Simple iced sugar cookies are sometimes all the magic you need.   This recipe is a delicious canvas for customization, which makes these perfect cookies for celebrating someone special.

Every year I make my niece her name in elaborately iced sugar cookies to celebrate her birthday, a ritual our whole family enjoys.   This year, I helped celebrate the naming of my adorable God Daughter the same delicious way.

So this weekend at the fabulous celebration my family has organized for Little Bea, it’s only fitting we have custom cookies, just for her.  Most of the party will be catered but all 100 of Little Bea’s butterflies had to come from my kitchen.

If you want to make your own cookie adventure…

Start by whisking together

3 ¼ cups flour

1 ½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

Cream together 2 ½ sticks butter and 1 cup sugar until it’s nice and fluffy.

Add 1 large egg, 1 ½ tbsp milk and 2 ½ tsp vanilla before slowly adding in the flour mixture. After you’ve added in the flour, the dough should be smooth and sticky but may not look totally together.  Take it out of the bowl and knead it like bread to finish it off.

Divide it into two sections, roll each one out to ½ inch thickness and refrigerate for about a half hour. When the dough is firm, it is much easier to cut out your shapes.

Place your cookies about an inch apart on a non-stick tray and bake at 375 for 11 minutes. Let them cool completely before you ice them.

Making icing is as easy as 4 cups of powdered sugar and a couple of table spoons of water.  Add a few drops of food coloring to get the shade you need.

I found these tiny squeeze bottles make the perfect icing dispensers!  And a little extra sugar is essential for some bling.

Voila! 100 Butterflies…

While you don’t need to be a pastry chef to make these cookies in any shape and size you want, you do need some time.  Set aside at least a couple of hours for the whole process and get the whole family involved. Decorating can be a team sport.