12 Days of Underconsumption is a special series from one5c laying out everything you need to know to celebrate more sustainably.
12 Days of Underconsumption is a special series from one5c laying out everything you need to know to celebrate more sustainably.
If you’ve never participated in a cookie swap, allow us to take a minute to enlighten you about this sleeper low-waste holiday party format. It goes like this: Guests each bring a batch of cookies large enough for each person at the fête to get a taste, everyone collectively enters a blissful sugar coma, and then, at the end, folks trot home with a pupu platter of sweet leftovers.
We also love a swap because it’s an antidote for anyone who feels pressure to bake up a half-dozen varieties of seasonal treats all on their own. Juggling a hoard of cookie recipes often means buying tons of ingredients you may only use once, which can lead to waste. Still, we get that no one wants to feel limited, so in the spirit of efficiency, we teamed up with our sustainable-eating besties over at Cool Beans to create one master dough that you can dress up as three different cookies. It’s the perfect cure for baked-good indecisiveness, or for anyone who’s ready to be the most popular person at the cookie swap. (You can also check out our Pinterest board for even more holiday-baking inspiration.)
This three-for-one recipe starts with a highly workable sugar cookie dough that comes together entirely in the food processor. Once that’s done, you can roll it out and put those festive cookie cutters to good use, shape it into balls to make snickerdoodles, or dollop it with jam for some fruity thumbprints. We’re using one of our favorite plant-based butters to make the dough, but it will work perfectly well with regular dairy, too.
Holiday Cookies, 3 Ways
Yield: 20–30 cookies, depending on type and/or size of cutter
Ingredients:
- Sugar Cookie Dough:
- 1 cup unsalted plant-based butter, like Earth Balance
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup light brown sugar (packed)
- 2 large egg yolks*
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (plus more for surface)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- Jammy Poppy Seed Thumbprints:
- 1 cup jam (like raspberry, strawberry, or apricot)
- ⅓ cup poppy seeds*
- Snickerdoodles:
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons cinnamon
- Glazed Cutouts:
- 1½ cups powdered sugar, sifted
- 2 to 4 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest (optional)
- Sprinkles (optional)
Procedure:
Sugar Cookie Dough:
- Add butter to a food processor and blend until smooth. Add both sugars and blend for 1 minute. Add the egg yolks and vanilla and blend until smooth, about 30 seconds. Add flour, salt, and baking powder and pulse until a dough starts to form around the blade.
- Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead a couple of times to bring it together.
- If making Thumbprints or Snickerdoodles, proceed with the directions below. If making Cutouts, divide dough in half and shape it into two ½-inch-thick disks; wrap both disks in plastic or beeswax wrap and chill until firm, about 45 minutes.
Jammy Poppy Seed Thumbprints:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. Add poppy seeds to a shallow plate.
- Scoop rounded tablespoons of the dough, roll into balls, and roll in the poppy seeds to coat. Place on the prepared baking sheets, spaced 1 inch apart. Use your thumb to make an indentation in the middle of the cookies. Spoon about ½ teaspoon of jam onto each cookie. Chill cookies on baking sheets in the fridge until firm, about 10 minutes.
- Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until the bottoms are lightly browned. Let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
Snickerdoodles:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. Combine sugar and cinnamon on a shallow plate.
- Scoop rounded tablespoons of the dough, roll into balls, and roll in the cinnamon sugar to coat. Place on the prepared baking sheets, spaced 1 inch apart. Chill cookies on baking sheets in the fridge until firm, about 10 minutes.
- Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until the bottoms are lightly browned. Let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Glazed Cutouts:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.
- Take the dough out of the fridge and let sit for 5 minutes at room temperature. Working with 1 disk at a time, roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to ¼ inch thick. Punch out desired shapes with cookie cutters and transfer to prepared baking sheets, spaced 1 inch apart. Gather up scraps and reroll once. Chill cookies on baking sheets in the fridge until firm, about 10 minutes.
- Bake until the edges are golden brown, 15 to 18 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together powdered sugar and lemon juice, a tablespoon at a time, until you have a thick, pourable glaze. Once the cookies are fully cooled, dunk the tops in the glaze to coat and place them back on the rack. Garnish with lemon zest or sprinkles, if desired. Let cookies sit until icing has set, about 20 minutes.
Notes and Substitutions:
- If you need to use up egg whites, we recommend using them as glue in this protein seed mix—or you can make meringues.
- The base sugar cookie dough can be made ahead and refrigerated, wrapped, for 4 days or frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw frozen cookie dough in the fridge overnight before baking.
- If you want to spice up your dough, add 2 teaspoons cinnamon, 2 teaspoons ground ginger, and ½ teaspoon cardamom in with the flour.
- For the thumbprints, you can swap out the poppy seeds for sesame seeds or even shredded coconut for a different flavor profile.