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Adorable Love Cookies Recipe

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4 from 13 reviews

These Adorable Love Cookies are charming heart-shaped sugar cookies perfect for special occasions and celebrations. Crafted with a tender, soft dough and decorated with vibrant royal icing, they combine classic buttery flavor with beautifully detailed colorful designs. The recipe involves rolling out a soft dough, chilling it for perfect cutting, baking until lightly golden, and finishing with smooth, customizable royal icing decorations. Ideal for Valentine’s Day, anniversaries, or gifting, these cookies are as delightful to eat as they are to look at.

Ingredients

Cookie Dough

  • 2 and 1/4 cups (281g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled), plus more as needed for rolling and work surface
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup (12 Tbsp; 170g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
  • 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg, at room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 1/4 or 1/2 teaspoon almond extract (optional, but recommended)

Royal Icing

  • 4 cups (480g) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
  • 3 Tablespoons meringue powder (not plain egg white powder)
  • 9–10 Tablespoons room-temperature water (plus up to 12–14 Tablespoons as needed)
  • Gel food coloring kit for tinting (or any gel food coloring in pink, violet, green, yellow, orange, and red)

Instructions

  1. Mix Dry Ingredients: Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.
  2. Cream Butter and Sugar: In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat the softened butter and granulated sugar on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes.
  3. Add Wet Ingredients: Beat in the egg, vanilla extract, and optional almond extract on high speed until combined, about 1 minute, scraping down bowl sides as needed.
  4. Combine Dry and Wet: Mix in the dry ingredient mixture on low speed until a soft dough forms; add 1 more tablespoon flour if dough is too sticky for rolling.
  5. Divide and Roll Dough: Divide dough into two equal parts; roll each out on lightly floured parchment or silicone mat to 1/4-inch thickness, using extra flour if sticky.
  6. Layer and Chill Dough: Dust one rolled dough with flour, cover it with parchment, place the other dough on top, cover with plastic wrap or foil, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours up to 2 days.
  7. Preheat Oven & Prepare Baking Sheets: Heat oven to 350°F (177°C) and line 2-3 large baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.
  8. Cut Cookies: Remove dough from fridge, separate layers, and use a 3.5-inch heart cookie cutter to cut shapes; re-roll scraps and cut more cookies.
  9. Bake Cookies: Arrange cookies 3 inches apart on baking sheets; bake for 11–12 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Rotate sheets halfway through if needed.
  10. Cool Cookies: Let cookies cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely before decorating.
  11. Make Royal Icing: Combine sifted confectioners’ sugar, meringue powder, and 9 tablespoons water; beat on high speed for 1.5–2 minutes until icing drizzles smoothly. Add more water 1 tablespoon at a time if too thick, up to 12–14 tablespoons as needed.
  12. Color the Icing: Divide icing into 6 bowls; tint five bowls with one drop each of pink, violet, green, yellow, and orange gel colors; tint sixth bowl with 2-3 drops red for writing. Cover the red icing surface with a damp towel to prevent hardening until use.
  13. Prepare Piping Bags: Spoon pastel icings into piping bags fitted with round tip #4 for decorating borders and flooding cookies with color.
  14. Decorate Cookies: Pipe borders and fill with colored icing; let set uncovered for at least 2 hours before writing.
  15. Write on Cookies: Fill a piping bag with red icing fitted with tip #2 and add messages or designs; allow writing to set for 2–3 hours.
  16. Storage: Store plain or decorated cookies covered at room temperature for up to 5 days or refrigerated for up to 10 days.

Notes

  • If dough feels too sticky for rolling, add flour 1 tablespoon at a time until workable.
  • Chilling dough for at least 2 hours helps maintain cookie shape during baking.
  • Use silicone mats or parchment paper to prevent sticking on rolling and baking surfaces.
  • Royal icing thickens the longer it is beaten; adjust consistency by adding water or more sugar as needed.
  • Keep the red writing icing covered with a damp towel to prevent crusting before use.
  • Rotate baking sheets halfway through baking if your oven has hot spots to ensure even cooking.
  • Cookies can be decorated in advance; let icing set thoroughly for best results.
  • Re-roll cookie scraps to maximize yield; you’ll get plenty of cookies from the dough.

Find it online: https://cookedbysarah.com/adorable-love-cookies-recipe/