A bouquet of Sugar Cookie Roses brightens any day. These eye-catching cookies are fun to make and easy to share, and they come together quickly using refrigerated sugar cookie dough.
Why you’ll love this recipe
Sugar Cookie Roses are the perfect finish to a series of Time Saver Recipes. Like the other recipes in the series, this version uses a shortcut ingredient—packaged refrigerated sugar cookie dough—to cut prep time and simplify ingredients without sacrificing charm.
The cookies are made by turning a roll of refrigerated cookie dough into a roll-out dough with a little added flour. A touch of extract boosts the flavor and a few drops of gel food coloring transform plain dough into delicate flower petals and green leaves.
This project is an edible craft: preparing the Time Saver dough takes only a few minutes, and assembling and baking the roses takes about 1 to 1½ hours. The dough is easy to work with and does not require a lengthy chill time (details below).
After testing a few approaches, the instructions and photos show the simplest, fastest method that consistently produces pretty rose-shaped cookies.
Instructions
This is an overview; full step-by-step directions follow in the recipe card below.
- Adapt the packaged refrigerated cookie dough by mixing in a small amount of flour to achieve a roll-out consistency. Roll the dough to about 1/8″ thickness between two sheets of parchment and cut circles with a 2″–2½” cutter. On a sheet of parchment or wax paper, place three circles in a vertical row with the edges overlapping slightly.
- Starting at the top, roll the three overlapping circles down into a tight cylinder, pinching gently as you roll to close any cracks in the dough.
- Use a sharp knife to cut the cylinder in half, creating two rose cookies from each roll.
- Gently dip the uncut petal ends in sparkling decorating sugar for a subtle sparkle. Place each cookie, cut side down, on a parchment-lined baking sheet about 3″ apart.
- Roll out the green dough and cut circles for leaves; cut each green circle into quarters and press two pieces onto the base of each rose to form leaves.
- Bake one sheet at a time for 15–16 minutes, then allow the cookies to cool briefly on the pan before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Storage
Store fully cooled Sugar Cookie Roses in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 7 days. To pack for gifting or transport, place cookies in pairs (bottoms together), wrap in plastic wrap, and stack in an airtight container or freezer-weight zip-top bag.
Tips and variations
- Store-bought refrigerated cookie dough is often softer than older formulations. Adding a few tablespoons of flour restores a roll-out texture. Add only as much flour as needed to form a cohesive dough ball; too much will affect texture and flavor.
- If the added flour dulls flavor slightly, increase the extract to taste. Citrus extracts—such as Sicilian orange or Fiori di Sicilia—are lovely with these cookies, but vanilla, almond, or anise also work well.
- I tested baking the rolled roses in both a flat baking sheet and a mini-cupcake pan. Baking on a sheet produced the best overall shape and texture. Mini-cupcake pans yield thicker, cup-like roses that are pretty but can become quite crunchy with prolonged storage; they’re a fine option if the cookies will be eaten within a couple of days.
- Chilling the shaped dough before baking creates a slightly different finished look but does not produce more defined petals. Unchilled dough tends to open slightly in the oven, producing an open rose viewed from above, while chilled dough can bake into a bud-like or sideways shape. Both are attractive; skipping the chill saves time.
- These cookies make lovely favors for baby showers, bridal showers, Valentine’s Day, and Mother’s Day.
More time saving recipes
Try other quick recipes that use a packaged mix or dough to speed prep: Chocolate Covered Cherry Bars, Cinnamon Chip Biscotti made from cake mix, Gingerbread Spice Cookies, Butterscotch Blondie Bars, Peppermint Crunch Cookies, and Mocha White Chocolate Biscotti are all simple, delicious options.
Sugar Cookie Roses (Time Saver Recipe)
Ingredients
- 1 roll refrigerated sugar cookie dough 16.5 ounces
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- Food coloring gel red and green
- ¼–½ teaspoon extract fiori di sicilia, orange, anise, almond, or vanilla
- Sparkling decorating sugar
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
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In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the refrigerated cookie dough and the flour. Beat until the dough comes together into a roll-able ball, about 1–2 minutes.
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Stir in the extract to boost flavor.
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Divide the dough into three portions. Leave one portion uncolored for white roses. Tint one portion red with 2–3 drops of red gel and knead until evenly colored. Tint the third portion green with 2–3 drops of green gel for leaves. Keep dough wrapped until ready to use.
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Roll the white dough between parchment sheets to 1/8″ thickness and cut circles with a 2″–2½” cutter. Arrange three circles in a vertical overlapping row on parchment or wax paper and roll them down from the top into a cylinder, pinching gently to close cracks.
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Cut the cylinder in half with a knife to form two rose cookies. Dip the uncut petal ends in sparkling sugar, then place each cookie cut-side down on the prepared baking sheet about 3″ apart. Repeat with the remaining white and red dough.
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Roll out the green dough, cut circles, and quarter each circle. Press two leaf pieces onto the base of each rose cylinder.
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Bake one sheet at a time for 15–16 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool on the baking sheet for 5–10 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
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Store cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 7 days.
Notes
Nutrition
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Carbohydrates: 21g
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Protein: 2g
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Fat: 6g
First Published: December 10, 2016. Last Updated: February 6, 2022.