You can make perfectly soft Lofthouse Cookies right in your own kitchen. My carefully-tested copycat recipe is surprisingly simple, with all the flavors of the real thing but none of the artificial stuff! Recipe includes a how-to video!
With mixer on low-speed, gradually add dry ingredients to wet until completely combined.
Form dough into a 1” thick disk and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
Once dough has chilled, preheat oven to 350F (175C) and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
Remove dough from refrigerator. Transfer to a clean, lightly floured surface and use a rolling pin to roll dough to be between ¼-½” (about 1 cm) thick (if too is too sticky, return to refrigerator, if it is too difficult to roll and/or is cracking, let sit at room temperature for a bit before trying to roll again).
Use a 2” (5cm) round cookie cutter to cut out cookies as close together as possible and place on prepared baking sheet, spacing cookies at least 2” (5cm) apart.
Bake in 350F (175C) oven for 8-10 minutes. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for at least 5-10 minutes before carefully removing to cooling rack to cool completely Note: over-baked cookies are dry, crumbly cookies. Yours should be very pale coming out of the oven (not golden-brown), even the bottoms should be pale and not browned.
Once cookies have cooled completely, decorate with frosting.
Frosting
In a large bowl (or stand mixer) using an electric mixer, beat butter until smooth and creamy. Add about half the powdered sugar, corn syrup, vanilla extract, and salt and stir until smooth and thoroughly combined, then gradually stir in remaining powdered sugar. If using food coloring, stir it in at the end adding a small bit at a time until desired color is reached.
Spread or pipe frosting evenly over cookies (I use a ½” open tip) and decorate with sprinkles, if desired.
Sprinkles
Video
Notes
Cake Flour
I recommend cake flour for the best texture! All-purpose flour will yield cookies with a texture that's not quite true to traditional Lofthouse cookies. If you must substitute all-purpose, you will need 3 cups (375g) all-purpose flour.
Corn Syrup
Corn syrup is recommended in the frosting for a true-to-the-original smooth frosting that crusts properly. You may leave it out if desired, but the frosting won't be quite the same (and you may need a Tablespoon more of butter or a splash of milk to keep the frosting from being too thick).
Making in Advance
The dough may be made up to 3 days in advance of baking. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap. If the dough starts to crack upon rolling it, let it sit at room temperature for 15 minutes or so until it rolls without breaking/cracking. The frosting may be prepared up to 3 days in advance as well, store in an airtight container (room temperature or refrigerated) with a piece of plastic wrap directly against the surface then allow to come to room temperature (if refrigerated) and stir until smooth before using.
Storing
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. They may also be wrapped and frozen for several months.