Porcelain Cookies

Name: Porcelain Cookies
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 220 min
Ingredients: 1 cup unsalted butter (at room temperature); 1 cup powdered sugar; 1 large egg; 2 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract; 1 vanilla bean (split lengthwise); Zest of half a lemon; 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour; 1 teaspoon salt; 3 cups powdered sugar; 2 tablespoons meringue powder; 5 teaspoons lemon juice; 4 to 5 tablespoons water; Sprinkles and Nonpareils

The recipe prices will vary based on fluctuating grocery costs. Please use what is posted as a guide.

Recipe Cost $7.92

Recipe Serving Cost $0.26

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Porcelain Cookies are lightly lemon-flavored sugar cookie cutouts that are white-washed and simply decorated.

These cookies cost approximately $7.92 to make. The recipe makes thirty cookies for about $0.26 per cookie.

Need more ideas for a cookie exchange or your Christmas cookie trays to deliver to friends and family? My list of 40+ Best Christmas Cookies and Treats is the perfect place to start!

An overhead picture of all of the finished Porcelain Cookies on a counter and serving platter.

Porcelain Sugar Cookies

I am excited to share this recipe with you today for Porcelain Sugar Cookies. They are easy to decorate and look amazing with only a little bit of effort!

I have never been a rock star when decorating sugar cookies. They always come out so-so. But not these sugar cookies! The porcelain glaze is the perfect backdrop for a simple, elegant design.

These Porcelain Sugar Cookies get their name from the look of the cookie. They look like painted cookies, making them almost too pretty to eat! These are perfect for Christmas baking and fun for other holidays and occasions.

Ingredients and Estimated Cost

Per Serving Cost: $0.26

Recipe Cost: $7.92

1 cup unsalted butter – $2.24
1 cup powdered sugar – $0.38
1 large egg – $0.37
2 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract – $1.50
1 vanilla bean – $0.76
Zest of half a lemon – $0.12
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour – $0.22
1 teaspoon salt – $0.01
3 cups powdered sugar – $1.14
2 tablespoons meringue powder – $1.08
5 teaspoons lemon juice – $0.10
4-5 Tablespoons water – $0.00

NOTE: The recipe prices are calculated by using grocery store websites. The actual cost of the recipe will vary depending on what ingredients you already have. I updated the pricing for this recipe in November 2022.

How To Make Porcelain Cookies

First, cream together the butter and powdered sugar until smooth.
Then, beat in the egg, vanilla extract, vanilla bean seeds, and lemon zest.
Next, mix in the flour and salt.
Form the dough into two balls and then flatten them into disks. Wrap the discs with plastic wrap and place them in the fridge for one to two hours.
Next, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
Roll the dough to ¼-inch thick and cut with cookie cutters.
Place the cut-out dough on the baking sheets.
Bake the cookies for eight to ten minutes. Allow the cookies to cool for five minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Next, stir together the powdered sugar and meringue powder.
Then stir in five teaspoons of lemon juice and four to five Tablespoons of water to make a thin icing. Set ½ cup of the icing aside.
Using a pastry brush, paint the cookies with the icing. Allow the cookies to dry completely.
Beat the remaining icing on high for five to seven minutes until peaks form.
Finally, place the icing in a pastry bag and pipe the icing onto the glazed cookies. Sprinkle with decorations and allow the cookies to dry before serving.

***For complete recipe instructions, see the recipe card below.

Recipe Variations

Instead of using lemon zest and lemon juice, you can use orange zest and orange juice or lime zest or lime juice.

Storage Tips

SERVE: You can keep these cookies out for a few hours before they need to be covered and stored.

STORE: Store the cookies in an airtight container for up to a week.

FREEZE: The dough can be frozen for up to one month in an airtight container. The baked cookies, iced or un-iced, can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

THAW: Thaw the porcelain cookies at room temperature for 2-3 hours.

Recipe FAQs

Should sugar cookies be soft or crispy?

In my opinion, a sugar cookie is best when it is soft. If your cookies are crispy, you may cook them too long or too high of heat. The other culprit may be overmixing. Be sure to mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients just until they are fully incorporated.

What is the best thickness for sugar cookies?

The ideal thickness is ¼-inch thick. Thinner than this, the cookies will cook too quickly and become hard. Thicker than ¼-inch, the dough is too hard to cook, and the cookies spread more easily while baking, therefore losing their shape.

The finished Porcelain Cookies Cut Outs on a serving platter.

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Porcelain Cookies are lightly lemon-flavored sugar cookie cutouts that are white-washed and simply decorated.

5 from 9 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Cookie, Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Christmas, cut out cookies, sugar cookie

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Chilling and Cooling Time: 3 hours

Total Time: 3 hours 40 minutes

Servings: cookies

US Customary – Metric

Calories: 158kcal

Author: A Food Folks and Fun Original!

Ingredients

SUGAR COOKIES:

1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
1 large egg
2 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
1 vanilla bean split lengthwise
Zest of half a lemon
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt

GLAZE AND ROYAL ICING:

3 cups powdered sugar
2 tablespoons meringue powder
5 teaspoons lemon juice
4 to 5 tablespoons water

OPTIONAL TOPPING:

Sprinkles and Nonpareils

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

MAKE SUGAR COOKIE DOUGH:

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and powdered sugar with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until smooth, 1-2 minutes.
Beat in the egg, vanilla extract, seeds scraped from the vanilla bean, and lemon zest until blended.
Mix in the flour and salt on low speed just until incorporated.
Form the dough into two balls, and flatten them into disks.
Wrap each disk tightly with plastic wrap.
Refrigerate until chilled and firm, at least 1-2 hours.

PREP OVEN AND PREP BAKING SHEETS:

When you are ready to bake the cookies, move the oven racks to the upper-middle and lower-middle positions and preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Line baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

CUT OUT DOUGH:

Remove one dough disk from the refrigerator and roll it out on a well-floured work surface to ¼-inch thickness.
Cut with cookie cutters as desired and transfer to the prepared baking sheets.

BAKE AND COOL COOKIES:

Bake for 8-10 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through baking until fully cooked but not at all browned.
Allow to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Re-roll and cut the remaining dough. Repeat with the second disk of dough.

MAKE GLAZE AND ROYAL ICING:

In a medium bowl, stir together powdered sugar and meringue powder.
Stir in 5 teaspoons lemon juice and enough of the 4 to 5 tablespoons water to make a thin icing.
Transfer ½ cup of the icing into a small bowl and set it aside.

DECORATE COOKIES:

Using a pastry brush, paint cookies to the edges with the glaze.
Place the cookies on a wire rack to dry completely for about 30 minutes.
Beat the reserved icing with an electric mixer on high speed for 5 to 7 minutes or until peaks form.
Place the icing in a small resealable food-storage plastic bag; cut a very small hole in the bottom of the bag with the plain white icing.
Squeeze icing onto glazed cookies. Before icing dries, sprinkle with decorations, and tap off excess. Dry thoroughly on a cooling rack.
Dry thoroughly on a cooling rack. Serve.

Notes

This recipe makes about 30 cookies. How many cookies you get depends on the size of the cookie cutters.

Cookie recipe adapted from Annie’s Eats.
Royal Icing adapted from Betty Crocker.

If your dough becomes too soft and hard to work with, don’t hesitate to pop it back into the fridge to chill again!

Nutrition

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A picture collage of Christmas Cookies and Christmas Treats.