Step into the enchanting wizarding world with these irresistible Harry Potter sugar cookies! These magical treats will transport you straight to Hogwarts for your next movie marathon or wizard party. And be sure to check out all my enchanted Harry Potter recipes!
Here's my not-so-secret confession: I am obsessed with Harry Potter. And for Christmas one year, I received an awesome Harry Potter-themed cookie baking kit from Williams and Sonoma! It provides the recipe, a bunch of neat cookie cutters, and piping bags to make incredible Harry Potter sugar cookies!
As a side note, is it totally wrong that Hedwig was my favorite cookie to eat? They all taste the same, but just the shape of that owl was so perfect for each bite... Especially dunked in a mug of homemade hot butterbeer!
In case you're wondering, yes, I am a Ravenclaw. Perhaps you happened to notice the Ravenclaw scarf in the cookie photos? Hey, I have to rep my House colors, you know? 😉
Oh, why I'm so glad you asked, yes that is my time turner in the photos! Like I said, I'm kind of crazy about Harry Potter, and I'm not afraid to show it!
Tips for Decorating Cookies with Royal Icing
I have serious respect for anyone who decorates cookies by piping with royal icing, because it literally took me an entire Harry Potter movie to decorate these cookies.
Decorating cookies with royal icing can be a bit tricky, but I've made dozens and dozens of batches over the years, and am sharing all my tips with you here.
- Thick Icing: If your icing feels too thick to pipe, whisk in just half a teaspoon of water at a time until it becomes the right consistency.
- Thin Icing: If you notice that your icing is too runny, sift in a little powdered sugar to help thicken it.
- Smooth Icing: Sift your powdered sugar to ensure there aren't any lumps in your royal icing.
- Gel Food Dye: Use gel food coloring instead of liquid food coloring or dye. The liquid brands could cause your icing to be too runny, and you'll need a lot more of the dye to achieve the same colors.
- Test for Texture: You can tell when your icing is thick enough if you lift some out of the bowl on a spoon and it drizzles off the spoon and sinks back into the rest of the icing and leave no trace within about 10 seconds.
My Pro Decorating Tips
- Practice First: If you're new to royal icing, practice piping on parchment paper. Once you get the hang of it, then you can level up to decorating your cookies.
- Cool Cookies: Allow your cookies to cool completely before icing them. Otherwise the warmth from the cookies could cause your icing to melt and spread.
- Prevent Color Bleeding: For icing colors that are right next to each other, allow the first color to dry and harden before adding the next color.
Baker's Hack: If you end up with extra royal icing when you decorate your treats, you can make your own sprinkles! Just pipe it out on parchment paper in long strips, then after it dried and hardens, slice the strips into your desired sprinkle sizes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why are my frosted sugar cookies dry?
If you overbake your cookies, they'll end up dry. Try to roll the dough as evenly as possible. Any cookies that are thinner will bake faster and need to come out of the oven sooner to avoid being overbaked.
Why does sugar cookie dough need to be chilled?
Chilling sugar cookie dough allows it to become firm, so it's easier to roll and cut into cute shapes. Chilling also prevents the cookies from spreading as much in the oven, so they maintain the shape from the cookie cutters.
Harry Potter Sugar Cookies
developed & tested by:
Equipment
- Harry Potter cookie cutters
- Piping bags
Ingredients
Sugar Cookies
- 2½ cups all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 12 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened at room temperature (1½ sticks)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
Royal Icing
- 3½ cups powdered sugar
- 2 egg whites
- 2 to 4 teaspoons water
- gel food coloring (red, yellow, brown, and black)
Instructions
Sugar Cookies
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the room temperature butter for about 3 minutes until it is creamy and a paler yellow.
- Add the sugar to the butter and beat for another 3 minutes, until it is fluffy and very pale yellow.
- Add in the egg and vanilla extract. Beat for another minute or two, until the egg and vanilla are fully incorporated.
- Add half the flour and salt mixture and beat on a low speed for about a minute, until there is no dry flour visible.
- Add the remaining half of the flour and salt mixture and beat for another 3 minutes, until there is no more dry flour visible and the dough stays in a ball when you squeeze it in your palm.
- Divide the dough in half and shape the dough into two round discs. Wrap them individually in plastic cling wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.
- When you're ready to begin rolling out the dough, take the dough out of the fridge for at least 15 minutes, so it can warm up a bit and become easier to work with.Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper..
- On a lightly floured clean work surface, roll out one of the dough discs until it is ¼-inch thick. Cut out shapes with your cookie cutters.
- Spread out the cookies on the baking sheet and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until they are golden around the edges.
- Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool. Continue rolling out the dough and cutting cookie shapes until you've used all the dough. Let all the cookies cool completely before decorating them.
Royal Icing
- Sift the powdered sugar into a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer.
- Add the whites of two eggs. Begin beating it on a very low speed. Gradually increase the speed of your mixer and beat it for about 5 minutes on a high speed, until it is very creamy.
- Add two teaspoons of water to your icing to thin it out. If you pick some up with a spatula and let it drip in ribbons back into the bowl, it should sink back into the rest of the icing and leave no trace within about 10 seconds.
- Divide your icing into four bowls. Add gel food coloring to achieve the desired colors that you want to decorate with. Below are the color mixtures I used. Black - all black Gold - two parts yellow to one part brownMaroon - mostly red with a bit of brownWhite - none, the icing is already white
- Add your icing colors into individual piping bags and decorate your cookies.
Notes
- Icing Texture: If you notice that your icing is too stiff, add another teaspoon of water and mix to loosen it. And if you notice that your icing is too runny, sift in a little powdered sugar to help thicken it. You can tell when your icing is thick enough if you lift some out of the bowl on a spoon and it drizzles off the spoon and sinks back into the rest of the icing and leave no trace within about 10 seconds.
- Food Dye: Use gel food coloring instead of liquid food coloring or dye. The liquid brands could cause your icing to be too runny, and you'll need a lot more of the dye to achieve the same colors.
Flora says
**Harry potter theme song playing in the background!!
Carissa Erzen says
Hahaha 100% YES!!!
An Ordinary Girl says
How does one even eat that piece of art?
strawberryandcream says
Haha! That's so sweet! After the first bite, it was easy since they tasted so yummy! 😋
ordinaryfabgirl says
Wow, those Harry Potter cookies look great
strawberryandcream says
Aww thank you!! Almost as good as going to Hogwarts! 🥸🤪
indianeskitchen says
How cute and what a great set of cookie cutters! Frosting with royal frosting is so much fun!
strawberryandcream says
Thanks, Diane!! I was quite nervous about decorating with royal icing for the first time but after the first few cookies, I sort of got into a groove and it was really fun! I'm already thinking of new ways to decorate cookies hehe 😉
The Strawberry Snaps says
These look amazing !
strawberryandcream says
THANK YOU!! ☺ï¸
The Strawberry Snaps says
No problem! I love the content of your blog! Followed 🙂
strawberryandcream says
Thank you so so much, that means a lot!!! 🥰â¤ï¸
JPE says
Cookies are just too cute to eat...and yet...cookies look so yummy I could eat them all with a big glass of milk!
strawberryandcream says
Haha! I felt the same way - I felt a little bad eating then butttttt at the same time, they were too delicious not to gobble up 😉
zerowasteinmykitchen says
How cool! ðŸ˜
strawberryandcream says
Thank you!! ☺ï¸
Yum-number1 says
You're a Harry, wizard!
Cute cookies!
strawberryandcream says
“You're a hairy, wizard!†ðŸ˜
strawberryandcream says
Hehe thank you! ðŸ˜â˜ºï¸
popsiclesociety says
Oh wow! These are so cute!