Confetti Cookies

Perfect for a birthday or a rainy Tuesday, these soft, sprinkle-covered. almond flavored sugar cookies will brighten the day!  They freeze well as dough balls or baked cookies, so go ahead and make a big batch so you can have some on hand for a quick treat or gift.

For the most uniform cookies, we recommend you use a 1-1/2 Tablespoon scoop. Makes 4 dozen 2-1/2 inch cookies. Recipe adapted from two by King Arthur Flour and Smitten Kitchen. 

This is a great recipe to bake with kids!

• 3 cups (375g) all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon fine sea or table salt
• 1 cup (8 ounces, 225g or 2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup (2 ounces, 55g or 1/4 of an 8-ounce brick) cream cheese
• 1-1/4 cups (250g) granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
• 1 cup rainbow sprinkles

1. Heat oven to 375F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.
2. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl and whisk to blend
3. In your stand mixer fitted with SideSwipe or your flat paddle, beat on medium speed : cream cheese, butter and sugar until fluffy.
4. Add egg and extracts and blend on medium speed until well combined.
5. On your mixer's lowest speed, add the flour mixture all at once, and beat just until flour disappears. Chill dough in the fridge for 20 minutes.
6. Scoop balls of dough using a 1-1/2 Tablespoon scoop if you have one, or approximate the size and roll completely by hand. With scooped dough, roll gently in the  palms of your hands before dropping them in a bowl of rainbow sprinkles and gently rolling to coat them evenly. The sprinkles stick best to slightly hand-warmed dough.
7. Transfer balls of sprinkle-coated dough to lined baking sheets at least two inches apart. Use the bottom of a drinking glass to press down on the cookies until they are about 1/4 to 1/2-inch tall. Fill in any bare spots in the sprinkles if you like. Add more sprinkles on top if you want a heavy coating - the cookies will spread a little and may leave gaps.
8. Bake for 9 to 10 minutes until they look underbaked but lightly golden underneath. [Err on the underbaked side, otherwise the cookies will become too crisp by Day 2.] Let cool on the baking sheet on a rack for a few minutes before transferring to cooling racks to cool the rest of the way. Repeat with remaining cookie dough.