These blue and green Earth cookies are out of this world! Perfect for Earth Day, these sugar cookies are easy to make and have a delicious vanilla flavor.
Whimsical Earth Cookies
These whimsical cookies have abstract depictions of land and water. They are simple and quick to make, as well as child-friendly.
Use Cream of Tartar for Soft Cookies
Did you know that cream of tartar will give your cookies a soft and chewy texture? These cookies have cream of tartar added to the dry ingredients, which means they do not bake up crispy. This is a baking trick to ensure that cookies stay soft after baking. Cream of tartar has a tangy flavor; however, not enough is used in this recipe to impact the flavor of these vanilla sugar cookies.
Color the Dough
Use gel food coloring to color the dough. I used leaf green and true blue–although many shades of green and blue will work. Add less color before mixing to ensure you do not go too dark. Be sure to keep the colors the same intensity in color so they complement each other.
Roll Earth Cookies into a Ball
Roll the blue dough into balls and then add bits of randomly placed green dough to give the effect of land and sea.
Baking Earth Cookies
Bake these cookies until set but not browned so they keep their color. Ovens vary, so bake for the least time listed in the recipe and then adjust the baking time as necessary.
Storing Cookies
Store these cookies in an airtight container on the countertop for 3 to 4 days. You can also freeze them.
Other Cookie Recipes You Might Like
Here are some other cookies you might enjoy. Click on each name to link to the recipe.
How to Make Earth Cookies
Equipment
- 1 or 2 baking sheets
- electric mixer
- silicone baking mat or parchment paper
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup butter, softened
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- blue gel food coloring
- green gel food coloring
Instructions
- Place a baking mat or parchment paper on the baking sheets. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Whisk the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt in a mixing bowl. Set aside.
- Add the butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla to a separate mixing bowl. Beat with a mixer until smooth and creamy.
- Add the dry ingredients and beat until just blended.
- Remove 1/4 of the dough, place it in another small bowl, and set aside. Add several drops of blue coloring to the mixing bowl with 3/4 of the cookie dough. Beat until the dough is a satisfactory shade of blue. Remove the blue dough and place it in another mixing bowl. Remove as much blue dough from the beater(s) as possible.
- Add the uncolored dough back to the mixing bowl in which you mixed the blue dough. You do not need to wash the bowl or beater. Add drops of green coloring and beat to mix well. Keep adding green, if necessary, until the desired shade is reached.
- Roll blue dough balls with your hands to about 1 to 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Pinch pieces of green dough and stick them randomly onto each blue dough ball. Shapes can mimic continents if desired or be made random because they will change shape when cooked. Once the green shapes are applied, re-roll the balls in your hands to smooth the green pieces.
- Place the balls on the prepared cooking sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake for 7-8 minutes or until set. Do not brown. After baking, let the cookies sit for 3 or 4 minutes to set. Then, remove them to a cooking rack.