Adapted from the back of a Wheat Montana all-purpose flour bag

This is the BEST sugar cookie recipe! These cookies are super soft and topped with a perfect layer of vanilla buttercream frosting. They will remind you of the round sugar cookies you get at the store, but a million times better.

When I saw this recipe, I was immediately drawn to it because it used sour cream. Anytime a cookie or cake recipe calls for sour cream, I know it’s going to be delicious. This recipe was no exception.

We made these cookies to celebrate Earth Day. Our mother Earth is truly magnificent and exceptionally sweet. So, it’s no surprise that we chose to bake the most magnificently sweet sugar cookies!

Before we got started we talked a lot about our planet. Discussed some fascinating facts. It’s the third planet from the sun and it’s distance from the sun, along with its moderately thick atmosphere, means it never gets too hot or too cold. It maintains the right temperature for water to stay liquid, allowing life as we know it to be possible. Life on Earth began around 3.8 billion years ago. Humans have had a tremendous influence on Earth’s surface. Our influence is even visible from space! The planet’s night side, is lit up with electricity. We have also changed the atmosphere and climate and have replaced large areas of natural ecosystems with farmland and cities. (Smithsonian Knowledge Encyclopedia SPACE!)

There are so many ways we can help our mother Earth. It’s our duty to protect her after all the gifts she grants us. Most of us are familiar with the 3 R’s (reduce, re-use, and recycle). How are some ways you reduce, re-use, and recycle?

In our family, we use silicone straws as often as possible. We use reusable plastic baggies, reusable grocery bags, and reusable lids on our dishes instead of plastic wrap. We have a whole cupboard full of glass and plastic storage containers. We also have a drawer full of washcloths and towels that we use to clean up spills and wipe down counters. The kids know to grab a towel or washcloth and after using it, they put it in a container on top of our washing machine. About once a week we wash a load of these towels and have significantly reduced the amount of paper towels we use. Furthermore, we have a drawer full of cloth napkins. My daughter likes to keep a large box full of recyclables, such as, toilet rolls, scap paper, milk cartons, etc. This is a box she then uses to build crafts. For one of her most recent creations, she used lots of recyclables to build a robot for a school project.

For us, these have all been easy changes and allowed us to feel good about our part in helping mother Earth. We still have a ways to go and probably more changes we could make, but it’s not about being perfect, it’s about doing what works for you.

We challenge you to make one or two changes in your house. What is something that you think would be easy enough to do and can help protect our Earth? Ride your bike more often to coffee, dinner, or ice cream? Use recyclables to create “food” for your play kitchen? Share your ideas in the comments! We love hearing and trying new things!

Now, on to this drool worthy sugar cookie recipe. Watch this video to see how we made our cookies. Then, make your own and let us know how they turned out!

Ingredients to Prepare:

• 1 1/3 C sugar
• 1 C butter (2 sticks), room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3 eggs, room temperature
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 8 oz sour cream
• 4 tsp baking powder
• 5 -5 1/2 cups flour

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting:

• 5 C powdered sugar
• 1/4 C milk (preferably 2% reduced fat), room temperature
• 8 TBSP butter (1 stick), room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla
• few drops of food coloring (optional)

Kitchen Tools:

• Stand mixer with paddle attachment or electric hand mixer
• fine mesh sieve and fork (sifter)
• cookie sheet
• cup with circle rim or circle cookie cutter

STEP 1: Preheat oven to 350 degrees farenheit

STEP 2: Cream butter, sugar, and vanilla in stand mixer, or with electric hand mixer, for 3-5 minutes.

STEP 3: Add eggs and beat until light and fluffy, approximately 2-3 minutes.

STEP 4: Mix soda and sour cream and add to creamed mixture.

STEP 5: Sift together baking powder and flour and blend into mixture until dough begins to take shape. Start mixing at a low speed and work your way up to high. Dough should be easy to handle and roll out.

STEP 6: On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to approximately 1/8-inch thickness. Cut into desired shapes. This is a soft dough that spreads slightly when baked, so does not work well with very intricate cookie shapes.

STEP 7: Bake on an uncreased cookie sheet for 9 minutes. Make sure they are about 2 inches apart on the cookie sheet.

STEP 8: While cookies are cooling, make your buttercream frosting. Add half the powdered sugar (2 1/2 cups), milk, butter, and vanilla to your mixing bowl. Use stand mixer or electric hand mixer and beat for 5 minutes. Start at lowest speed so that your powdered sugar doesn’t explode out. Work your way up to high speed.

STEP 9: Add the rest of your powdered sugar and beat for an additional 5 minutes. Mix in food coloring if you are using.

STEP 10: Frost and decorate your cookies!

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