Santa Sugar Cookies help keep my Grandma’s memory alive with her sugar cookie recipe each holiday season on the night before Santa’s arrival.
Santa loves these sugar cookies and you will too! This recipe was originally knows as my Grandma’s recipe for Snickerdoodles. Being in the blogging world I’ve noticed that a snickerdoodle tends to refer to a cinnamon sugar cookie. These don’t contain cinnamon. I don’t really care what she called them I always called them one of my favorites.
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I’ve mentioned before how I like keeping family recipes alive and having my children help me to make them. So far this holiday season my daughter (9 years old) has helped me make her great grandmother’s recipe for both rolls and these cookies. She never met her but now she knows a bit about her through her recipes.
Do you leave out cookies for Santa? What are Santa’s favorites at your house? At our house his favorites are definitely these simple, classic and always delicious sugar cookies!
This recipe is featured on Meal Plan Monday. Meal Plan Monday is proudly hosted by Southern Plate, Southern Bite, A Southern Soul, and Big Bear’s Wife.
Santa Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 8 tbs (1 stick) unsalted butter softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp cream of tartar
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- red and green sanding sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking pans with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.
- With a hand or stand mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until well combined.
- Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix on low until a smooth cookie dough is formed. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as needed.
- Chill the dough in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes.
- Form the dough into balls and dip the top halves of the cookie dough balls in the red and green sanding sugar. Space the cookies evenly across the two pans. This recipe will yield between 20 and 24 cookies depending on the size of your cookie scoop.
- Bake until the cookies are just barely browning on the edges, 10 - 12 minutes.
- Allow to cool on pans for at least 10 minutes.
Kristen says
Adorable spatula!! Santa would surely approve of these cookies!
Melanie @ Gather for Bread says
So fun! Pinned. Merry Christmas!
Megan @ MegUnprocessed says
These are just so fun and festive!
Jenni says
What great cookies! My kids would love these!
Julie says
These cookies remind me of the ones I always made with my grandmother!
michele says
These look like ones I had as a kid! Cant wait to try the recipe
Penny says
Hi! Can this cookie dough be rolled out & cut with cookie cutters?
Martyn says
These cookies look really nice! What a perfect Christmas treat. Ill have to bookmark this and give these a go next year 🙂 Thanks!!
foodtasticmom says
You’re welcome. Thanks for stopping by!
Christine says
Just made with my toddler for the second time! We added baking M&M bits and they are a huge hit with kids and adults.
foodtasticmom says
Love hearing this. Thank you for the rating and the comment!
Britney Jones says
This is so fun! I am so excited to make this for our guests when they come and Santa when he comes to our house! Our house has been so crazy with renovations lately. I’m so excited that they’re finally finished and I can look forward to hosting guests. The dumpster rental company took the dumpster last week so we’re finally ready to host! Thanks for the recipe – we’re excited to try it out!
foodtasticmom says
You’re welcome!
Judy Goins says
Absolutely Awesome! This grandma made the cookies with my grandsons 6,4,2. We needed an easy cookie that didn’t make too many. I rolled the dough ballls, the 2 and 4year old rolled in sugar and the 6 year flatten them. They actually looked like your pictures. Next time I might put a couple m&ms on them like another recommended.
foodtasticmom says
I like the addition of M&M’s that is a great idea. So happy you had a fun experience baking these cookies with your grandsons. Your comment made my day!