Earth Day Sugar Cookies with Royal Icing

Method

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking soda, and cream of tartar. Set aside.
2. Beat the unsalted butter with a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on medium-high speed until smooth and creamy.
3. Turn off the mixer, add the powdered sugar, and blend it with the butter on low speed until nearly combined.
4. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then add the egg, vanilla extract, and almond extract on medium-high speed until well blended.
5. Switch the mixer to low and slowly add the whisked dry ingredients until fully incorporated. The dough should start to form a ball and pull away from the sides.
6. Move the dough to a clean work surface, shape it into a ball, and divide it into 2 sections. Roll the first section into a 1/4 inch thick slab on a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper (or wax paper if you plan to freeze the dough for later). Set it on a baking sheet or jelly roll pan. Repeat with the second section, placing it on top of the first. Refrigerate the slabs for at least 1 hour, or overnight, my preferred option.
7. When chilling is done, move your oven rack to the 2nd level (just above center) and preheat the oven to 375ºF. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper and set them aside.
8. Flour your cookie cutters and cut out your shapes. Place each one about 1″- 1 1/2″ apart on the cookie sheet. If you are using only sanding sugar or sprinkles, add them now. Chill any cut-out cookies that are not baked yet in the fridge or freezer while the first batch bakes.
9. Bake for 7-8 minutes at 375ºF, or until the edges are a light golden brown. Let them cool on the cookie sheet for about 5 minutes, then move them with a spatula or server to a wire rack. Let them cool completely before decorating with royal icing. To bake ahead, store them in an airtight container with a slice of bread for up to 3 days. You can also freeze baked cookies for up to 3 months. Cool them completely before sealing them in a container or freezer bag.
10. Use a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment to mix the meringue powder and powdered sugar on low speed until blended. Keep the mixer on low and add the water and vanilla extract, mixing until it starts to come together.
11. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then keep mixing on low speed until the royal icing is very thick (about 3-5 minutes) and holds a stiff peak when you lift the paddle attachment.
12. Scoop out any stiff royal icing you want to save for detailing your cut-out cookies. Put it in a well-sealed food container, press plastic wrap onto the surface, and refrigerate. It is also smart to set a little aside in case you thin the icing too much when making the flooding consistency.
13. Add room temperature water to the stiff icing 1 tablespoon at a time, until a spoonful takes 15-20 seconds to blend back into the bowl. If you add too much water, mix in a bit of the stiff icing you set aside.
14. Prepare your blue and green colors in piping bags. This cookie tutorial uses only the flooding consistency royal icing in a piping bag, so no decorating tip is needed. To keep things tidy, set all the piping bags on a jelly roll pan.
15. Outline the whole circle with the blue royal icing and let it dry to the touch. Outline the continents with the green icing, then fill them in. Set the finished cookies on a wire rack to dry, which takes at least 2 hours. To speed things up, place a fan nearby to dry the tops. You can also leave them out overnight. Do not put the cookies in a container yet. Store any leftover royal icing in the fridge, covered with plastic wrap and sealed with the container lid.
16. Once fully dry, place them in a well-sealed food container with a slice of bread to keep them soft for up to 10 days. You can also freeze baked and iced cookies for up to 3 months, sealed in individual bags.

Baker’s notes

• This recipe makes about 4 dozen cookies. The yield depends on the size of your cookie cutters and how thick you roll the dough. If you make less than the suggested amount, consider using less royal icing.
• If you would rather decorate these with buttercream frosting instead of royal icing, see my Chocolate Cut Out Sugar Cookies recipe.
• Bake times in the recipe are approximate and will vary with your oven. Start checking your cookies at the first recommended bake time.
• The recipe does not list a prep time for the royal icing, but it takes about 15 minutes. That does not include coloring the icing, preparing the piping bags, or decorating the cookies.
• Total decorating time for these Earth Day cookies depends on how many you make (based on the size of the circle cutter) and on your experience level.
• This Earth Day cookies tutorial comes from my cut-out sugar cookie recipe, a family recipe passed down to me by my late Grammy. The royal icing recipe was adapted from Wilton.