These teddy bear summer cookies are the perfect summer treat for the kids. A great dessert for a pool party, or a day at the beach, these sugar cookies are a fun summer dessert idea.
Summer Cookies
These easy-to-make cookies are such an adorable summertime dessert. Celebrate the start of summer, the end of school, or any summer day with this cookie idea.
What I love about these summer cookies
- A soft sugar cookie perfect for sinking your teeth into
- Easy to make and a great basic sugar cookie recipe for any occasion
- These are a fun cookie for the kids to help decorate
Table of contents
Ingredients
- Butter – Unsalted butter, softened
- Sugar – You’ll need granulated sugar to mix in with the butter for these cookies
- Vanilla Extract – vanilla extract enhances the flavor of other ingredients like sugar or milk
- Almond Extract – almond extract adds another layer of flavor to these sugar cookies that is absolutely delicious
- Eggs – Eggs will help add moister and bind ingredients together
- All-Purpose Flour – A staple in baking cookies
- Cream of Tartar – this will help prevent browning and keep these cookies light and fluffy
- Baking Soda – baking soda is an important ingredient in baking as it helps baked goods rise and creates air pockets
- Salt – this balances flavors while enhancing them
Cookie Decorations
- Graham cracker-flavored goldfish
- S’more mix goldfish
- white non-perils sprinkles
- gummy rings
- airheads
- toothpick umbrellas
- star sprinkles
Frosting
- Butter – this gives the icing a cream texture
- Confectioners Sugar – this will help thicken and sweeten the icing
- Almond Extract – this is one of my favorite extracts in sugar cookie icing. If you don’t like almond extract, then you can use vanilla in its’ place
- Water – water should be used sparingly because it thins the icing out pretty quickly. Add one tablespoon at a time
Equipment You Might Need
- A stand-alone mixer, hand mixer, or whisk
- Mixing bowl
- Spoons
- Mixing utensils
How to Make Summer Beach Cookies
Step One
Preheat the oven
Mix the softened butter and sugar together until well blended
Add vanilla extract, almond extract, and eggs
Step Two
In another mixing bowl, whisk the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt
Step Three
Gradually add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture
Step Four
Spoon sugar cookie dough onto a baking sheet
Using the bottom of a cup, lightly press it onto a sugar cookie so it gets coated in grease
Dip the greased cup into granulated sugar to coat it
Push the sugar-coated cup onto a cookie to press it down
Repeat with the rest of the cookies
Step Five
Bake cookies for 8-10 minutes
Set them on a cooling rack to cool completely
Step Six
Mix powdered sugar, butter, and extract
Add water, one tablespoon at a time until the frosting is creamy and easy to spread
Step Seven
Spread frosting onto cookies and add fun decorations to the cookies
Use the image above for ideas on how to decorate your cookies
Expert Tip
Only add water one tablespoon at a time to your frosting mixture. Once your texture is the consistency that you want it, then stop adding water
If the icing gets too thin, add more powdered sugar
For a super quick shortcut, use store-bought sugar cookie dough or your own sugar cookie recipe
Variations
Use only almond extract or only vanilla extract in the cookie dough. Use vanilla extract instead of almond extract in the icing
You can use store-bought blue frosting which is usually sold in the summertime
Salt enhances the flavors of the other ingredients and adds tenderness
Cream of tartar helps the cookies puff up and makes chewy cookies
More summer treats you’ll enjoy
Storing
Store cookies covered at room temperature for a few days
Freezing
You can freeze sugar cookies without decorations
Serving Size
This recipe makes 2&1/2 dozen cookies
Need More? You can double everything in the recipe except baking soda, and cream of tartar
Only use 1 tsp. of baking soda, and keep the cream of tartar at 1 tsp.
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Summer Beach Cookies
Equipment
- 1 mixing stand, hand mixer or whisk
- 2 large spoons
- 1 mixing utensils
- 2 baking sheets
- parchment paper
- 1 glass cup
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter unsalted and softened
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- ½ tsp. almond extract
- 2 large eggs
- 2&1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp. cream of tartar
- ½ tsp. baking soda
- ¼ tsp. salt
- ½ cup granulated sugar
icing
- ¼ cup unsalted butter
- 3 cups confectioners sugar
- 1 tsp. almond extract
- 2-3 drops blue food coloring
- 2-3 tbsp. water
decorations
- Graham cracker-flavored goldfish
- S'more mix goldfish
- white non-perils sprinkles
- gummy rings
- airheads
- toothpick umbrellas
- star sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
- cream the butter and sugar until well blended and fluffy
- add extracts and eggs and mix well
- In a separate bowl, mix the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt
- Drop spoonfuls of cookie dough onto parchment lined baking sheets
- Slightly press a cup onto a cookie to get the bottom a little greasy
- Pour granulated sugar into a small bowl, and dip the greased bottom of the cup into the sugar
- Press a cookie down with the sugar coated cup
- Repeat with each cookie
- Bake cookies for 8-10 minutes
Icing
- Mix confectioners sugar, butter, almond extract, and a few drops of blue food coloring
- Add water 1 tablespoon at a time until the frosting becomes the right thickness
Decorating
- Decorate cookies with goldfish and white pearl sprinkles for bubbles
- add airheads for beach blankets. Place some icing on the back of a teddy graham to attach it to the blanket. Stick an umbrella over the bear on the beach
- place some bears into round gummies
- add stars to resemble starfish
