Frosted Sugar Cookies (Lofthouse Cookie Clone)

Edit January 6, 2012: Added a photo. Also, since first making this recipe I tried another soft frosted sugar cookie recipe that used sour cream, and then made these again for Christmas eve and much prefer the texture of these cookies. The ones with sour cream were definitely delicious, but this recipe is a lot closer to the Lofthouse cookies that I was trying to imitate. Definitely use unsalted butter for these, I generally use salted butter because I don't mind the extra salt and that's what we use more around the house, but it makes these too salty.

Have you had those amazing sugar cookies they have at the grocery store? The ones you know you shouldn't buy because you'll eat them all? They're very cake-y in texture in the best way, and they have super sweet frosting. They're called Lofthouse cookies and they're seriously epic. I don't buy them because I refuse to buy cookies if I can bake some (unless they're oreos, that's completely different).

Another question, is it normal to talk to dogs in the way you talk to people? My mother just asked her dog/bear/rug (also known as a Newfoundland) why he didn't tell her that he needed to go out. I'm pretty sure that's not normal. But, I talk to the things I cook and bake as if they were going to talk back ("are you done? if you burn I am going to be pretty pissed, so don't you dare burn"). Guess I know where I got that from

So anyway, I didn't actually get a picture of these because I made them, had to leave, go to work all day the next day, and then by the time I got home there was only two left so I ate them before I could think about it. But they were so good that I will be making them again very, very soon.

I've been looking for a recipe similar to the Lofthouse cookies for a while now, but most of the ones I found didn't seem close enough, or used a boxed cake mix, and I refuse to bake with boxed cake mix since that takes all the fun out of baking and isn't actually baking. These, however, are amazing. They are freakishly similar to the original Lofthouse cookies, except they're more buttery, which is always a good thing. I didn't change anything to the recipe, other than to add more powdered sugar to the icing as it was runny.

The icing will firm up and become the same texture as the ones from the store after they sit for a bit. The ones I made were just as good on the second day, though I'm not sure how they'd fair after that since they didn't last that long.
Here is the recipe, from the wonderful Annie at Annie's Eats. It's definitely a recipe to make as soon as possible.

Oh you know what else is exciting? They have fancy butter at Publix, who knew? I sure didn't. I looked up at the shelf above the store brand butter that I normally buy and there was like, 4 different kinds of European-style and Irish imported butter! I made some cake with it, just because I felt like it. At over double the price of regular butter it isn't something I'll be buying often (when you use as much butter as I do, even store brand gets a little pricey), but next time I make some shortbread cookies I'll try it and see if I'll be able to tell the difference.

As soon as school starts I'll be blogging more, I've just been so busy this summer doing everything except being home, except when I bake, that I haven't had time to blog. But when school rolls around I'll be procrastinating so much that I'll be posting a ton :P

Hope everyone is having a wonderful summer!