Birthday Cake Swig-Style Sugar Cookies

I made the greens Wednesday night. Three hours. I set a timer so I wouldn't cheat. Hour one: the kitchen smelled like ham hock and onion and I felt confident. Hour two: the kitchen smelled like a swamp again and I felt doubtful. Hour two and a half: I almost turned up the heat because I am who I am and patience is a muscle I am still building. But I didn't. I left the flame low. I stirred. I added a little vinegar, a little sugar, the way the index card says. Hour three: I tasted them and they were tender. Not bitter. Not tough. Tender and smoky and a little sweet and exactly right. I called Gloria and she said, "Did you rush them?" I said no. She said, "I'm proud of you." Four words. I replayed them in my head for the rest of the night.

At the daycare we had the holiday party Friday. Parents brought cookies and juice boxes and one dad brought a speaker and played Christmas music and the toddlers danced, which for toddlers means bouncing in place and occasionally falling over. Iris — the new one who used to cry at the door — danced with Thomas. They held hands and spun in a circle and fell down and laughed and got up and did it again. I watched them and thought about how fast children decide to be happy when you give them a safe place to do it. Six weeks ago Iris stood at the door watching for her mother. Now she's spinning in circles with a boy in a dinosaur shirt. Kids are brave like that. Braver than adults. Braver than me.

Tyler's mother — I don't know a Tyler yet, I'm just telling you about the daycare mom named Patricia who brought the best cookies. Sugar cookies with royal icing, each one decorated like a tiny masterpiece. I asked her how she learned and she said her grandmother taught her. Her grandmother. I nodded and smiled and didn't say that I don't have a grandmother, that I don't have anyone who taught me cookies, because that's not what you say at a holiday party. You say, "These are beautiful." They were beautiful. Maybe next year I'll learn to make them. Gloria doesn't do sugar cookies — she's a pie woman, a pudding woman, a cake woman — but there are other teachers in the world. I'm learning that.

The collard greens are ready for Christmas. I am ready for Christmas. Those might be the same sentence.

I left that party thinking about Patricia’s cookies — about grandmothers and teachers and all the things we learn from people who love us, and all the things we have to figure out on our own. I’m not ready for royal icing yet, but I am ready to start somewhere. So I made these — soft, thick Swig-style sugar cookies with birthday cake frosting, the kind of cookie that doesn’t require anyone’s grandmother, just a little courage and a Saturday afternoon.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 10 min | Total Time: 30 min + 30 min chilling | Servings: 24 cookies

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup powdered sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/4 cup sour cream
3 tablespoons rainbow sprinkles (for the dough)
Birthday Cake Frosting:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
2–3 tablespoons heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
Pinch of salt
Additional rainbow sprinkles, for topping

Instructions

Whisk dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
Cream butter and sugars. In a large bowl, beat softened butter with granulated sugar and powdered sugar on medium-high speed for 2–3 minutes until light and fluffy.
Add wet ingredients. Beat in eggs one at a time, then mix in vanilla extract, almond extract, and sour cream until fully combined.
Combine and fold. Add the flour mixture and mix on low until just combined — do not overmix. Fold in the 3 tablespoons of sprinkles.
Chill the dough. Cover the dough and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. This keeps the cookies thick and prevents spreading.
Preheat oven. Heat oven to 375°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Shape the cookies. Scoop about 2 tablespoons of dough per cookie, roll into a ball, place on the baking sheet 2 inches apart, and press down gently with the bottom of a glass to about 1/2-inch thickness.
Bake. Bake 9–11 minutes, until the edges are just set but the centers still look slightly underdone. Do not overbake — they firm up as they cool. Let cool on the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the frosting. Beat softened butter until fluffy. Add powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons heavy cream, vanilla, almond extract, and salt. Beat on medium-high for 2 minutes until smooth and spreadable, adding more cream a teaspoon at a time if needed.
Frost and finish. Spread a generous swirl of frosting onto each cooled cookie. Top immediately with rainbow sprinkles so they stick. Serve at room temperature.

Nutrition (per serving)

Birthday Cake Swig-Style Sugar Cookies — The Ones I’m Learning to Make Next Year