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.
BE SURE TO SCROLL DOWN TO CHECK OUT OTHER READERS’ COMMENTS!
AND DON’T FORGET, IF YOU’VE MADE THIS RECIPE, LEAVE A COMMENT AND PLEASE GIVE IT A STAR RATING!
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
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.
Kelly says
I have tried many no spread recipes but they always spread. This one does not spread at all. The dough is easy to work with and delicious. I did use 1/4 C cornstarch rather than the 1/2 C-that seemed too much. I use different flavors, emulsions and mix ins with this recipe and they ALWAYS turn out PERFECT.
Carita says
Omgosh are these cookies AMAZING! I have tried MANY sugar cookies and followed all recipes to the T, and NONE have been near as good as this one!! I doubled the recipe for Mother’s Day cookies and I am ready to (already) make more! (It’s less than a week from Mother’s Day!) This recipe has made me want to make sugar cookies daily! Great job on the tips in the recipe too! Thanks!!
Michelle says
The vanilla bean paste makes these feel fancy! Like ice cream that uses vanilla bean instead of vanilla extract that has those black flecks. I made these into leprechaun and shamrock cookies for St. Patrick’s day and decorated them with royal icing. My husband told me more than once how good these are!
Peggy says
Do you have recipes for people trying to loose weight?
Thank you,
Peggy
The Chunky Chef says
I have a “healthy recipes” category, but keep in mind that “healthy” means different things to everyone 🙂 https://www.thechunkychef.com/healthy-recipes/
Manpreet says
Been making it for two years and everyone loves it! I had a question regarding the recipe though; would it be alright to prepare the dough one day and leave it in the fridge for less than 24 hrs to bake the next day? Would it impact the outcome?
The Chunky Chef says
That would work just fine 🙂
Mysha Patray says
This is a perfect cookie to add icing not too sweet. Cooked mine for 11 minutes my first batch and that was a little too long. Reduced the time to 9 minutes and they are perfect. Definitely a keeper. I’m sure I will be making mini batches of these in the future
WeekendBaker says
The dough was perfect I used between 3.5 to 4 C flour. Rolled beautiful froze cookies then iced them a couple days later will make again.
Lynda says
Thank you for the recipe. I’m anxious to try it. I need to make it the day before. How long would you say to keep it out before trying to roll and also do you have to use kosher salt? What would be a substitute
The Chunky Chef says
You can use table or sea salt, but you’ll need to use less, since kosher salt contains less sodium per volume than other varieties. As for how long to leave it out, that depends on the temperature in your refrigerator and the temperature in your home. I would let it sit at room temp for 15 minutes and go from there.
Carolyn Starbuck says
Very good. They really hold their shape and the flavor is excellent. I’m sure the vanilla paste is an excesllent choice.
Kristen says
I loved the way these came out. The recipe I used before for sugar cookie cutouts never came out. I always got frustrated with it. This was a dream to work with! So easy to use straight out of the fridge. They taste great, too!
Madi says
My new go to recipe and the best sugar cookies I’ve ever made! I especially enjoy using a combo of almond and vanilla extract
Linda says
This recipe was perfect, I made 10 dozen cookies for my daughter’s baby shower and everyone loved the flavor, the cookies were a real hit!
Melissa says
Love love love this recipe. I have been trying to get a recipe to work for a year now. I used Walmart brand butter and it was fine. Thank You so much for sharing 😊
Judy says
What’s the oven temperature
The Chunky Chef says
It’s listed in step 7.
Shelley Merryfield says
I just made a batch of these for a birthday party. They turned out perfect! Love this recipe!
I did used cold, cubed butter and a short time in freezer before baking.
Also, almond flavoring seems best.
Susan says
Best we’ve found so far*!*
Amber Warthen says
The best recipe ever!!!!!!
Kristie says
These cookies definitely keep their shape but taste like corn starch with a hint of sweet. I even cut down the cornstarch to 1/3 cup.
Kathryn B says
My favorite
Joanne says
Hi! Never Baked this kind of cookie. Thank you for the comments. The cornstarch really works, the cookies did not spread. I put cold butter didn’t like this technique, I think it should be room temperature. Otherwise very tasty. I was able to make around 30 cookies. The first batch seemed tooo pale but were baked. The second batch I left
In a bit longer and are a bit Golden. Will use again for sure! Thank You!