These fluffy sourdough sour cream cookies are the perfect treat for Valentine’s Day. Made with sourdough discard, sour cream, natural food coloring and sugar, these are sure to make your Valentines Day sweet!
In my opinion, these sourdough sour cream cookies are the grown up version of a sugar cookie because it is not “too” sweet but scratches the sugar cookie itch without putting you in a sugar coma.
Each bite had me transported back to my childhood thinking about one of my dad’s favorite cookies- a sour cream cookie! This cookie is everything we love in a sour cream cookie- soft and pillowy, not crumbly or dry and slightly sweet.
These sourdough sour cream cookies are slightly sweet but not overpowering. Because they have both powdered sugar and white sugar, there is a delicate balance of sweetness.
And of course because we are all about sourdough, these sour cream cookies are made with sourdough discard. Sour cream and powdered sugar lend this sugar cookie a soft, delicate bite.
Now I love sharing memories like these with my children. It is always a blast seeing my daughters explore the kitchen and immerse themselves in a new recipe with me.
Having a creative outlet which not only calms me but brings me joy exudes from me and brings out a smile in them. Of course all the samples help keep them engaged!
Making these sourdough Valentine’s Day cookies was no exception. We had a blast coloring the dough and rolling it out.
The hardest part was waiting to cook them after they were cut out. And of course determining what direction we wanted to go with topping them.
When making these cookies I could not but help think of all the places we could bring them. Valentine’s day parties at school, Valentine’s day party with friends and even an engagement party or baby shower.
I would have loved to make these for our “sweet little one” birthday party for my daughter when she turned one! How cute would these heart shaped old fashioned sourdough sour cream cookies be to match the love theme?
Whatever occasion you end up making these for, I hope you enjoy them. They certainly did not last long in our household!
Why you will love these
Kitchen Equipment
There are a few pieces of kitchen equipment which make this recipe easy.
- Hand mixer
- Baking / cookie sheets
- Large mixing bowl
- Cooling rack
- Wax paper (or parchment paper)
- Rolling pin
- Heart shaped cookie cutter (two sizes)
- Circle cookie cutter
Ingredients for Sourdough Heart Shaped Cookies
These sourdough sour cream cookies come together with 10 ingredients you likely have in your house. And if you are not a fan of cream of tartar (or do not have it in your house), these are like sourdough sugar cookies are made without it.
Sourdough Sour Cream Cookie Dough
- All purpose flour
- This recipe has been tested with all purpose flour. If you use gluten free flour or whole wheat flour, end results may vary in taste and texture.
- White Sugar
- Powdered sugar
- The key to a moist sour cream cookie is powdered sugar. Because of the powdered sugar texture and cornstarch, the cookies come out delightfully soft.
- Salt
- Baking powder
- Unsalted butter
- To ensure the cookies are not too salty, use unsalted butter. If using salted butter, leave the the salt out of the recipe.
- Sour Cream
- Whole fat sour cream or reduced fat sour cream work well within this recipe.
- Sourdough discard
- Active sourdough starter and sourdough starter discard are both great options. The rise and minimal spread of the cookies come from baking powder.
- Egg
- One whole egg is used within this recipe.
- Vanilla extract
- Almond extract
- Optional if you enjoy this flavor in sour cream cookies.
Decoration
- White chocolate
- Buttercream frosting
- Sprinkles
- Sugar in the raw
How to make Sourdough Sour Cream Cookies
To prepare these sourdough heart shaped sour cream cookies, there are a few steps involved. The most important step to consider is chilling the dough so the colored heart shapes can be created and rolled onto the plain sugar cookie dough so they do not meld together.
Stir and go
Allow the butter, egg and sourdough discard to reach room temperature. This will allow the dough to come together easily and have less time in the fridge solidifying enough to easily work with.
With a handheld mixer, whip the softened butter until light and fluffy in a large bowl. Mix in the white sugar and powdered sugar.
Then add the egg, vanilla extract, sour cream and the sourdough discard. Mix until combined.
In a separate bowl, combine the baking powder, flour and salt. Combine the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients.
Remove 1/3 of the mixture for the colored hearts and circles. Split the 1/3 dough in half again and place in separate bowls.
Add food coloring to each bowl with the colors of choice. We used purple and red.
The purple color was made by combining red and blue food color together. The red was deeper in color until it sat and become a dark pink/rose color.
Cover the three bowls with beeswax wraps or plastic wrap in the refrigerator for 15-30 minutes. Once cooled, remove from the fridge.
Place each color separately between two pieces of wax paper. This will help to prevent the dough from sticking to the counter when rolled out.
Using a rolling pin, your hands or a cup, flatten each colored dough to 1/8 inch thickness. Use cookie cutters to make heart and circle shapes into the colored dough, saving any scraps aside for later.
Add the colored shapes to the top of the plain sugar cookie dough. Cover the top of the dough with wax paper and gently flatten the shapes onto the plain sugar cookie dough.
Use a heart sugar cookie cutter to make as many cookies as possible. Remove the remaining dough from between the cookies and combine with the colored dough.
Create a marbled cookie dough with the plain and colored dough. Use a cookie cutter to make additional marble sourdough sugar cookies.
Chill the dough for 30 minutes before baking. Preheat the oven to 350. Place on prepared baking sheets. For best results, bake for 8-10 minutes.
Sour cream cookies taste best when just baked. They will continue to cook when on the baking sheet, so pull them when you can touch the surface of the cookie and nothing sticks to your finger.
Bake time may vary. Note, the sourdough discard cookies may still look wet, but should not be golden brown. Additionally, if rolled thin, they can bake cooked and will have crispy edges when baked.
Allow to cool on a wire rack. Top with decorations of choice or serve plain. We love these with buttercream and sprinkles.
Long fermented guidelines
Start by combining the dough as outlined above, stopping after the dough has been split into thirds and colored.
Once this step occurs, cover each bowl and allow to ferment for 4-12 hours at room temperature. Chill longer in the refrigerator for a more sour flavor. Chill the dough for 30 minutes before handling and creating desired designs patterns.
After the cookies are designed and cut, place the dough into the refrigerator for up to three days before baking. When ready to cook, remove from the fridge and bake on a lined baking sheet at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 8-10 minutes.
Allow the cookies to cool to room temperature before decorating.
How to store sourdough sour cream cookies
To store the sourdough cookies, place them in an airtight container or ziplock bag for up to three days on the countertop. Place into the fridge for up to a week or into the freezer for up to three months.
If you would like to freeze the dough before baking, cover with wax paper and into a ziplock bag or air-tight container. To cook from the freezer, remove the dough and wax paper before placing onto a lined baking sheet.
Allow to sit at room temperature until the oven has preheated.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sourdough Sour Cream Cookies
Equipment
- 1 hand mixer
- 1 mixing bowl
- 1 Cookie Sheet
- 1 Wire Cooling Rack
- 1 Wax Paper or Parchment Paper
- 1 Rolling Pin
Ingredients
Sourdough Sour Cream Cookie Dough
- 1-1/3 cup all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt leave out if using salted butter
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp almond extract optional
- 1 egg
- 1 stick stick unsalted butter
- 3 TBS sourdough discard discard or active starter
- 1 TBS sour cream
- 4-6 drops Natural Food Dye
- 2 TBS Sprinkles optional
- 8 TBS Buttercream Frosting optional
Instructions
Stir and go
- Allow the butter, egg and sourdough discard to reach room temperature.
- With a handheld mixer, whip the softened butter until light and fluffy in a large bowl. Mix in the white sugar and powdered sugar.Add the egg, vanilla extract, sour cream and the sourdough discard. Mix until combined.
- In a separate bowl, combine the baking powder, flour and salt. Combine the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients.Remove 1/3 of the mixture for the colored hearts and circles.
- Split the 1/3 dough in half again and place in separate bowls. Add food coloring to each bowl with the colors of choice.
- Cover the three bowls and put in the refrigerator for 15-30 minutes. Once chilled, remove from the fridge. Place each color separately between two pieces of wax paper to prevent cough from sticking to counter when rolled.
- Use a rolling pin to flatten each colored dough to 1/8 inch thick. Make shapes with cookie cutters and save scraps on side for later.
- Add the colored shapes to the top of the plain sugar cookie dough. Cover the top of the dough with wax paper. Using a rolling pin, gently flatten the shapes onto the plain sugar cookie dough so the dough is 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Do not flatten too much or the cookies will become crispy and dry when baked.
- Use a large heart sugar cookie cutter to make as many cookies as possible. Reserve the scraps to the side. Mix the scraps together to make marble patterned cookies. Chill the dough for 30 minutes before baking to ensure it will not spread.
- Preheat the oven to 350. Place on prepared baking sheets and bake for 8-10 minutes. They will be done when you can touch your finger to the surface and nothing sticks. They may look wet but will not be golden brown in color.
- Allow to cool on a wire rack. Top with decorations of choice or serve plain. We love these with buttercream and sprinkles.
Long fermented Guidelines
- Start by combining the dough as outlined above, stopping after the dough has been split into thirds and colored.
- Once this the dough is colored, cover each bowl with plastic wrap and allow to ferment for 4-12 hours at room temperature. Chill 15 -30 minutes before handling and creating desired designs and patterns.
- After the cookies are designed and cut, place the dough into the refrigerator for up to three days before baking to continue the bulk ferment.When ready to cook, remove from the fridge and bake on a lined baking sheet at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 8-10 minutes.Allow the cookies to cool to room temperature before decorating.
Video
Notes
- Ensure the dough has been chilled before baking to prevent the cookies from spreading.
- Decorate the cookies with frosting, sprinkles, white chocolate or sugar in the raw.
Nutrition
What is your favorite way to top sour cream sourdough cookies? We love to eat them with frosting or on their own and dipped in milk. Let us know in the comments below!
