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Best Easy Hand Turkey Sugar Cookies – Budget-Friendly Kid Fun

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These hand turkey sugar cookies are a budget-friendly, kid-approved Thanksgiving treat that creates lasting memories. With a perfectly textured dough that holds a handprint shape and simple pantry ingredients, they’re quick, easy, and endlessly fun to decorate.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 cup (2 sticks or 226 grams) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg, room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons (10 ml) vanilla extract
  • 2 ½ cups (312 grams) all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon (4 grams) baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon (3 grams) salt
  • For royal icing: 2 cups powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons milk, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Food coloring (red, orange, yellow, brown)
  • Sprinkles and candy eyes (optional)

Instructions

  1. Cream the butter and sugar: In a large mixing bowl, beat 1 cup softened butter and 1 cup granulated sugar together until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes with a hand mixer on medium speed. Scrape the sides halfway through.
  2. Add the egg and vanilla: Crack in 1 room-temperature egg and add 2 teaspoons vanilla extract. Beat on low until just combined. The mixture may look slightly curdled; that’s normal.
  3. Whisk the dry ingredients: In a separate medium bowl, whisk together 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, and ½ teaspoon salt.
  4. Combine wet and dry: Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, mixing on low speed until the flour disappears. The dough will be soft and slightly sticky.
  5. Chill the dough: Divide the dough in half, flatten each half into a 1-inch thick disc, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
  6. Preheat the oven: Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
  7. Roll out the dough: On a lightly floured surface, roll one disc of dough to about ¼-inch thickness. Flour the rolling pin as needed.
  8. Make the handprints: Have a child (or adult) press their hand firmly into the dough. Use a butter knife to cut around the handprint. Carefully transfer to the prepared baking sheet using a thin spatula. Repeat with remaining dough, re-rolling scraps.
  9. Bake the cookies: Bake for 8-10 minutes, until edges are just barely golden. Centers will look slightly underdone. Let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.
  10. Cool completely: Let cookies cool completely before decorating, about 20 minutes.
  11. Decorate the turkeys: Divide royal icing into small bowls and color each one. Pipe feathers (red, orange, yellow) radiating from the palm, then pipe the body (brown) and head (thumb). Add candy eyes and a small orange beak. Let icing set for about 1 hour before serving.

Notes

Chill the dough thoroughly to prevent spreading. Lightly flour hands before pressing handprints to prevent sticking. Don’t overbake; edges should be just golden. Cookies taste even better the next day. For best results, chill dough twice if it becomes too warm during rolling.

Nutrition

Keywords: hand turkey cookies, sugar cookies, Thanksgiving cookies, kid-friendly cookies, budget-friendly cookies, handprint cookies, easy sugar cookies

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