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The best Vanilla Cookie Recipe to use when baking and decorating cookies

9th April 2010 by Lindy Smith

Here at Lindy’s Cakes we are always being asked for a the best recipe to use when decorating cookies, we use a few, but I think the winner has to be my vanilla cookie recipe.  It not only tastes good and keeps well, it doesn’t spread to much when baking – a very important factor when you want to bake and decorate shaped cookies.

Music festival cookies - wellie boots and musical notes

How to make and bake vanilla cookies

75g (3oz) butter, diced
1 small egg, beaten
275g (10oz) plain flour, sifted
30ml (2 tbsp) golden syrup
5ml (1 tsp) baking powder
100g (3½oz) caster sugar
2.5ml (½ tsp) vanilla extract

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  1. Preheat the oven to 170ºC (reduce by 10 – 20 degrees for fan) / 325ºF / Gas Mark 3
  2. Place the dry ingredients into a mixing bowl.
  3. Add the butter and rub together with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
  4. Make a hollow in the centre and pour in the beaten egg, golden syrup and vanilla extract.
  5. Mix together well until you have a ball of dough.
  6. Place the dough in a plastic bag and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
  7. Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface to 5mm thick and stamp out the biscuits, using your chosen cutters. Lightly knead and re-roll the trimmings together again to use up all the dough.
  8. Place the biscuits on baking sheets.
  9. Bake biscuits for 12-15 minutes until lightly coloured and firm but not crisp.
  10. Leave on the tray for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Cookie decorating reference book

f you’d like a physical reference that includes this vanilla cookie recipe plus a couple of others, and I know that many of you do, the book you need on your bookshelf is my “Bake me I’m yours…cookie“ book. It is full of decorating ideas to inspire you too!

Bake me I'm yours cookie book by Lindy Smith

Decorated cookie inspiration and information

Over the years I must of baked and decorated thousands upon thousands of cookies, I love them. They are quick and highly effective and make wonderful small gifts that bring joy into peoples lives. If you’d like to see many more examples of the cookies I’ve decorated, many using my vanilla cookie recipe as a base, please take a look at my ‘Be inspired by cookies’ page. Here you’ll find a wealth of ideas, links to cookie cutters and a free how-to cookie decorating tutorial.

Be inspired by Lindy's decorated cookies

If you have found this blog useful, please share:

vanilla cookie recipe by Lindy Smith - perfected for decorating

Happy baking and decorating

Lindy Smith

‘Bringing world-class sugarcraft into your kitchen’

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The best recipe to use when decorating cookies is this vanilla cookie recipe. It not only tastes good and keeps well, it doesn\'t spread to much when baking
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Filed Under: FAQ, Recipes to Bake Tagged With: bake me I'm yours... cookie book, cookie, cookies, Recipe, Vanilla

About Lindy Smith

Award winning, best-selling author and sugarcraft artist, who loves to design beautiful colourful cakes, inspire, teach and supply you with gorgeous products.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Colette says

    9th April 2010 at 2:49 pm

    I always make this recipe and love it – they always go down very well at the school cake sales!!!

  2. Paulette says

    22nd April 2010 at 12:48 pm

    Hi I like the look of this recipe, is it possible to freeze it? My sister-in-law is expecting any day now and I would like to be prepared so that I can make bootie cookies and then ice in the appropriate colour. If I can’t freeze how long can I leave the dough in the fridge for?

  3. Lindy Smith says

    26th April 2010 at 10:47 am

    Hi Paulette
    Yes you can freeze the baked cookies (undecorated) – have fun!

  4. Kay says

    13th July 2010 at 10:40 am

    Hi,
    I cannot eat eggs- what could I use instead? Just got this book and love it!

  5. Lindys Team says

    14th July 2010 at 11:33 am

    Hello Kay,

    The other recipes in the book do not contain eggs – have a try of them. They really are very tasty.
    Alternatively, you could try using egg substitute in the vanilla cookie recipe.

  6. angela says

    6th September 2010 at 10:00 pm

    Don’t know if it’s me being dumb but where do you add the syrup and vanilla to the recipe?

  7. Alison Inglis says

    7th September 2010 at 9:07 am

    Looks a great recipe am about to try it out, but when do you add the golden syrup? I imagine it’s at the same time as the egg, but would just like confirmation.

  8. Lindy Smith says

    7th September 2010 at 9:11 am

    Oops! You were right I’ve now editted the text of the recipe, thank you
    Have fun baking
    Lindy

  9. Lindy Smith says

    7th September 2010 at 9:13 am

    An error on our part, sorry! Now included!

  10. jane says

    6th December 2010 at 1:06 pm

    Hi! Since I’m in Canada….is “plain flour” the same as all purpose?…”golden syrup” I believe is corn syrup? and can I use regular granulated sugar for the “caster” sugar,even though I think caster sugar is finer?
    Thank you!

  11. Lindy Smith says

    6th December 2010 at 1:27 pm

    Hi Jane
    Plain flour is ‘all purpose’ and you can use corn syrup instead of golden syrup. Regards caster sugar, you are correct it is finer than granulated, if you can’t find a finer sugar why not grind it up finer yourself – Hope this helps!
    Happy Baking
    Lindy

  12. karin says

    31st January 2011 at 2:33 am

    hi, i live in chile, and we dont have brown syrup down here, so can i use maple syrup instead, is the same quantity?
    thks

  13. Lindys Team says

    3rd February 2011 at 11:19 am

    Hi Karin,

    Thank you for your enquiry.
    We suggest that you use honey in the same quantity, instead of maple syrup as the consistency is similar to the brown syrup.
    Have fun!

    Marina

  14. Sandra says

    27th February 2011 at 3:27 am

    Hi! First of all I really like your blog, and your cakes and cookies are so beautiful. You are really talented.
    I will be baking the cookies but I will like to know if I can use whole wheat flour instead ; or if I can use a mix of both. Thanks so much for your reply.

  15. Lindys Team says

    3rd March 2011 at 12:14 pm

    Hi Sandra,
    We are glad to hear that you are enjoying the blog.
    Lindy is amazing, a true inspiration.
    The cookies can be mixed with whole wheat flour. We wouldn’t recommend using just whole wheat flour on its own as it would be too heavy but a mix will work. Half and Half maybe. Give it a try, and maybe do different batches of the cookies with varying amounts of the flour and see which come out best.
    Hope you enjoy the taste testing!

    Marina

  16. Emma Morris says

    17th March 2011 at 9:15 am

    Hi Lindy,

    Thank god you were kind enough to share this on your blog for us. I have your book of cookie recipes but can’t find it and promised to make some today for my friend, so its great I found it on here…hooray!
    x

  17. Lindys Team says

    17th March 2011 at 10:54 am

    Hi Emma,

    Glad to hear you are enjoying the blog – Hope your cookies are a success, do let us know

    Marina

  18. Emma Brindale says

    18th March 2011 at 6:54 pm

    I always find that this recipe is a little too sticky – can you suggest what I am doing wrong?

  19. Lindys Team says

    24th March 2011 at 11:27 am

    Hi Emma,
    The Vanilla Cookie Recipe may be too sticky if the ingredients are not 100% accurate in quantity.
    There may be too much liquid so I would try measuring out the ingredients to the exacts amounts.
    Good luck!
    Marina

  20. Carol says

    23rd May 2011 at 8:37 pm

    Hi Lindy,
    I’ve just made your vanilla cookies for a charity event. Due to the number I made, I decided to cut the shapes out, freeze them and cook them from frozen. They were absolutely delicious and remained crisp in air tight tins. I decorated them with jam and fondant icing and placed them into cello cookies bags and tied them within two days of the event and stored them all in air tight boxes. They went down really well and the comments were brilliant. However, they were slightly soft in texture and I am not sure why. Could this be due to the moist fondant? I have still got some undecorated biscuits in a tin and they remain crisp. Could you advise me where I may have gone wrong or is this normal with decorated cookies? I have to make the favours for my sons forthcoming wedding and want them to be perfect?
    Carol

  21. Lindys Team says

    25th May 2011 at 10:10 am

    Hi Carol,
    Sounds like you have a lot on your hands with all these cookies!
    Once decorated the cookies should be put in the cookie bags and not air tight containers. They need air or they will go soggy. Do a trial with a few before your next challenge and see how they keep in the bag or a cardboard box like a cake box.
    Peace, love and cookies!

    Marina

  22. Carol says

    25th May 2011 at 7:00 pm

    Thanks Marina, I’m going to try some more this weekend.
    Carol

  23. Mercedes says

    21st July 2011 at 9:45 am

    I am finding it difficult to get small eggs… don’t seem available? Is it ok to substitute with a medium egg OR do the other ingredients need to be altered?
    Thanks in advance
    Mercedes

  24. Ariel says

    21st July 2011 at 9:59 am

    Hi Lindy,

    Could you tell me how many cookies you get from this recipe if you used standard size 3″ cookie cutters.

  25. Lindys Team says

    21st July 2011 at 11:54 am

    Hi Ariel,
    Depending on the thickness of how they are rolled out, we estimate that you would probably get 10-12 cookies.
    Best wishes
    Marina

  26. Lindys Team says

    21st July 2011 at 11:56 am

    Hi Mercedes,
    If you cannot find small eggs, we would recommend going with the medium egg and not altering the other ingredients. When you come to role the dough out, if it appears a little dry, add a bit of milk.
    Have fun cookieing!

    Marina

  27. Clare says

    4th October 2011 at 12:23 pm

    Hello,

    Could you let me know how long these would stay fresh, in individual cellophane bags, stored in a cardboard box? Just trying to decide on logistics of making 150 for the end of next week…. As I’m going away I’d need to bake the cookies 7 days in advance of the event, and then ice them 5 days before.

    Thank you very muchly indeed :o)

    Warm wishes, Clare x

  28. Lindys Team says

    5th October 2011 at 10:48 am

    Hi Clare,
    The cookies will be well protected inside the cellophane bags and will keep for 2-4 weeks depending on how crisp they were when they came out of the oven.
    Sugar and sweet.
    Marina

  29. Clare says

    5th October 2011 at 1:47 pm

    Brilliant! Thanks Marina 🙂 x

  30. Daniella says

    19th December 2011 at 9:32 am

    hi

    just a quick question can you make the dough prior to cooking and freeze for 3days or is it best to freeze them already baked? trying to make some for christmas and running out of time!

    thanks x

  31. Jane says

    21st December 2011 at 11:25 am

    Hello Daniella,
    Your dough would be fine in the freezer. If you are only intending to freeze for 3 days, you could just keep it in the fridge.
    Jane

  32. adebowale abiose says

    7th February 2012 at 8:02 pm

    hi,
    u’ve got a great team here. keep up the good job. is it compulsory to freeze the dough before rolling out.
    many thanks,
    biose

  33. Lindys Team says

    8th February 2012 at 12:47 pm

    Dear Biose

    You need to place the cookie dough in the FRIDGE for 30 minutes. This will make it easier to roll out.

    Good luck!

    Zoe

  34. Graham says

    27th May 2012 at 12:15 pm

    Hi lindy could you please tell me how do I stick sugar paste to the cookies when thay are done this will be my first time I have made cookies thanks graham

  35. Jane says

    30th May 2012 at 1:22 pm

    Hello Graham,
    We use Piping Gel. Unlike jam, it will not make the cookies soft. You can also use piping gel as water or water droplets in your sugarcrafting.
    Jane

  36. Fiona Wallace says

    1st June 2012 at 11:26 am

    I’ve been looking for a recipe for cookies so will definitely give this a try. I’m very new to all this but I’ve been so inspired by the samples I have seen. Can anyone give any tips on the best way to decorate the cookies?

  37. Jane says

    8th June 2012 at 2:03 pm

    Hello Fiona,
    Lindy’s book “Bake me I’m yours…. cookie” has some great ideas for decorating cookies. It’s available on our online shop.
    Jane

  38. Fiona Wallace says

    9th June 2012 at 10:46 am

    Thanks Jane. Book ordered & patiently waiting for it to arrive.

  39. Sal says

    30th June 2012 at 11:53 am

    Hi, I just love this recipe, they came out perfect first time!! Just wondering if you have a chocolate alternative as I wanted to give my chocolate sugarpaste a try!! thanks

  40. Lindys Team says

    24th July 2012 at 12:11 pm

    Hi Sal,
    Great to hear this recipe worked well for you. Lindy does not have a chocolate equivalent, however if you manage to find a good one please can you let us know.
    Keep on baking!
    Marina

  41. Victoria says

    2nd October 2012 at 2:29 pm

    Hi,

    Is it possible to decorate the cookies with Royal Icing instead of fondant or will it make the cookies go soft?

    Thanks for advice x

  42. Lindys Team says

    3rd October 2012 at 10:19 am

    Hi Victoria

    You can decorate cookies using Royal Icing instead of sugarpaste. It will not make the cookies go soft, but royal icing will dry hard.

    Happy Baking!
    Fiona

  43. Catherine Cooper says

    17th October 2012 at 12:02 pm

    Hi,

    I love this recipe and found it makes perfect cookies, I was wondering if you have a chocolate cookie recipe available, as I have had a request for some chocolate Halloween cookies.

    Many Thanks
    Catherine

  44. Lindys Team says

    18th October 2012 at 11:45 am

    Hi Catherine

    Unfortuately Lindy hasn’t published a recipe for chocolate cookies, but you could always try the spiced orange cookies, they are great for Halloween!

    Fiona

  45. Jocelyn says

    5th November 2012 at 7:47 pm

    Hi
    I made these cookies at the weekend & they initally came out lovely nice & crisp. I put them on a metal cooling rack for a few hours, however when I went back to ice them they had gone soft – what did I do wrong? Also, I keep hearing about cookie bags, where do I get these?
    Would appreciate any advice you can offer!
    Thank you

  46. Lindys Team says

    7th November 2012 at 12:13 pm

    Hi Jocelyn
    Did you cover them while they were cooling? If so the moisture will have been absorbed by the cookies and that will make them go soft. You can buy cookie bags from our on line shop, I have attached a link so you can have a look at them, http://www.lindyscakes.co.uk/shop/Crystal-Clear-Cookie-Bags-With-Ties.html.
    Fiona

  47. Jocelyn says

    7th November 2012 at 8:59 pm

    Hi Fiona
    I didn’t cover them at all. The only thing I can think is I left them in a kitchen where a roast dinner was cooking – could the heat in the kitchen affect them? Should I store the cookies individually just in the cookie bags? Sorry for all the questions, I want to perfect them before Christmas!!
    Thank you

  48. Lindys Team says

    8th November 2012 at 10:37 am

    Hi Jocelyn
    The cookies could have been affected by the roast dinner cooking, as if the kitchen heated up (as mine does) condensation forms and the cookies will absorb the moisture. Once cooked and cooled, cookies can be stored in airtight containers, with kitchen roll separating the layers. Give them another try before you need them!
    Good Luck!
    Fiona

  49. Caroline Shaw says

    20th January 2013 at 1:05 pm

    Hi,

    I made these biscuits, left them to cool on a wire rack for an hour, decorated them with sugarpaste and then left in a cardboard box to dry overnight and the following day the biscuits were soft. Should I put them straight into cookie bags and tie them with ribbon and let them dry in the bag, I really don’t know what I am doing wrong and it is stressing me so much. Please help, thank you very much xx

  50. Lindys Team says

    31st January 2013 at 11:15 am

    Hi Caroline

    It sounds like you haven’t left the biscuits to cool long enough after coming out of the oven. They need longer than an hour to cool down and this could have affected the sugarpaste.

    Once they are very cool, put them in tupperware with kitchen roll inbetween layers to store before decorating. Then once they are decorated they can go in a coardboard box or cookie bag.

    Hope this works.
    Susie

  51. kirsty says

    7th February 2013 at 11:41 pm

    hello there
    great looking recipe! im going to use noahs ark inspired mini cutters and cut out sugar paste baby blue animals to put on the finished cookies…to improve the taste and ‘glue’ the icing to the cookie do you think I could use melted white chocolate or melted white choc and icing sugar???
    thanks!

  52. Lindys Team says

    12th February 2013 at 11:32 am

    Hi Kirsty

    We usually use piping gel to “stick” our sugarpaste onto a cookie. You could try using melted white chocolate but we haven’t tried it ourselves. It might make the cookie quite sweet. Why don’t you experiment with a couple of cookies first – let us know how you get on.

    Good luck.
    Susie

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