How to make the most amazing sugar cookies that truly hold their shape! Soft and tender cookies that taste like a cross between a sugar cookie and shortbread, with perfectly defined and slightly crisp edges!
Perfect for any holiday cookie tray, and so easy to make! With several different prep options, you’ll find one that fits your baking timeline, and your tastes. We love holiday sweets like my Crockpot Candy and this is one of my Desserts you’ll definitely want in your dinner rotation!
SUGAR COOKIE RECIPE
Cut-out sugar cookies are the quintessential holiday cookie. You’ll find them on all most all dessert trays and in every cookie exchange… not to mention, Santa enjoys them as well!
I don’t know about you, but in the past I’ve tried numerous sugar cookie recipes and none of them were perfect. They never held their shape and the edges were soft and sloppy. If you’re going to all the trouble of rolling out dough and cutting it into shapes, you want them to actually look like the cookie cutter shape right?
That all changed a few years back when I found this recipe from Allie over at Baking a Moment. She makes some fantastic desserts, and her sugar cookie recipe is phenomenal!
Over the years I’ve made a few minor tweaks based on my preferences, which is what I’m sharing with you today… but I wanted to give major props to Allie, as the base is her amazing recipe.
HOW TO MAKE
- Mix up the dough – a stand mixer is very helpful here
- Roll out the dough into a thin disc
- Cut out desired shapes – can re-roll scraps to get more cookies if desired
- Chill for a few minutes – not required, see recipe notes section at the end of this post
- Bake and cool
- Decorate as desired
COOKING TIPS
- Use cold butter – this severely cuts down the chilling time from several hours, down to about 15 minutes. Alternately, you can omit the chilling all together, although it’s not my preferred method.
- Cornstarch instead of baking powder – this is Allie’s secret, and it’s genius! Baking powder is a leavening agent that helps food rise and spread, which is great for biscuits, but not so much for sugar cookies. Omitting the baking powder can leave cookies tough and crumbly, but with the addition of the cornstarch, you don’t have to worry about that! Cookies stay soft and buttery.
- Cookies may not look “done” – cut out sugar cookies won’t be golden brown like other cookie varieties, they’ll just be set on the edges and are verrrrry lightly golden on the bottom. Don’t worry, they’ll keep cooking as the rest on the cookie sheet.
VARIATIONS
- Almond – not a vanilla fan? Almond flavoring tends to be pretty strong, so omit the vanilla and replace with 1 tsp almond extract or paste.
- Almond/Vanilla – why not have both? Try 1 tsp each of vanilla and almond.
- Orange – Try adding a bit of orange zest to your cookie dough for a fun twist.
MAKING SUGAR COOKIES AHEAD OF TIME
The great thing about cut-out sugar cookies is that they’re great to make ahead of time and they store really well.
To save time, I like to bake my sugar cookies, cool them completely, then store on the counter in an airtight container.
That way I can decorate them another day.
STORAGE
Decorated and undecorated cookies can be kept in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2-3 weeks.
Undecorated baked cookies can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Unbaked cookie dough shapes can be frozen for 1-2 months.
SPECIAL EQUIPMENT USED IN THIS RECIPE
- Stand Mixer – not required, but recommended for this recipe as the dough is very stiff.
- Rolling Pin with Rings – this adjustable rolling pin takes all the guesswork out of how thick the dough is.
- Baking Sheets – I love the large size and how sturdy these pans are.
- Parchment Paper – no cutting required, these sheets fit perfectly in the baking sheets above.
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Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter cold
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla bean paste vanilla extract can be substituted
- 3 - 4 cups all-purpose flour (this will vary from kitchen to kitchen)
- 1/2 cup cornstarch make sure NOT to use corn meal, as this will result in dry, hard cookies
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
Instructions
- Line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
- To the bowl of a stand mixer, add butter and sugar and beat on MED speed until smooth and well combined. Mix in the eggs, one at a time, until combined. Add vanilla and mix.
- To a mixing bowl, add dry ingredients (flour, cornstarch and salt), and whisk to combine. Add the flour mixture, starting with 3 cups, and mix on MED LOW speed.
- Let mix for 3-5 minutes, and you'll see the dough go from a crumbly mess to pulling itself into a ball that pulls away from the sides of the mixer bowl.
- Turn out the dough onto work surface and roll dough to a thickness of about 1/4 inch. Flouring the work surface and rolling pin is helpful, as is rolling dough out between 2 pieces of wax or parchment paper.
- Cut into shapes and place cut out dough pieces on prepared baking sheets. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
- While dough is chilling, preheat oven to 375 F degrees.
- Bake cookies for 9-11 minutes, or until edges appear set. Cookies won't be golden on the top.
- Remove from oven and let cookies sit on baking sheet for 2-3 minutes, then transfer to a wire cooling rack and cool completely.
- Decorate if desired.
Want to save this recipe for later? Click the heart in the bottom right corner to save to your own recipe box!
Chef Tips
- Please take care to check that you're using cornstarch (here in the US, this is what I'm referring to https://www.meijer.com/shopping/product/argo-corn-starch-100-pure-16-oz-/76172007104.html), not corn flour or corn meal. Those won't work in this recipe at all.
- For a great Royal Icing recipe, check out this detailed post.
- Flour amount varies due to humidity. Start with 3 cups and add flour mixture 1/4 cup at a time, until you see the dough ball up and pull away from the sides of the mixer bowl.
- For reference, I normally use 3 1/2 cups of the flour mixture.
NO CHILLING OPTION
I find I get the best results when combining the cold butter with the short 15 minute chill time, but if you prefer to not chill at all, you can do that.- Make sure the butter you're using is extremely cold, and work quickly so it doesn't soften on you.
- If possible, chill your rolling pin, so it'll keep the dough cold as you're rolling it.
Video
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
Carolyn says
Does the recipe call for 3 or 4 cups of flour for the flour mixture? I understand you can add 3-4 cups of the flour mixture to the other ingredients, but how much flour goes into that mixture? Thanks!
Amanda says
3-4 cups of flour 🙂
Maggie says
Love this recipe! I used both vanilla and almond extract and they turned out fantastic!
Heather says
I really loved how white the cookies where. I used 3.5 cups of flower here in Florida
Natalie blanks says
Omg!!!!! Thank you thank you thank you for this recipe!!!! I have struggled with cookies not keeping their shape! Mine look amazing…. don’t even look like they have been in the oven! I’ll never use another again!
Ingrid says
Hi,
I have cake flour. Could I use that omitting the cornstarch? Thanks
Amanda says
I’ve only tested this recipe as written. So without testing and retesting it myself, I can’t say for certain if that would work. Cake flour is more than just cornstarch added to all purpose flour; it has a different protein level, which would likely react with the ingredients differently. If you try it, I’d love to know how it turns out!
Dumb dumb mommy says
Do not put dough in fridge over night. Will be hard as a rock. Letting it get soft now by putting it on top of hot stove for a little.
Lisa says
Can I make the dough a day or 2 before, and bake later?
How long could raw dough stay in the fridge?
Would these work well for stamped cookies? Thanks!!!
The Chunky Chef says
I’m not sure about the stamped cookies, just because I haven’t tested it that way, but I *think* it would work well. Yes, you can refrigerate the dough a day or two.
Judy says
easy to make, followed the recipe as written. I used a round cookie cutter and put a raisin in the middle. As a child, this is what my husband’s Nana used to do to her sugar cookies. I ended up not using all 3 & 1/2 cups of flour. Dough came out fine.
Terri T. says
I made these the other night, will be decorating them later. They turned out great! Cookies held their shapes perfectly (that has never happened before) and they taste great! I used almond flavoring, my favorite. Thanks for all the helpful tips. Replacing my traditional sugar cookie recipe with this one, from now on! Thanks again, Happy Holidays!
Suri R. says
Hi! I live in a higher altitude (about 4500 feet ), would you recommend any changes ?
The Chunky Chef says
Unfortunately, I have zero experience with high altitude baking, but this is a great resource https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/learn/resources/high-altitude-baking
Christy Kroha says
HI, just made these tonight! They taste great but did not hold their shapes sadly. I know that is usually a soft butter issue but I used butter straight out of the fridge and refrigerated my dough before baking. I used a hand mixer since I do not have a stand one. Could that be the culprit. I did not need near as much time mixing as you say, would additional mix time do anything? I used 4 cups of flour, as the dough was sticky til I added that much.
Thanks for the help.
The Chunky Chef says
Hmm, how frustrating! So many other readers have enjoyed the crisp edges of these cookies, so I’m trying to figure out what could have happened. To be honest, I’ve only made this recipe with a stand mixer, but a hand mixer should work. You’re positive the butter and sugar were truly creamed together? And you used real butter, not a butter spread or margarine? Those could definitely cause some spreading.
Marifer says
Hi! Everytime i make this recipe , my cookies have a bubble finish on the top. Whats wrong? I want them to have smooth surface like yours on the pics.
The Chunky Chef says
Hmm, I’ve not had that happen before, but I would guess perhaps too much air was beaten into the mixture, which causes those to rise up to the top of the cookie during the baking process.
Lynn says
I have been baking since I was probably 5-6 years old (that’s alot of years lol). In all these years, I’ve never found a good rolled cookie dough. I’d never thought about baking powder as cause for them looking distorted shapes! These were best cookies I’ve ever rolled and cut out, didn’t need to flour cutters & very little to roll out. One thing they seemed tough vs soft after baked. I double recipe and used only 6 cups flour, so I’ll try less flour and perhaps less corn starch. I did not sift my starch flour together because I didn’t want to waste if all wasn’t needed.
We frosted them which did soften the cookies some. I will definitely try these again.
Michele says
I don’t have a stand me mixer. Can I just mix it by hand?
The Chunky Chef says
I’ve only made this recipe with either a stand mixer or hand mixer, as I think it would be really difficult to mix the cold butter and sugar together by hand.
Mike Rogers says
Hi! My son and I made these and they turned out perfect and held perfectly indented shapes as well!
Do you think vomiting the baking powder and using corn starch for gingerbread cookies would work?
Michael Rogers says
Omitting, lol
The Chunky Chef says
So glad you enjoyed this recipe!! Unfortunately, without testing that out myself, I can’t say with any certainty.
Carma says
Yep, these were perfect alright, no lie! Wish I could attach a picture! They are so tasty too!
Ivette says
It’s a great recipe for the first time I bake sugar cookies. I was worried at the beginning because when cookies are recently out of the oven, I ate one and looks a bit raw inside. On the next batch, I didn’t leave cookies too thick, so they cooked better. My girls had so much fun.
Jennifer says
Finally the perfect cut out cookies! My kids and I had a lot of fun making these and they turned out perfectly!
Cindy says
Can you replace the all-purpose flour with gluten free flour?
The Chunky Chef says
I’ve not made this recipe using gluten-free ingredients, as no one in my family suffers from celiac disease. So without testing and retesting it myself, I can’t say for certain if that would work. If you try it, I’d love to know how it turns out!
Cindy says
Tried replacing all-purpose flour with gluten free and it worked great! Baked a little faster but same great taste!!
Kenica Eggan says
That’s great! Which gluten free flour did you use?
Star says
I don’t have kosher salt is normal salt okay to use
The Chunky Chef says
It is, but you’ll want to use a bit less, as table salt has a higher sodium content than kosher salt.
Star says
Awesome thank you so much!
Ashley says
Hello. Can I make the dough the night before and let it sit in the fridge?? And then the next day roll it out, cut it, and before I put it in the oven chill for another 15 mins?! Thanks!
The Chunky Chef says
I’ve not done that myself, but I think that would be okay 🙂
Annette Smith says
I made these delicious cookies, and added orange rind along with the vanilla bean paste, and then made royal icing with a touch of almond extract, everyone at Thanksgiving loved them, they tasted very buttery, just like you said!! The addition of the corn starch worked and they held their shape beautifully..