Football Cookies

When it comes to a Super Bowl Sunday party, you have a mixed bag of guests: those who are there for the big game and others who are more interested in the commercials and halftime show. But one aspect everyone can get behind is all the irresistible football foods on the table. While everyone else is bringing trays of sliders and slow cookers full of hot dips, you can be the dessert hero with these football cookies.

The base of these treats is a thick, soft sugar cookie—something you may have made a hundred times if you’re an avid Christmas cookie baker—cut out and decorated into the simple shape of a football with homemade royal icing. These cookies are a lot easier to pull off than they look, but impressive all the same.

Ingredients for Football Cookies

• Butter: Soften 1 cup (two sticks) of butter by taking it out of the fridge 30 minutes before starting the recipe. Softened butter will whip up seamlessly and easily with the granulated sugar. Since there are so few ingredients in this recipe, I like to use the highest quality of each one, especially when it comes to the best butter.
• Sugar: Be sure to use granulated sugar and not brown sugar for these football sugar cookies. Brown sugar will discolor the dough and add a molasses flavor that won’t pair very well with the other ingredients here.
• Eggs: When you take the butter out of the fridge, take the two eggs out too. The eggs should be at room temperature so they can blend better with the other ingredients, creating a beautiful emulsion and better dough.
• Extracts: Don’t skimp on these extracts! Without vanilla or almond extract, these sugar cookies will taste pretty plain.
• All-purpose flour: Make sure you know how to measure flour the right way so your cookies aren’t too dense or too soft. Sugar cookies have a characteristic chew to them, which is achieved by using the proper amount of flour and rolling out the cookie dough to a certain thickness.
• Baking powder: If you’ve had it in your pantry for a while, test your baking powder to make sure it will still rise.
• Frosting: These football sugar cookies are decorated with homemade royal icing. Royal icing is what professional cookie decorators use so they can add fine details without making the cookies look messy. Plus, royal icing sets cleanly.

Directions

Step 1: Make and chill the dough

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In a large bowl, use a hand mixer or stand mixer to cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, five to seven minutes. Beat in the eggs, vanilla extract and almond extract.

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In another bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt. Gradually beat the dry mixture into the creamed mixture just until combined.

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Take the dough out of the bowl and shape it into a disk. Wrap the disk in storage wrap, then pop it in the refrigerator and let it chill until firm, about one hour.

Step 2: Roll and cut out the dough

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Preheat the oven to 375°F. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to 1/2-inch thickness.

With a football-shaped cookie cutter, cut out the football shapes. Place the cutouts 1 inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets.

Step 3: Bake the cookies

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Bake the cookies until the edges begin to brown, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove the pans from the oven and let the cookies cool on the pans for five minutes. Transfer the cookies to wire racks and let the cookies cool completely to room temperature.

Step 4: Create the royal icing

In a small bowl, combine the confectioners’ sugar, whole milk, meringue powder and vanilla extract. Use a hand mixer or stand mixer to beat the ingredients together on low speed just until combined. Then, turn up the mixer to high and beat until stiff peaks form, four to five minutes. Transfer 1/4 of the icing to a separate bowl. Tint the larger bowl of icing with brown food coloring.

Editor’s Tip: Cover the white royal icing with a damp paper towel so it doesn’t dry out.

Step 5: Decorate the football sugar cookies

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With a mini offset spatula or butter knife, spread the brown royal icing on the cooled cookies.

Editor’s Tip: To make a clean football design, place the brown royal icing in a piping bag with a narrow tip. Pipe the outline of a football on the cookie and let the outline set. Then, either continue to pipe the inside or use a mini offset spatula to fill the inside of the outline with brown royal icing.

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Place the white icing in a piping bag fitted with a narrow tip. Once the brown royal icing has completely set, pipe white lines on the cookies to resemble a football. Let the royal icing dry.

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Recipe Variations

• Spruce up the cookies with your team’s colors: Make your team’s main color the color of the football, and use the secondary color for the football’s lacing. For example, Philadelphia Eagles fans will have a Kelly green (or midnight green) football with silver lacing, Chicago Bears fans will have a dark blue football with orange lacing and Minnesota Vikings fans will have a purple football with gold lacing.
• Use sprinkles for texture: Just before the brown royal icing sets, gently dip the sugar cookie flat into brown-dyed sanding sugar. After that layer has completely set, pipe on the lace football detailing and then sprinkle on clear sanding sugar. The sanding sugars add a lovely detailing to the football cookies!

How to Store Football Cookies

Store decorated football cookies in an airtight container, but try not to stack the cookies in the container—even if you place a piece of parchment or waxed paper between layers, you can still run the risk of smudging your pretty design. These cookies can be kept at room temperature for up to five days.

Can you freeze football cookies?

Yes, you can freeze football sugar cookies, but we recommend freezing them before they’re decorated. Let your baked cookies cool completely to room temperature. Then, stack them in an airtight container, laying a piece of parchment between each stack. Freeze the cookies for up to three months. When you’re ready, remove the cookies from the freezer and let them come to room temperature before decorating.

Football Cookie Tips

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What can I use if I don’t have a football-shaped cookie cutter?

If you don’t have a football-shaped cookie cutter, draw an outline of a football or print out a picture of a football on a piece of paper. Cut out the shape and use it as a stencil on top of the cookie dough. Take a paring knife and cut around the stencil into the dough to make the shape of the football.

If you decide to draw an outline yourself, remember that the shape of a football is just an oval with pointed ends. Whether you draw an outline or use a printed-out image as the stencil, make sure the non-marked side of the paper is the side touching the dough.

Can I just make chocolate cookies instead and not use brown icing?

Yes, you absolutely can omit the sugar cookies and instead use chocolate sugar cookies. That way, you don’t have to add a brown royal icing (but you still can if you want!) and all you have to do is pipe on the football detailing.

Can I use buttercream frosting instead?

Yes, you can use buttercream frosting instead, but the design won’t be as clean. Once you make the buttercream, set aside 1/4 of the plain white buttercream. Tint the larger portion of buttercream brown (or just use chocolate frosting). Pipe the brown buttercream onto the cookies, making the outline first and filling it in with the buttercream. Use a mini offset spatula to gently spread out and smooth the inside piping. Let the brown frosting set. Then, pipe on the white laces as directed in this recipe using the plain white buttercream.