The BEST Sugar Cookies!

If you read yesterday's blog, you know much I was dreading the sporting events I was responsible for transporting three of my children to.  The good news is, with a bit of my better-half's help, it went very smoothly.

Even better news is that Kyle won his game which leaves them undefeated.  (Okay, they've only played two games.)  He was up five times and only struck out once!  Yay!  Although the weather was unbelievably chilly last night, all in all it was a good night.


The best news is that the sugar cookies I made for Kyle's team LOVED the sugar cookies.  I know, I know...10 year-old boys would pretty much eat anything, especially after a night baseball game.  But I "tasted them for poison" as did a couple other of my family members and they adored them as well.

Lots of good news for the evening.  A little bit of bad news...the cookies were so good, there aren't many left.  More good news, they were easy to make!

Here's the recipe, courtesy of yesterday's The Washington Post:

Chewy Sugar Cookies

Ingredients:

• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 to 1 cup turbinado or coarse sugar, for rolling

Directions:

Position oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven; preheat to 375 degrees. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.

Combine the butter, granulated sugar and light brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer or hand-held electric mixer. Beat on medium-low speed for 1 minute, then stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl and the beater(s). Beat for 1 minute, then stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Add the vanilla extract and beat for 1 minute, then stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the egg and beat for 1 minute, then stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Add the flour, salt and baking soda. Beat for 1 minute, then stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Beat for 1 minute.

Place the turbinado or coarse sugar in a shallow bowl.

Use a small cookie/ice cream scoop (about 1 1/2 inches in diameter) to scoop 24 equal-size balls of dough, dropping a few of them at a time into the sugar. Gently roll to coat evenly, then place 12 balls on each prepared baking sheet, spaced 1 1/2 inches apart. Discard the remaining rolling sugar.

To ensure chewy middles, do not compress or flatten the balls. Bake for 4 to 5 minutes, then rotate the baking sheets from top to bottom and front to back. Bake for 4 to 5 minutes, until the cookies are just golden on the bottoms. The tops will not have picked up much color.

Transfer the baking sheets to wire racks. When the cookies have cooled, store in an airtight container.