This Conversation Heart Sugar Cookies recipe takes classic buttery sugar cookie dough and turns it into oversized conversation hearts, complete with stenciled royal icing messages.
Sometimes you need to bake something cute just for fun. And these Conversation Heart Sugar Cookies are just the thing. The cookie dough recipe comes from my first book. I’ve probably made it 100 times. Maybe 200! It’s my favorite for decorating, and believe me, I’ve done a lot of cookie decorating over the past 16 years. The dough is unsticky, easy to tint with food color, and doesn’t brown much in the oven. So it’s perfect for this kind of vibrant cut out cookie.
Prepare the Dough
Make this dough on a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix the ingredients together until a non-sticky dough forms. I used LorAnn Cotton Candy Flavoring Oil to give it a distinctive candy flavor. It is highly concentrated, so a little goes a long way. But you could just use orange, lemon, or any fruity flavored extract in your pantry. Specific amounts are in the recipe card for both.
Divide and Color
Divide the dough evenly into even six portions. (Or use a scale if you have perfectionist tendencies -guilty!) Use neon gel food coloring to tint each piece a different color: pink, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple. And yes – while I realize conversation hearts candies are pastel, the light hue just didn’t have the same charm in cookie form. Recommendation: go bold! I used all 6 colors in this set from Chefmaster. However, discount stores and craft stores (Walmart, Michael’s) are now stocking neon gel food colors. So you might shop nearby first.
Roll Between Parchment Paper
Roll each color of dough between two sheets of parchment paper. This step eliminates the need for extra flour, keeping the colors vibrant and the surface perfectly smooth for stenciling. Aim for a thickness a little greater than ¼ inch – approximately 3/8 inch.
Cut into Hearts
Use a 5-inch heart-shaped cutter to cut out cookies. The one I used is from this set of cutters, but if you don’t want to buy a literal bucket of 101 cookie cutters (ha!) then this much smaller set has a large heart similar in size and shape.
Chill then Bake
Transfer the hearts to parchment-lined baking sheets and chill them for at least 30 minutes. Chilling prevents spreading and helps the cookies retain their sharp edges.
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Bake the cookies for about 15 minutes, or until the shiny surfaces have disappeared and the edges are just barely starting to turn golden. Avoid overbaking to preserve the vibrant colors.
Stencil
Once the cookies have cooled completely, prepare a batch of royal icing – which is included in the recipe here. Tint it red, then use Valentine’s Day stencils to add conversation heart messages to the cookies. You can find the stencils I used in this set right here.
Stencil Technique
Use an offset spatula to pick up some of the red royal icing on the upper 2″ tip of the spatula. Place the stencil on the cookie and center (as evenly as possible) then sweep and smooth the icing across the letters. Do this while holding the stencil down with one hand, and spreading icing with the other. Then lift the stencil straight up! Don’t try to peel it off to one side – the letters will smear. This advice comes from experience.
If you’re nervous about mastering the technique, use a piece of parchment paper or a scrap cookie to practice on first.
A few of my first stencils were imperfect and a little off-center on the cookies, and that really bothered me. But then I forgave myself when I saw the conversation hearts in my candy cabinet. I’m actually doing okay, I guess!
For me, candy conversation hearts will always bring a wave of nostalgia. Despite their chalky texture and odd flavor, I still love them. But I will admit that the buttery sugar cookie version is much tastier!
This recipe makes a lot of cookies – around 30. So if you’re the kind of person who spreads Valentine’s Day cheer all around, these make wonderful gifts. Just one packaged in cellophane and tied with pretty ribbon makes a sweet Valentine.
Related Recipe: Heart Shaped Lofthouse Style Sugar Cookies
Conversation Heart Sugar Cookies
Sugar cookies
- 2 cups unsalted butter softened
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon Lorann Cotton Candy Flavoring Oil or 2 teaspoons lemon extract
- 6 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
- Neon pink food color Chefmaster, see equipment link
- Neon orange food color
- Neon yellow food color
- Neon green food color
- Neon blue food color
- Neon purple food color
Royal icing (stiff peak)
- 1 large egg white, pasteurized at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar sifted
- 1/4 teaspoon lemon extract
- 1/2 tablespoon red gel food color such as Chefmaster Super Red
Sugar cookies
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In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the butter and sugar together until just incorporated. Do not over-mix at this stage, or the cookies may spread while baking. Add the egg and cotton candy flavoring or lemon extract. Mix again on low speed, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl intermittently as needed.
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In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Add to the butter and egg mixture. Mix on low speed until a thick dough is formed and there are no longer any streaks of butter in the mixing bowl. The dough will often clump around the paddle attachment while being mixed. This is normal and a good sign that your dough is the right consistency.
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Turn out the dough and divide into 6 equal portions. Tint each piece of dough with one of the neon gel food colors; begin by mixing in 1/4 teaspoon of gel food color and increase as needed to achieve a bright hue. If color looks spotty and doesn’t want to mix evenly, add 1 tablespoon of ice water and mix until the color disperses. Don’t add more water – overhydrating can make rolling the dough out tricky.
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Roll each piece of dough flat between 2 sheets of parchment paper and chill until ready for use, at least 30 minutes.
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Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two or more large baking sheets with parchment paper.
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Use a 5-inch heart motif cookie cutter to stamp shapes from the dough and transfer them to the prepared pans. Chill the shapes in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
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Bake cookies for 12-15 minutes, or until the cookies lose their shiny surface and appear matte on top. The edges may be very lightly browned. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. Re-roll scraps and repeat process. You should be able to get about 5 large heart shapes from each color of dough.
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Let the cookies cool on the pans for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
Royal icing
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In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg white with the lemon juice until combined and slightly foamy.
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Add the sifted confectioners’ sugar and beat on low speed until combined and smooth. Increase the speed to high and beat for 4-5 minutes, or until thick and billowy. The icing should stand in a stiff peak from the tip of the whisk attachment when it’s ready. Add the lemon extract and whip on high speed until well incorporated.
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Add the red food color and mix again until thoroughly combined. Add more red food color a little at a time, if needed. Keep in mind that some food color brands darken over time. You can wait a few minutes to see the final shade before adding more. Either way, cover with a damp tea towel so the frosting doesn’t dry out.
Stenciling
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Place a cookie on a flat work surface. Center the stencil on top of the cookie as evenly as possible.
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Dip the offset spatula into the royal icing so that about 2” of icing coats the tip of the spatula. Hold the stencil steady on the cookie with one hand while you spread the royal icing evenly over the words. Lift the stencil straight up from the cookie to reveal the message. Don’t peel it off from the side because the words will smear.
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Set aside on a wire rack to dry completely, about 30 minutes. Rinse stencil under warm tap water and wipe dry (see recipe notes). Repeat with the remaining cookies.
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Cookies will keep well air tight for up to a week. Baked and stenciled cookies can be layered between waxed paper and frozen for up to 3 months.
Flavoring Oils: The cotton candy flavoring oil I used in the dough has strong concentrated flavor, and works well to give these cookies a candy note. But it should not be used in the royal icing. Oil flavorings will deflate the icing, so be sure to use a non-oil based or alcohol-based extract instead.
Stencils: Stencils need to be rinsed off and dried after each use. This may seem like a chore, but the icing removes quickly under warm tap water. Sometimes a little of the royal icing will cling to the back of the stencil, so be sure that the stencil is completely clean before using it again.