Making and decorating roll out sugar cookies is a fun family activity at our house. We challenge each other to see who comes up with the most creative decorating ideas and we get to sample any of the cookies that break while frosting them!
Rolled cookies are usually fairly thin and crispy so the dough should be rolled to about 1/8 inch thick. The thinner they are rolled out the crispier and more fragile they will be. If you would like them softer simply leave them thicker and under bake them slightly by taking them out of the oven when they are still a little soft.
Your task will be much more successful if you chill the dough for at least 30 minutes prior to rolling out. When it is chilled simply take out enough dough for one rolling. Leave the rest in the refrigerator to stay cold. The work surface should be slightly floured. The more flour that is incorporated into the dough the tougher the cookie will be. If the dough becomes too soft to roll easily simply put it into the refrigerator again.
If you have problems transferring the cookies to the cookie sheets try rolling the dough out on a cooled cookie sheet and pull the excess dough away from the cut out cookies.
Start you own family traditions by decorating cookies for any holiday together. These will be memories that will last a lifetime!