These Copycat Swig Cookies are the BEST sugar cookies I’ve ever made. And none of the fussing of rolling and cutting and doing fancy frosting.
Copycat Swig Sugar Cookies
I went to school in Provo, Utah, which is a very odd place. There is something about Provo that causes fads to just explode there. Especially food fads. When cupcakes were in vogue, there was a cupcake store on every corner. Crepes had their time in the sun. Frozen yogurt was an epidemic. The current trendy food is boutique soda and cookie shops. This is one food trend I can really get behind, seeing as soda and cookies are in the top 5 list of things I love. My children usually take the top two spots, but depending on the day, soda and cookies are really gunning for the lead.
Unfortunately for me, but perhaps fortunate for my wallet and my pants, these soda and cookie shops didn’t exist back in my day at the ol’ BYU. So I’ve only sampled a few of their cookies and drinks on my brief visits. But I’ve had enough to know that their sugar cookies are out.of.this.world. I am not usually a sugar cookie fan. I hate crunchy cookies, and too-sweet frosting is not my jam.
But these!
I make exception for these perfect little beauties. The key to these cookies is you absolutely MUST NOT over bake them. One minute too long, and they become crispy and crumbly. This is not what we want. We want soft, chewy, almost pillowy delights. I tried probably about 10 different recipes for these cookies before landing on this combination of cookies and frosting. I will experiment no longer, I am married to this recipe.
These are perfect for baby showers, parties, birthdays… you can color the frosting any color and they are adorable! I love the sugary ruffled edges. Last week, I made them for a friend who just had a baby girl. I added a touch of this new hot pink gel food color I found. And then the frosting turned neon pink. Lesson learned for next time! Neon aside, they were delicious as always.
Why these rock
These are not your ordinary sugar cookies, and there are a few things you need to do to assure they will be everything you’ve dreamed of.
The perfect time for me is 11 minutes. The first time you make them, watch them like a hawk. Pull them out when they are puffy and not at all golden brown, but starting to round at the bottoms, like so.
Another factor that impacts optimal cookie texture is how thin you smoosh them. I like mine quite thick. It’s a better frosting-to-cookie ratio, in my opinion.
To really duplicate the soda shop cookie, you need to serve cold, refrigerated cookies with room temperature frosting. For some reason that cold soft cookie with soft, fluffy frosting it out of this world. That being said, I have absolutely never turned up my nose to room temperature cookie with room temperature frosting. Still delicious.
Have you heard of the likes of Swig and Sodalicious in your neck of the woods? Regardless of your familiarity with Utah-based food fads, these cookies deserve to be loved around the world!
Copycat Swig Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
Cookies
- 1 cup butter softened
- 3/4 cup canola oil
- 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons sour cream
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 5 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- Granulated sugar for pressing the cookies
Frosting
- ½ cup butter softened
- ¾ C Sour Cream
- 5 Cups powdered Sugar
- 1 t salt
- ¼ C Milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (or 325 on convection). Prepare cookie sheets with cooking spray or parchment paper.
- Cream together butter, oil, granulated sugar and powdered sugar. Sprinkle the baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt across the top of the sugars. Mix until well-combined and super creamy, 1-2 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Add the sour cream, eggs and vanilla and mix until well-combined, 1-2 minutes, again scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Add the flour and mix until no dry streaks remain and the mixture is evenly combined; don't overmix.
- Scoop the dough into about balls of about 3 tablespoons. Place several inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Add about 1/2 cup granulated sugar to a shallow dish or bowl. Lightly spray the bottom of a flat-bottomed glass with cooking spray and dip the bottom of the glass into the sugar. Press each cookie into an even thickness dipping the bottom of the glass into the sugar between each press (no need to spray it again with cooking spray after the first time). Don't press too thin!
- Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes until just set, not golden brown!
- Let the cookies cool for a few minutes on the baking sheets before removing to a cooling rack to cool completely. Place cooled cookies into the fridge.
Frosting:
- Cream together butter, sour cream, and salt. Add the powdered sugar. Add in the milk or cream to the desired consistency. For best texture, use room temperature frosting on cool cookies from the fridge.
Hey! Not sure if you are keeping an eye on this page anymore. Hoping you see my question! I am supposed to make heart shaped pink sugar cookies for an activity coming up in a few days. Have you tried these actually rolled out and cut out? Think it would work ok?
Gimme!!! Gimme!!! These look amazing! We only have Sodalicious here in Idaho but it’s the freakin bomb! Can’t wait to try these!
I can’t remember the difference between sodalicious and swig sugar cookies, but these are da bombbbbb!!!