Frosted Maple Sugar Cookies
The crisp Autumn air is back! Celebrate the start of baking season with a batch of these tasty Frosted Maple Sugar Cookies!
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Enjoying the crisp chill in the air. Pulling a sweater off the top shelf of the closet. Watching football games on the weekends. Ah, Fall is back! Even though it feels like winter lasted forever (and ever…and ever…) last year, Fall is here again. I’m actually ok with that, though. We had a great summer here with Robbie, and Fall is my favorite time of the year. All of the reds, yellows and oranges of the leaves really puts me in a good mood. Ok, the return of baking season might contribute to that good mood, too. (Oh, who am I kidding? Baking season never stops in this house!)
Maple is one of those iconic Fall flavors, but did you know that maple syrup is actually made in the Spring? Yup, maple syrup and the Fall are completely unrelated. Well, to be fair, I bet maple syrup sales are high in the Fall, but maple farms aren’t actually in operation right now. Sugaring season for maple syrup actually happens in the late winter/early spring when the days are warm, but the nights are cold. The warmer temperatures encourage the trees to start making sap…and that sap is what eventually turns into the delicious stuff we put on pancakes. Maple syrup really is nature’s candy!
Sugarmakers literally put a single tap into each maple tree, and those taps slowly collect sap. Sometimes the sap drips into buckets which are collected by the sugarmaker. Sometimes those taps are connected to plastic lines which drain back into a sugarhouse. Either way, the sap is collected and gets boiled down to eliminate most of the water. It takes 40 gallons of sap to create 1 gallon of real maple syrup. 40 gallons!
We often go over to Vermont or western Massachusetts on maple weekend during sugaring season to pick up a gallon of fresh syrup. During this short 4-6 week period, sugarhouses are operating nearly around the clock to produce enough syrup for the whole year. And as a side note, these sugarhouses release clouds of maple steam into the air as part of the evaporation process. You can smell the sugarhouse long before you see it!
So even though maple syrup is made in the Spring, I still associate it with Fall flavors. Cinnamon, brown sugar, maple syrup. They all go together so well! Take these Frosted Maple Sugar Cookies, for example. There’s syrup (the real deal…not the fake stuff in those plastic squeeze bottles) in both the cookie as well as the frosting. And the result? Quite possibly cookie nirvana!
These Frosted Maple Sugar Cookies have a noticeable maple flavor, but it’s not as strong as eating pancakes or waffles coated in syrup. I love to bake (obviously), and I must admit that these Frosted Maple Sugar Cookies raced right up to the top of my favorite cookies list. In fact, this cookie recipe will now be my go-to whenever I need sugar cookies…which happens at least once a week around here!
Oh, and since we’re talking about maple syrup, I have throw a shout out to Runamok Maple. We stumbled across their syrup last Fall on a trip to Vermont, and we ended up getting bottles for everyone on our Christmas list. Those gifts were met with rave reviews…especially from my Dad in Texas. In fact, we plan on sending maple syrup out to our family again for the holidays this year. Bourbon barrel-aged maple syrup, anyone?
So grab a cup of coffee or tea and curl up on the couch with a Frosted Maple Sugar Cookie…or two. Enjoy!
Frosted Maple Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
For the Cookies
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup sugar
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 3 Tbsp pure maple syrup
- 1 large egg
- 3 additional large egg yolks
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ Tbsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
For the Frosting
- 1½ cups powdered sugar
- 2 Tbsp 1 oz. unsalted butter, melted
- 2 Tbsp pure maple syrup
- 2½ tsp milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- {optional} Fall-themed sprinkles
Instructions
For the Cookies
- Using a countertop mixer, cream the butter, sugar and brown together until light and fluffy (~2-3 minutes on medium speed).
- Add maple syrup, egg, egg yolks and vanilla; mix on low speed until well combined.
- Add flour, baking powder and salt; mix on low speed until well combined.
- Roll dough into large ball and wrap with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 60 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- On a well-floured countertop, roll dough to ¼” thickness. Using a 3” round cookie cutter, cut dough into circles. Place circles on parchment-lined baking sheet at least 1” apart.
- Bake for 15-18 minutes or until edges of cookies just begin to turn brown.
- Let cookies cool completely before removing from pan.
For the Frosting
- Using a medium mixing bowl, whisk together all frosting ingredients until smooth. (Note: If the frosting is too thin, add an extra ¼ cup of powdered sugar. If it is too thick, add 1 tsp of milk.)
- Frost the cookies.
- {Optional} Before frosting sets, sprinkle tops of cookies with fall-themed sprinkles.
Beautiful! You obviously love fall, as I do. I’m jealous of your cool crisp air, however. It’s terribly hot and muggy outside where I live!
Fall is my absolute favorite season of the year, Mimi! I love the crisp air in the morning, and I love just sitting down with a hot cup of coffee on the back porch. Sorry to hear that it’s still hot and muggy down there. We’ve had a hot and muggy summer here, too, but it looks like it might have finally broken. It’s coming your way! In the meantime, let’s make a batch of these maple cookies, ok? 🙂
Hi David! I always have a small jug of pure maple syrup on hand. I cannot stand “maple flavored” baked goods; that artificial flavor just overpowers everything. I haven’t made sugar cookies in a long while and these are now at the top of my list! Now I’m also hungry for waffles! 🙂
Tell me about it, Dorothy! I hate looking at maple flavored recipes only to see “maple flavoring” in the ingredient list. That’s not maple! These sugar cookies are seriously our go-to recipe for sugar cookies now…and the maple frosting? Well that just puts us in the mood for Autumn! 🙂 Hope you guys had a great weekend…and I hope the fall temperatures are heading your way!
Sad to say autumn has changed it’s mind and postponed the arrival. BUT keeping these !
I hear ya! Autumn has been back and forth here this year. It arrives. It leaves. It arrives. It leaves. But soon it will be here to stay! And these cookies are an excellent way to celebrate! 🙂
I definitely need to experience maple weekend someday. That sounds like so much fun! Maple is one of my very favorite flavors ever so I’m definitely going to make these cookies soon. Like tonight…they look incredible!
Come on up, Kelsie! Maple weekends actually happen in the spring (well, late winter). I’m sure Robbie would be happy to show you around! 🙂 Oh, and I forgot to mention maple cream. And maple cotton candy. And all-you-can-eat pancakes with fresh maple syrup. Have I convinced you yet?? Thanks so much, my friend!
I’m excited about the crisp fall air as the summer in Halifax area was intense (People say they don’t recall anything like that for ages). But it’s still petty hot here – the temperature goes up to 30c in the afternoon, and the mornings/evenings are not that different. They say it will be fresher next week – yes please! My mind is switching to fall recipes due to weather change, and we are going to visit an apple farm in a week. Also – I swear – I was wondering the other day if David would bring some maple flavors this fall. I certainly am glad you didn’t let me down; these cookies are amazing. Please don’t let me down one more time, and send them to me ASAP (But remember I’m watching my weight, so don’t be too generous…two-free dozens will be sufficient). Thanks!
I saw a stat on the news today that we had 20 days over 90°F this summer. The average in this area is 10. So, yeah, we had a hot summer. But the cool mornings have arrived! And you know I wouldn’t let you down with maple recipes, Ben. Maple is one of my favorite Fall flavors…even if it’s really made in the spring. And these cookies? Oh man, they are good! I’ll send you a couple. 🙂
Fall is in the air, and apparently in your kitchen too! Love these maple cookies. That picture of the maple house! I would absolutely love to visit one in the spring! That’s something we don’t find in the inland northwest!
Fall is definitely in my kitchen, Kathy! Once September rolls around, my brain clicks over to fall baking. Maple is one of my favorite fall flavors, and these cookies…oh, they’re so good! As far as the maple house, come on over! Maple weekend is usually late winter (like late February/early March). We’d be happy to show you around! 🙂
Wait – did I read that last bit correctly? Are you offering to send us some of that Bourbon barrel-aged maple syrup? Cos if you are, I have both hands and elbows up – especially of that Bourbon barrel-aged maple syrup comes with a side of these cookies! Good gosh, David, you have maple syrup in the cookie AND in the frosting?!?!?! Duuude – I dunno how you did it! How you managed to not eat all that frosting and simply serve up these Maple cookies naked! Sprouts here has a maple iced cookie that they almost always seem to sell out in like 2 weeks, every year I try my darndest to get my hands on a pack but now I can just make a batch of yours with two batches of frosting – one for me to eat with a spoon and one to use on the cookies 🙂
These are epic, dude! EPIC! Thanks for this recipe, my friend!
It’s still hot than a habanero here but this year, I too, am looking forward to fall! Hope y’all have a wonderful weekend!
Oh man, Shashi. That bourbon-barrel aged maple syrup is amazing! They have several other infused and barrel-aged flavors, too. So fun! The cardamom maple syrup is one of Laura’s favorites, and I have a hard time turning away from the classic! (The bourbon-barrel is a fun twist, but the classic still wins for me.)
I hear ya on the double batch of frosting, too! It was all I could do to get the frosting onto the cookies instead of straight into my mouth. Haha! Thanks so much, my friend. Hope it cools down to, say, jalapeno level down there soon. 🙂
I’m a sucker for maple ANYTHING and these cookies look so delicious, David! You’ve got me excited for holiday baking too!
Yes! Once September clicks around on the calendar, I turn my attention to baking. Breads are my favorite, but cookies and desserts come in a close second. These cookies are (were) so tasty, too, Marissa! Thanks so much, my friend!
Those are delicious looking cookies David. I am not ready for fall yet .
Oh, I am totally ready for fall, Gerlinde! Summer is nice and all, but it’s just hard to beat a cool, crisp fall morning. Now, winter on the other hand? That can just wait. Like forever. 🙂 Either way, these cookies are quite tasty with the maple syrup in ’em. Thanks so much, my friend!
I am a little jealous of your syrup adventure and more than a little hungry for a cookie now. I’ll PM you a mailing address LOL.
Haha! Send me your address, Bill. I’ll send you some syrup, but I can’t promise there will be any cookies left. 🙂 Thanks so much, my friend!
The air has the feel of fall here too. I love the flavor of maple. These cookies are great for the fall season.
It was downright cold here this morning, and I loved it! I know I’ll be over it come like February…but right now, the cool, crisp mornings are my favorite! And I also love baking with maple syrup, so these cookies are a new favorite, too. Thanks, Dawn!
These coookies look amazing!! Gotta give this recipe a try.
Thank you so much, Sheenam! These cookies really are my go-to whenever I’m craving sugar cookies…which happens quite a bit. 🙂 I hope you enjoy ’em!