The Best Soft, Frosted Sugar Cookies

Dive into the world of homemade baking with this exquisite sugar cookie recipe. I know I’m biased, and believe me, I don’t believe in bragging, but this really is an exceptional sugar cookie recipe. You have to try it! These cookies boast a perfect texture, crispy at the edges and tenderly chewy in the center, topped off with a heavenly cream cheese buttercream. They’re glorious! These are one of the most heavily and consistently requested desserts I’ve made. Okay, rant over, go find out for yourself.

Serving Suggestions

This sugar cookie recipe can be made in so many different forms. Try making my sugar cookie cake, sugar cookie jars, sugar cookie bars, and easy sheet pan sugar cookies. You can also decorate them for any holiday. Try my spring floral sugar cookie tutorial or my spooky floral sugar cookie tutorial. Always use the best sugar cookie frosting when decorating.

How do I ensure my cookies have the perfect texture?

The key is in the chilling process. Chilling the dough solidifies the fat, which helps achieve the desirable combination of a crisp edge and a chewy center.

Chilling the dough is an essential step for several reasons. It also helps the flavors blend. This is a step that is too important to skip, even if it’s just for 1 hour. Patience pays off!

Can I make the sugar cookie dough ahead of time?

Yes! This dough is supposed to chill in the fridge for at least 1-3 hours. But, because this cookie dough is made with baking powder, it can be left in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Baking powder is unique in that it undergoes two chemical reactions: one when it’s mixed into the dough and a second when it’s placed in heat. That means, even after 3 days in the fridge, your cookies will still rise in the heat of the oven.

Can I make these sugar cookies vegan or gluten-free?

Yes, you can substitute the butter with a plant-based alternative and use gluten-free flour. However, please note that this may slightly alter the texture and flavor.

Do you have to cream your butter & sugar when making sugar cookies?

Yes! Creaming your butter and sugar is an essential step in all cookie-making. The reason this is so important is that it’s a part of the rising process. When you cream your sugar and butter properly, it traps tiny air bubbles in your dough, which causes your cookies to puff up when baked.

Creaming is the only time in the mixing process when you want to turn your mixer on high and beat for 2 minutes. After you have creamed the butter and sugar, the remaining ingredients should be slowly stirred in, just until they are combined. You must be extra careful not to overmix the batter when adding protein (eggs) and gluten (flour), as this can completely ruin the texture.

Here is a visual example of what creamed butter and sugar will look like:

How do I roll out sugar cookies without the dough sticking?

The best way to roll out sugar cookies is to place the dough on a parchment sheet and then cover with some plastic wrap. Then roll the dough out with your rolling pin. This way you don’t have to add extra flour or powdered sugar to keep the dough from sticking to the counter. Too much additional flour and sugar can change the texture of the cookie.

I like to roll out my cookie dough right when I mix it, then place it in the fridge to rest. By doing it this way, you won’t need to fight cold sugar cookie dough with a rolling pin. Talk about sore muscles.

How to decorate your sugar cookie:

Sugar cookies are a universal treat because you can frost and sprinkle them to complement any party theme or holiday. Here are some fun examples of how you can decorate sugar cookies for different holidays and occasions:

What is in a sugar cookie?

Unsalted butter

It is always important to use unsalted butter when baking. If you use salted butter, you have no way of knowing how much salt is already in the butter, and it will result in an over-salted treat.

Butter adds fats to your dough, which helps with moistness, flavor & texture. Butter melts at body temperature, which creates a ‘melt in your mouth’ sensation.

When baking with butter, the temperature is essential. If the butter is too warm, your cookies will melt too quickly and spread excessively in the oven, leaving you with a greasy, flat cookie. If butter is too cold, it will have the opposite problem and not melt down enough, leaving your cookies too thick.

Granulated sugar

Adds sweetness, provides a caramelized flavor, and a crisp texture. Sugar assists with rising when creamed with butter & sugar. It helps add moisture to your cookie and ensures it spreads evenly as it melts into a liquid in the oven’s heat. Sugar also helps to preserve your baked treat naturally.

Almond extract

This extract adds a unique sweet and nutty flavor to your dough.

Vanilla extract

When using pure vanilla extract, it will add the deep, rich flavor everybody wants in a treat.

Eggs

Adds both protein (egg whites) and fat (egg yolks). The egg whites help with rising because when foamed, little air pockets get trapped inside the mixture. The water content in egg whites encourages steam while baking, which helps with gluten formation, resulting in nice, thick cookies. Egg yolks have emulsifying properties that bring batters together and help your dough from collapsing.

Egg yolks

Adding extra egg yolks to your batter will add extra richness and chewiness to your cookie.

Fine sea salt

Enhances flavor, adds balance, and masks any bitter flavors. Salt is the most powerful and oldest preservative. Always use fine sea salt to ensure it melts at the correct speed in the oven’s heat. If you use larger granular salt, it will not melt completely when baked and will leave salt crystals throughout your cookie, making it crunchy like you dropped it into sand.

Baking powder

Puff up your batter instead of spreading it out. Baking powder contains a little bit of baking soda, an acid & cornstarch. Because of this, it only needs a liquid to react, and it is a double reaction. It responds as soon as it’s mixed with moisture and then again when it is heated up.

All-purpose flour

Flour builds structure as it absorbs liquids and expands. All-purpose flour falls between bread flour (high in gluten) and cake flour (low in gluten). It is precisely what it’s named, all-purpose, the most universal flour that can be used in most baked goods.

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