With crisp edges, thick centers, and room for lots of decorating icing, I know youโll love these soft cut out sugar cookies. Use your favorite cookie cutters and try my classic royal icing.
These are my favorite sugar cookies with icing. I shared the recipe on Sallyโs Baking Addiction several years ago and published them in my cookbook as well. Iโve made them at least 38577 times (imagine all the butter), so I figured itโs time to share new recipe tips, a video tutorial, and more helpful information.
Why Youโll Love These Sugar Cookies
- Soft, thick centers with slightly crisp edges
- Irresistible buttery vanilla flavor
- Leave plain or flavor with extras like maple, cinnamon, and more
- Hold their shape
- Flat surface for decorating
- Stay soft for days
- Freeze beautifully
Sugar Cookies Video Tutorial
Overview: How to Make Sugar Cookies with Icing
- Make cookie dough. You only need 7-8 ingredients. With so little ingredients, itโs important that you follow the recipe closely. Creamed butter and sugar provide the base of the cookie dough. Egg is the cookieโs structure and vanilla extract adds flavor. I almost always add a touch of almond extract for additional flavor and highly recommend that you try it too! Flour is an obvious addition, baking powder adds lift, and salt balances the sweet. So many *little ingredients* doing *big jobs* to create a perfect cookie. By the way, I also make chocolate sugar cookies too!
- Divide in two pieces. Smaller sections of dough are easier to roll out.
- Roll out cookie dough. Roll it out to 1/4 inch thick or just under 1/4 inch thick. If you have difficulty evenly rolling out dough, try this adjustable rolling pin. Speaking from experienceโitโs incredibly handy!
- Chill rolled out cookie dough. Without chilling, these cookie cutter sugar cookies wonโt hold their shape. Chill the rolled out cookie dough for at least 1-2 hours and up to 2 days.
- Cut into shapes. If you need suggestions for cookie cutters, I love Ann Clark brand. (Not sponsored, just a genuine fan!) Some of my favorites include this heart set, dog bone, snowflake, snowman, leaf, and a pumpkin. I also use and recommend these heart cookie cutters.
- Bake & cool. Depending on size, the cookies take about 12 minutes.
- Decorate. See my suggested icings below and my how to decorate sugar cookies tutorial for even more helpful decorating tips.
Have a little flour nearby when youโre rolling out the cookie dough. Keep your work surface, hands, and rolling pin lightly floured. This is a relatively soft dough.
The Trick Is the Order of Steps
Notice how I roll out the dough BEFORE chilling it in the refrigerator? Thatโs my trick and you can see me doing it in the video tutorial above.
Let me explain why I do this. Just like when youโre making chocolate chip cookies, to prevent the cookies from over-spreading, the cookie dough must chill in the refrigerator. Roll out the dough right after you prepare it, then chill the rolled-out dough. (At this point the dough is too soft to cut into shapes.) Donโt chill the cookie dough and then try to roll it out because it will be too cold and difficult to work with. I divide the dough in half before rolling it out and highly recommend you do the same. Smaller sections of dough are simply more manageable.
Another trick! Roll out the cookie dough directly on a silicone baking mat or parchment paper so you can easily transfer it to the refrigerator. Pick it up, put it on a baking sheet, and place it in the refrigerator. If you donโt have enough room for two baking sheets in your refrigerator, stack the pieces of rolled out dough on top of each other.
How Thick Do I Roll Sugar Cookies?
These sugar cookies remain soft because theyโre rolled out pretty thick. Roll out the cookie dough to about 1/4 inch thick or just under 1/4 inch thick. Yes, this is on the thicker side and yes, this produces extra thick and soft cookies. If rolling out cookie dough doesnโt sound appealing, try my drop sugar cookies instead.
Sugar Cookie Icing
I have THREE sugar cookie icing recipes and you can choose whichever works best for you.
- Favorite Royal Icing: This royal icing is my preferred sugar cookie icing because itโs easy to use, dries within 1-2 hours, and doesnโt taste like hardened cement. (Itโs on the softer side!) I make it with meringue powder. Meringue powder takes the place of raw egg whites, which is found in traditional royal icing recipes. It eliminates the need for fresh eggs, but still provides the same consistency. You can find meringue powder in some baking aisles, most craft stores with a baking section, and online. The 8 ounce tub always lasts me awhile. The trickiest part is landing on the perfect royal icing consistency, but I provide a video in the royal icing recipe to help you.
- Easy Cookie Icing: This easy cookie icing is ideal for beginners. Itโs easier to make than royal icing because you donโt need an electric mixer and the consistency wonโt really make or break the outcome. However, it doesnโt provide the same sharp detail that royal icing decorations do. It also takes a good 24 hours to dry.
- Buttercream: This cookie decorating buttercream is also excellent for beginners. You can tint it any color you like, flavor it, and spread it on with a knife or use piping tips. It soft-sets after a few hours, meaning you can carefully stack the cookies.
The pictured hearts are decorated with my royal icing using Wilton piping tip #4. If youโre not into piping tips, you can simply dunk the tops of the cookies into the icing like I do with my mini animal cracker cookies. ๐
Sugar Cookie Tips & Tools
Before I leave you with the recipe, let me suggest some useful sugar cookie tools. These are the exact products I use and trust in my own kitchen:
- Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand Mixer)
- Baking Sheets
- Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Sheets
- Rolling Pin or this Adjustable Rolling Pin
- Food Coloring: Liquid food coloring can alter the consistency of the icing, so I recommend gel food coloring. For the pictured cookies, I used a few drops of dusty rose and 1 drop of sky blue. This Americolor Soft Gel Paste Color Kit is great to have if you do a lot of decorating and want to have a variety of colors on hand.
- Piping Tips/Squeeze Bottle: If youโre using royal icing, I recommend Wilton piping tip #4 for outlining and flooding. This is a wonderful basic piping tip to have in your collection. If youโre using my easy glaze icing, I recommend using a squeeze bottle.
- Piping Bag: If youโre using royal icing and a piping tip, you need a disposable piping bag or reusable piping bag.
- Couplers: Couplers are handy if you have multiple colors of icing and only 1 tip, and need to move the tip to the other bags of icing.
- Cookie Cutters: I like this heart-shaped cookie cutter, but you can use any shape you desire!
For even more recommendations you can see this full list of my favorite cookie decorating supplies.
Hereโs What You Can Do With This Dough
- Christmas Sugar Cookies
- Striped Fudge Cookie Sandwiches
- Snowman Cookies
- Cinnamon Roll Cookies
- Stained Glass Window Cookies
- Valentineโs Day Cookies
- Maple Cinnamon Cut-Out Cookies
- St. Patrickโs Day Cookies
- Easter Cookies
- Fireworks Cookies
- Watermelon Sugar Cookies
And if youโre craving sugar cookies with a little extra tang, try my cream cheese cut-out cookies with Nutella glaze.
Print
Soft Cut-Out Sugar Cookies
- Prep Time: 2 hours, 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours, 45 minutes (includes cooling)
- Yield: 24 3-4 inch cookies
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
With crisp edges, thick centers, and room for lots of decorating icing, I know youโll love these soft sugar cookies as much as I do. The number of cookies this recipe yields depends on the size of the cookie cutter you use. If youโd like to make dozens of cookies for a large crowd, double the recipe.
Ingredients
- 2 and 1/4 cups (281g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled), plus more as needed for rolling and work surface
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup (170g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 or 1/2 teaspoon almond extract (optional, but makes the flavor outstanding)*
For Decorating
- Royal Icing, Easy Glaze Icing, or Cookie Buttercream (royal icing is pictured)
- Assorted sprinkles
Instructions
- Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using a handheld or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on high speed until completely smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg, vanilla, and almond extract (if using) and beat on high speed until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl and beat again as needed to combine.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix on low until combined. Dough will be a bit soft. If the dough seems too soft and sticky for rolling, add 1 more Tablespoon of flour.
- Divide the dough into 2 equal parts. Place each portion onto a piece of lightly floured parchment paper or a lightly floured silicone baking mat. With a lightly floured rolling pin, roll the dough out to about 1/4-inch thickness. Use more flour if the dough seems too sticky. The rolled-out dough can be any shape, as long as it is evenly 1/4-inch thick.
- Lightly dust one of the rolled-out doughs with flour. Place a piece of parchment on top. (This prevents sticking.) Place the 2nd rolled-out dough on top. Cover with plastic wrap or aluminum foil, then refrigerate for at least 1-2 hours and up to 2 days.
- Once chilled, preheat oven to 350ยฐF (177ยฐC). Line 2-3 large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Carefully remove the top dough piece from the refrigerator. If itโs sticking to the bottom, run your hand under it to help remove itโsee me do this in the video below. Using a cookie cutter, cut the dough into shapes. Re-roll the remaining dough and continue cutting until all is used. Repeat with 2nd piece of dough. (Note: It doesnโt seem like a lot of dough, but you get a lot of cookies from the dough scraps you re-roll.)
- Arrange cookies on baking sheets 3 inches apart. Bake for 11-12 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges. If your oven has hot spots, rotate the baking sheet halfway through bake time. Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating.
- Decorate the cooled cookies with royal icing, easy cookie icing, or cookie decorating buttercream. Feel free to tint any of the icings with gel food coloring. See post above for recommended decorating tools. No need to cover the decorated cookies as you wait for the icing to set. If itโs helpful, decorate the cookies directly on a baking sheet so you can stick the entire baking sheet in the refrigerator to help speed up the icing setting.
- Enjoy cookies right away or wait until the icing sets to serve them. Once the icing has set, these cookies are great for gifting or for sending. Plain or decorated cookies stay soft for about 5 days when covered tightly at room temperature. For longer storage, cover and refrigerate for up to 10 days. If decorated with cookie buttercream, cover and store decorated cookies at room temperature for 1 day, or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: Plain or decorated sugar cookies freeze well up to 3 months. Wait for the icing to set completely before layering between sheets of parchment paper in a freezer-friendly container. To thaw, thaw in the refrigerator or at room temperature. You can also freeze the cookie dough for up to 3 months before rolling it out. Prepare the dough through step 3, divide in half, flatten both halves into a disk as we do with pie crust, wrap each in plastic wrap, then freeze. To thaw, thaw the disks in the refrigerator, then bring to room temperature for about 1 hour. Roll out the dough as directed in step 4, then chill rolled out dough in the refrigerator for 45 minutes โ 1 hour before cutting into shapes and baking.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand Mixer) | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Wooden Rolling Pin or Adjustable Rolling Pin | Heart-Shaped Cookie Cutter | Americolor Soft Gel Paste Color Kit | Piping Bags (Disposable or Reusable) | Couplers | Wilton Tip #4 | Squeeze Bottle
- Room Temperature: Room temperature butter is essential. If the dough is too sticky, your butter may have been too soft. Room temperature butter is actually cool to the touch. Room temperature egg is preferred so itโs quickly and evenly mixed into the cookie dough.
- Flavors: I love flavoring this cookie dough with 1/2 teaspoon almond extract as listed in the ingredients above. For lighter flavor, use 1/4 teaspoon. Instead of the almond extract, try using 1 teaspoon of maple extract, coconut extract, lemon extract, or peppermint extract. Or add 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice or ground cinnamon. If using lemon extract, you can also add 1 Tablespoon lemon zest.
- Icing: Use royal icing, easy cookie icing, or cookie decorating buttercream. See post above to read about the differences.
- Can I Double the Recipe? Yes. Double all of the ingredients and divide the dough into 3 or 4 sections in step 4.
- Be sure to check out my top 5 cookie baking tips AND these are my 10 must-have cookie baking tools.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Shoot ! I put 2sticks of butter in the bowl..everything else the same amount. Itโs getting cold for 2 hours right now in the fridge. Iโm going to try to do the drop cookies. I hope it works!
I have been using this sugar cookie recipe FOR YEARS. Birthdays, Christmas time, teacher appreciation week, you name it! These cookies are so easy, and SO delicious. This recipe made sugar cookies my personal favorite thing to make in the kitchen.
Definitely my new favorite sugar cookie recipe! I am adding this one to my recipe box for sure. Thank you so much!
I am unsure why, but I have found when doubling the recipe at least it is necessary to add some more butter. I used a full stick rather than 3/4. When doubling the recipe using only 2- 3/4ths sticks made it super dry two full sticks was perfect.
Dear sally,Have you ever tried a vegan version of this recipe?
Hi Jack and DC, we havenโt tested a vegan version of this recipe, but let us know if you decide to do any experimenting. Weโd love to know how it goes! And if youโre interested, here are all of our naturally vegan recipes.
Iโve been making this recipe for years and itโs the best but the last two times Iโve made it the dough is so crumbly it doesnโt form a ball. I spoon and level the flour and all the other measurements were right. Any troubleshooting ideas? Thinking of adding less flour next time.
Hi Christy! Do you happen to have a kitchen scale? Thatโs the most accurate way to measure!
Can these sugar cookies be easily made gluten-free by just swapping the all purpose flour with a GF version? I love the original recipe but will be making cookies with a friend who canโt have gluten. Thanks!
Hi Tabitha, we havenโt tested a gluten free version of this recipe, but some readers report success using a 1:1 gluten free flour blend without any other changes. If you give it a try, let us know how it goes!
If I were to bake these cookies (plain) let them cool and freeze. When I thaw in room temperature would it still be soft?
Also, do you recommend I frost and decorate after it has thawed in room temperature? Does it make a difference in taste or texture if I decorate prior to freezing or after freezing?
Hi Nafi, yes, these cookies are still soft once thawed. You can freeze them either before or after icingโwhichever you prefer. Hope theyโre a hit!
Once I have frozen the cookies can I take them out and leave in room temperature 2 days prior to serving to guests so I have enough time to frost and decorate?
Hi Nafi, yes, that will work just fine.
Can you explain why bake the cookies at 350 degrees F vs. 325 degrees F?
Thank you
Hi Chip, we bake the majority of our cookies at 350 degrees (unless otherwise specified). We find it to be just right for this particular recipe, however you can certainly bake at a lower temperature, keeping in mind that it will take a few minutes longer for the cookies to bake through.
I was curious about the use of vanilla bean paste in replacement of pure vanilla extract. Just curious!? Thank you!
Hi Ashley, yes, vanilla bean paste is lovely in these cookies!
Hi, I love your recipes. But I was wondering ifโฆ. Do cookies have to be refrigerated because they are made with butter? Iโm thinking of Christmas gifts of cookie tins I send out each year. Iโm hoping no one is throwing these out thank you
Hi Kathy, Plain or decorated cookies stay soft for about 5 days when covered tightly at room temperature. For longer storage, cover and refrigerate for up to 10 days.
Your website is always the first place I come to when I need a recipe or inspiration. This week, we are having a cookie baking and decoarting session with my dauthers Girl Scout troop. The Girls are so excited to make โpretty cookiesโ. While there are lots of recipes out there, I wouldnโt trust this experience to any other recipe than yours. Your cookies always result in perfect crisp edges with smooth, easy-to-decorate tops. And, they are delicious!
I just pre-ordered your book. Thanks for all that you to, and all of the content you share here on your website for free. It makes cooking and baking ever more fun! Thank you!