Discover delightful dining staples for the holidays. Shop tabletop.

Renew, sign up, or gift a subscription to Magnolia Journal for inspiration year-round. Start here.

Surprise, delight, and wrap up just-right gifts that reflect what they love most. Get gifting.

Crew's Cookies

Crew’s Cookies

byJoanna Gaines
Total 3 hours (includes cooling and setting time)
Active 60 mins
Makes about 3 dozen cookies
TIP: Baking chilled cookies helps maintain the perfect shape of Crew’s Cookies.
Ingredients
Cookies
  • 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Glaze
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/2 to 3/4 cup heavy cream
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Directions
  1. To make the cookies: In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and granulated sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla and beat on medium-high until well incorporated, about 30 seconds.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt.
  3. On low speed, slowly add the flour mixture to the butter mixture. Mix until all the ingredients come together; a dough should be forming on the paddle and not sticking to the sides of your bowl.
  4. Place the dough between 2 sheets of parchment paper and roll to about a 1/4-inch thickness. Remove the top parchment sheet and use a 2-inch fluted round cookie cutter to cut out as many cookies as possible, leaving them in place. Gently peel off as much of the excess dough from between the cutout cookies as you can.
  5. Carefully transfer the cut dough on the parchment from the work table to a baking sheet by gently sliding the parchment onto the baking sheet. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. This will firm up the dough and help you remove any remaining excess dough. Reroll the dough scraps and cut out more cookies.
  6. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350°F.
  7. Bake one baking sheet at a time until the edges of the cookies are slightly golden, 10 to 12 minutes, rotating the baking sheet front to back halfway through the baking time. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely before glazing, about 30 minutes.
  8. To make the glaze: In a medium bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, 1/2 cup of the cream, and the vanilla. Mix in the remaining cream 1 tablespoon at a time, until the glaze is the consistency of glue. (Drizzle a spoonful of the glaze back into the bowl and it should hold a ribbon for about 10 seconds before melting into itself.)
  9. Transfer the glaze to a piping bag fitted with a small round tip or a heavy-duty zip-top bag with the corner snipped off. Pipe the glaze in a spiral on each cookie, starting in the middle and leaving a 1/4-inch border around the edges. Use a toothpick to smooth the glaze, if needed. Let stand until the glaze hardens, about 1 hour.
  10. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.