Name: Shark Sugar Cookies
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 7 min
Total time: 147 min
Ingredients: 1 cup white sugar; 1/2 cup butter (room temperature); 1 large egg; 4 Tbsp milk; 1 tsp vanilla extract; 2 cups all purpose flour; 1 tsp baking soda; 1/4 tsp salt; 1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)

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Shark Sugar Cookies with Printable Gift Tag

These shark sugar cookies are perfect for celebrating a day at the beach or a shark themed party! Grab the free printable tag below to create a fun gift.

These classic sugar cookies are fun to make for your next event or party! I’m a huge fan of creating treats for every occasion, especially delicious ones like these.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Too busy to make this right away? Pin it for later! Pin this easy recipe to your favorite board on Pinterest and it will be waiting there when you’re ready.

Sugar cookie dough is super versatile and easy to make with only a few ingredients from the grocery store. Start with simple ingredients like butter, granulated sugar and all purpose flour.

Be sure to set aside enough time to decorate these cookies, you may even want to spread it out over a few days. When adding details it’s important to wait until the layer of flooded icing is completely dry otherwise the icing may crack and the colors will bleed.

Make sure that you have everything that you need to make and decorate these cookies. I found our cookie cutters and icing bottles at Michaels but you can also order them from Amazon below.

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This is my grandma’s classic sugar cookie recipe – time tested and delicious. The only thing that I have changed over the years is swapped out shortening for butter.

How to make shark sugar cookies:

Ingredients:

1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1 large egg
4 Tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

Tip: Pre-made Pillsbury refrigerated sugar cookie dough can be used to create these cookies as well. Simply add 1/4 cup of flour to the dough, combine well and roll as directed. I love quick mom hacks like this!

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

2. In a large bowl with electric mixer or stand mixer with paddle attachment, combine dry ingredients. Add butter, egg, milk and extract. Mix on medium speed until a soft dough forms.

3. Chill the dough in the refrigerator for at least one hour. This helps to prevent the dough from spreading when baked.

4. Dust your surface with flour and use a rolling pin to roll the dough to 1/4″ thickness.

5. Use cookie cutters to cut shapes from the dough. Place the cookies on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet.

6. Bake until the cookies are lightly brown around the edges, about 7 minutes.

7. Place the cookies on a wire rack to cool.

This recipe will make about 72, 2″ cookies.

Use my Easy Royal Icing Recipe to make the best icing for these cookies! You will need black, grey, red and white royal icing.

Royal icing tips:

If the icing is too hard, add more water one drop at a time.
If the icing is too soft, add more powdered sugar one teaspoon at a time.
Icing can be stored at room temperature in a an airtight container for up to two weeks.
To use, mix the royal icing with a hand mixer so that it becomes smooth and shiny again.
Flood consistency is reached when a spoonful dropped onto a flat surface takes 10 – 15 seconds to become completely smooth.

These instructions will show you how to decorate shark and bouy cookies like these ones. The options are endless, have fun with the decorating!

How to decorate shark sugar cookies:

Additional supplies: edible black food marker.

1. Outline each different colored area with a line of icing before flooding the center of the area. For the bouys create three white sections on the donut shaped cookie.

2. Fill in the rest of the donut with three red sections. Use a toothpick or scribe to coax icing into corners or spaces.

3. Allow each area to dry for about 30 minutes before adding adjacent colors. For the sharks create a black semi circle on the lemon shaped cookie.

4. Fill the outer edge with grey icing. Allow the surface of the shark cookie to dry before adding details.

5. Pipe red icing between the black and red on the cookie.

6. Add white teeth to the inside of the mouth, use a toothpick to pull the white icing into a point if needed.

7. Add nostrils to the grey icing using a black food marker.

How fun are these shark cookies?! Super cute right?! I wish that my boys were still little so that I could use these at a birthday party or school event for them.

They still appreciate eating sugar cookies, just not the elaborate decorating that goes into creating them.

Allow the icing to completely harden for at least four hours before packaging or storing the cookies. These are super fun to throw into a cookie box and gift to a shark lover!

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Some of my baking essentials:

I love using this non-stick bakeware for all of my baking.
These silicone mitts are perfect for grasping hot pans and baking dishes.
This Henckel Knife is my favorite for slicing and dicing in the kitchen.
These parchment paper bags are perfect for packaging and these large Rubbermaid food storage containers are great for storing baking in the freezer.

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