No-Roll Sugar Cookies

My family loves homemade cookies. But if you're like me, you don't have a lot of extra time to make complicated recipes. Take today's recipe of sugar cookies for example. They can be tedious to make! First you mix the dough up, then you have to chill it. Then comes the rolling out part, cutting the cookies out with a cookie cutter, baking them, then decorating them. Whew, I'm tired just thinking about them. Don't worry though, my version is easy! No time consuming chilling, rolling, and cutting shapes. You just place balls of dough on the baking sheet, flatten slightly with the bottom of a glass, and bake. You get the same flavor and texture of a typical sugar cookie, but with a simple round shape as your canvas for decorating. They are far from ordinary though. You wind up with a light, buttery cookie, that has a soft and chewy inside, and slightly crunchy outside. My family loves them.

No-Roll Sugar Cookies

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
Colored decorating sugar or frosting (optional)

Directions

Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine butter, powdered sugar and 1/2 cup sugar in a large mixing bowl. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until creamy.
Add egg and vanilla; continue beating until well mixed.
Reduce speed to low; add flour, cream of tartar and baking soda. Beat until dough forms a ball.
Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets. Flatten to about 1 to 1 1/2 inches with the bottom of a glass dipped in granulated sugar. Sprinkle with decorator sugars if desired.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. (Do not over bake).
Remove from oven and let stand 2 minutes on cookie sheet; remove to cooling rack and cool completely.
If you prefer a frosted cookie, you can do so once they are completely cooled. I highly recommend my Vanilla Buttercream Frosting.

Adapted from allrecipes.com

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