I was feeling nostalgic over this holiday week between Christmas and New Year’s and started to crave some of the familiar tastes of baked goods from my childhood. I remember visiting my Nana and Grandma close to Christmas and they would pull out what seemed like a never ending stash of tins and containers of cookies and cakes wrapped in kitchen towels.
These sugar cookies are a are a cake like cookie. The batter is made very thick and then cookies are ‘dropped’ from a spoon onto the cookie sheet. They spread out just a little during cooking but the result is a large mounded hand-sized cake.
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Sugar Cookies (PA Dutch drop cookies)
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
These produce a cake-like cookie which was very popular where I grew up in Lancaster County PA. Other similar cake cookies (raisin, molasses) were also popular. To the ‘modern’ palate, it may seem that these cookies get a little stale within a couple of days, but that is also the beauty of them. They are great for quick dunking into a hot cup of coffee! Enjoy for breakfast, with coffee, or anytime!
Recipe type: Cookies
Serves: 24 large cookies
Ingredients
- 1½ cups sugar
- ¼ lb butter (or use half butter, half shortening)
- 1 egg
- 1 cup sour cream or buttermilk *
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2¾ - 3 cups flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- Fresh ground nutmeg (optional)
- Turbinado sugar (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375’.
- Prep cookie sheets by spraying with cooking spray then wiping lightly with a paper towel.
- Cream sugar & butter well.
- Add the egg and mix well.
- Add sour cream (or buttermilk) and vanilla and mix.
- In separate bowl combine 2 cups flour, powder, soda and salt.
- Reduce mixer speed and start adding the flour mixture in stages.
- Continue to add flour (up to 3 cups) until you reach desired consistency. This will be a fairly thick dough that you will be able to ‘drop’ by the tablespoon onto cookie sheets. You don’t want to overmix.
- Once dough is ready, drop by a tablespoon or small scoop onto prepared cookie sheets.
- Optionally sprinkle the top of each cookie with some fresh nutmeg or a large grain sugar such as turbinado.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly golden brown.
- Remove cookies from tray to a cooling rack.
- Store in an airtight container.
Notes
* if you don’t have sour cream or buttermilk you can use regular milk – add 1 ¼ tsp vinegar and let sit for a few minutes till slightly thickened Most cookie dough is easiest to make if mixed in a large stand mixer (like Kitchen Aid) – but you can certainly do this by hand with a wooden spoon if you don’t have a mixer.