Give your next batch of cookies a retro vibe!
You might remember that in December I hosted a virtual murder mystery dinner party for my birthday. The party was 80’s themed so I decided to put together a goodie bag with an assortment of 80’s treats, including a few of these fresh baked Pac-Man cookies!
80’s Theme Pac-Man Cookies
The cookies are basic sugar cookie with a simple sugar glaze. I followed the Sally’s Bake Blog version of a basic sugar cookie with a few tweaks of my own. The cookies are less sweet to be able to play well with the sweet simple glaze.
These would be great in any shape, but I loved making them into Pac-Man and the little ghosts!
How to Cut Pac-Man Shaped Cookies
It took a bit of creative cutting. Essentially, for Pac-Man I cut a regular large round cookie. Then, using a pair of scissors held slightly open in a ‘V’ shape as my guide, I used a knife to cut out his open mouth. For the little ghosts, I cutout smaller circles, and then trimmed two sides to make them straight edged. The bottom is just a small series of “v” I cut out free hand, and then used my hands to gently soften the “v” to be more rounded on the bottom!
Make sure to colour your icing in those vibrant Pac-Man colours. I used chocolate chips for their eyes, added some sprinkles for extra sparkle, and voila! Pac-Man cookies!
A great basic sugar cookie for any occasion
Transform this basic sugar cookie into any shape you like for any occasion. Try more christmasy shapes for the holidays, or heart shapes as a treat for Valentines day, or how about baking a batch for a birthday treat!
I used this same recipe to make snowflake shapes and mailed them out in little treat boxes for family and friends during the holidays. This really is a great basic cookie recipe to add to the rotation!
Basic Sugar Cookie & Simple Glaze
Ingredients
For the Cookies
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature (170g)
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar (75g)
- 1 large egg at room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 all-purpose flour (spoon & leveled) (281g)
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
For the Simple Glaze
- 1 1/2 cup icing sugar (180g)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp water, room temperature
- pinch salt
Instructions
Make the Cookies
- In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat 3/4 cup butter until creamed and smooth – about 1 minute. Add 1/3 cup sugar and beat on high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 or 4 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- Add 1 egg, 2 tsp vanilla extract and beat on high until fully combined, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together. Turn the mixer down to low speed, and add about half of the flour mixture, beating until just barely combined. Add the rest of the flour and continue mixing until just combined. If the dough still seems too soft, you can add 1 tbsp more flour to get to a better consistency for rolling.
- Take the dough out onto a lightly floured clean counter. Divide the dough into 2 equal parts. Roll each portion out onto a piece of parchment to about 1/4″ thickness. Stack the pieces (with paper) onto a baking sheet, cover lightly, and refrigerate for at least 1-2 hours and up to 2 days. Chilling is very important and will effect the final product. Don't skip this part!
- Once chilled, preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line 2-3 large baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat (you can use the same parchment from when you chilled the dough). The number of baking sheets you need will depend on how large/small you cut your cookies. Remove one of the dough pieces from the refrigerator and using a cookie cutter, cut into desired shapes. Transfer the cut cookie dough to the prepared baking sheet. Re-roll the remaining dough and continue cutting until all is used up. The key is to keep the dough cold until right before you bake.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes, until very lightly starting to get golden colored on top and around the edges. Make sure you rotate the baking sheet halfway through bake time. Allow to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before icing. No need to cover the cookies as the cookies cool.
Make Simple Glaze
- For the icing, in a medium bowl, whisk together 1 1/2 cups icing sugar, 1/2 tsp vanilla, pinch salt, and 2 tablespoons of water. It should be quite thick like a jam. If it is too thick, add 1/2 Tablespoon more water. If it is too thin, add 2 tbsp of icing sugar. If you drizzle a little of the icing with the whisk, the ribbon of icing will hold for a few seconds before melting back into the icing. That is when you know it’s the right consistency and is ready to use.
- If you want to colour your icing add liquid or gel food colouring. If not decorating right away, cover the icing tightly and keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
Decorate the Cookies
- Decorate the cooled cookies however you’d like. If you are using sprinkles make sure to work quickly so the sprinkle stick to the wet icing before it starts to set. Once set the icing will not be sticky. Serve immediately, or wait 24 hours for the icing to set and harden– no need to cover the cookies as the icing sets.
