in my kitchen! Read More

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Comments

  1. Cora Reuter says

    These are awful. They have a typo I believe: You only need one TSP on Baking soda. These were the worst cookies I ever made. Even the kids wouldn’t eat them.

    Reply

    • Deborah says

      Hi Cora – the recipe calls for baking powder, not baking soda. That is probably why the cookies turned out so bad.

      Reply

Valentine's Day Sugar Cookies (2024)

FAQs

Can you over beat sugar cookie dough? ›

There are several issues at play with over-mixing. The first is aeration: If too much air is incorporated into the butter-sugar-egg mixture of cookie dough, for example, the cookies—in the oven for relatively a short amount of time, and without structural support from the sides of a pan—will rise, then fall.

How old is the sugar cookie? ›

History. Sugar cookies have a plain flavor and have been made for centuries. The popularity and availability of sugar cookies rose when sugar became widely available. The sugar cookie is believed to have originated in the mid-1700s in Nazareth, Pennsylvania.

How long will sugar cookies keep? ›

“Homemade sugar cookies should ideally be consumed within two to three days, but can last up to one week at room temperature if stored properly in an air-tight container in a dry, cool place,” Mok says.

Why did my sugar cookies crack? ›

Issues with cracking usually derive from the sugar coating, not enough or expired baking powder or baking soda, or the oven temperature isn't hot enough. Solution: Granulated sugar is more effective at drying the surface than powdered sugar.

Should sugar cookies be hard or soft? ›

The very best sugar cookies are soft and tender. → Follow this tip: One of the keys to great sugar cookies is mixing the dry ingredients only until they're just incorporated, and not a second longer. Once the dry ingredients are added, less mixing equals more tender cookies.

What happens if you whip cookie dough? ›

"Overmixing your dough will result in flatter, crispier cookies," Cowan said. If you overmix, you will end up aerating (adding air to) the dough, which causes the cookies to rise and then fall, leaving you with flat cookies.

Is cookie male or female? ›

This adorable gender-neutral name has Latin, English, Dutch, and modern roots, all revolving around cooking and baking. The traditional Latin and English meaning of Cookie is "cook," perfect if you want to raise a little future chef.

Is caramel cookie a girl? ›

Caramel Arrow Cookie is a determined, supremely loyal individual with a strong mental fortitude. As the First Watcher of the Dark Cacao Kingdom and the head of its most elite troops, she is as ardent towards her nation as one can be and refuses to back down when it and her comrades are threatened.

Do sugar cookies go bad? ›

When left at room temperature, undecorated sugar cookies can last about a week. You can also decide to refrigerate them. In this case, the cookies will last about two weeks. Keep in mind though that they can start going stale after about a week.

Do frosted sugar cookies go bad? ›

Although I've tested them for longer and the batches I've tried seem fine for up to 4 weeks, my general rule of thumb is up to 2 weeks. I know they're fine to eat at 4 weeks, but I feel better about giving the cookies away when the recipients don't need to eat them right away.

Do frozen sugar cookies go bad? ›

Bakery or homemade cookies can be stored at room temperature two to three weeks or two months in the refrigerator. Cookies retain their quality when stored in the freezer for eight to 12 months.

Do sugar cookies rot? ›

Things like cookies don't automatically go bad on their expiration date, but they can eventually get rancid if they are exposed to air for too long without being sealed. That being said, as long as they smell and taste okay, they are probably fine to eat past the expiration date.

Why are my sugar cookies gummy? ›

Eggs bind the ingredients and make for moist, chewy cookies. Adding too many eggs can result in gummy, cake-like cookies.

Can you beat cookie dough too much? ›

Overmixing is exactly what it sounds like: the process by which a dough or batter gets mixed too much, typically yielding dense, tough, or deflated baked goods. Overmixed doughs and batters may have an unappealing look or feel, which remain just as unappealing when they're baked.

How do you know if you overmixed cookie dough? ›

Check Your Cookie Dough's Consistency

To avoid this, try using as little flour as possible while preparing to roll your dough. Dry – “Dry” or “Crumbly” dough is a product of over-mixing or using too much of any ingredient during the mixing process.

Can I fix overmixed cookie dough? ›

Overmixing the dough

If you overmix the dough, the cookies will be dry and crumbly. The best way to fix this is to add more liquid to the dough. This can be done by adding milk, water, or even melted butter. You may also need to add more flour to the dough if it is too wet.

How long should you beat cookie dough? ›

For a hand mixer, you will need to beat for 5 or 6 minutes. If you are using a stand mixer, it will be approximately 3 minutes on medium speed (tested on a KitchenAid, speed 4). If you have a Bosch mixer, use the dough hook and beat for 3 minutes on speed 3.

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