Our Cut-Out Sugar Cookies are the epitome of edible art – they’re tender, buttery canvases that scream, ‘Decorate me with deliciousness!’ Get your creativity flowing as you wield your rolling pin like a magic wand, summoning whimsical shapes from the dough. But beware, these cookies are so enchanting, they may disappear faster than you can say ‘Abracadabra!’
Want to skip the hassle? Try making my Christmas Cookie Bars! No rolling or cutting.
Why You’ll Love These Easy Sugar Cookies
- No Chilling: Can you chill this recipe? Yep. Do you need to? No. See below for more details.
- Freezer Friendly: You can freeze the dough OR baked cookies.
- Perfect for Decorating: These are cut out cookies that hold their shape!
“I prepared your recipe and the cookies turned out fantastic! I rolled some a 1/2″ thick and baked them for 11 minutes. The other half I rolled 1/4″ thick and baked for 9 minutes. Cookies are delicious!”
– Michael
I grew up with crunchy sugar cookies. My husband grew up with soft. This had us in a real pickle when the holidays rolled around. LUCKILY, this recipe can please us both. Roll it thinner and you get that crunchy cookie I know and love, thicker and you get soft and chewy cookie perfection!
The best part? There are nearly unlimited decorating options AND these freeze incredibly well. Get all of your baking done in advance and enjoy the rest of your holiday!
Homemade Sugar Cookie Ingredients
The best rolled sugar cookies start with the best ingredients. Make sure everything is at room temperature before you begin. This helps to incorporate everything fully.
- Flour: I use all-purpose flour, or white flour, for these cookies.
- Leavening Agent: I prefer to use baking powder. It adds just a slight puff, but not too much that you lose the shape of the cookie.
- Butter: Unsalted butter works best and helps you control how much salt is added, however you can use salted butter in a pinch. Just omit the added salt called for in the recipe card.
- Sugar: Granulated sugar helps give that sweetness but also adds a tender texture.
- Eggs: Large eggs are the best option.
- Vanilla: Want a different flavor? Try other extracts like almond or lemon.
For a full list of ingredients and their measurements see the recipe card below.
How To Make Cut Out Sugar Cookies
- PREP: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie pan with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat (affiliate) and set aside.
- DRY INGREDIENTS: Whisk (affiliate) together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- WET INGREDIENTS: In the bowl of an electric mixer (affiliate) combine the butter and sugar. Beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes on medium speed. Stir in the eggs, one at a time, followed by the vanilla. Stir until incorporated.
- ROLL: Add the dry ingredients and beat until everything just comes together. Roll (affiliate) the dough 1/2-1/4 inch thickness.
- BAKE: Cut using your favorite cookie cutter (affiliate), carefully transfer to your prepared baking tray (affiliate), and bake for 10 minutes or until the edges are slightly browned.
- ENJOY: Enjoy as is or decorated with your favorite icing.
Consider checking out this post where I walk you through how to pipe a rose onto a cookie!
Helpful Tools
- Baking Trays: I am a big fan of my Nordic Ware pans (affiliate). I have both the half sheet and full pan sizes and they are amazingly easy to clean.
- Silicone Baking Mats: Parchment paper is king in my kitchen, but only when both of my silicone baking mats (affiliate) are dirty. They are SO great for so many things and worth the $13 for a set of 3.
- Cookie Cutters: This set has over 80 cookie cutters (affiliate) including all major holiday shapes.
Recipe Notes:
No. However, if you are finding it difficult to roll out you can chill the dough for an hour or two. Once chilled it should roll out smoothly.
Roll the dough to about 1/4 inch (0.6 cm) thickness. Thicker cookies may be softer, while thinner cookies may turn out crisper.
Over-softened or warm dough can cause excessive spreading. Make sure to chill the dough adequately before cutting and baking the cookies.
Yes, you can freeze the cookie dough for future use. Wrap it tightly in plastic wrap or place it in an airtight container, then thaw it in the refrigerator before using.
Absolutely! You can enhance the flavor of your sugar cookies by adding vanilla, almond extract, lemon zest, or other desired flavors to the dough.
Store the baked cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week. For longer storage, freeze them in a sealed container or freezer bags for up to three months.
More Favorite Holiday Cookies
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The BEST Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 2½ to 3 cups all-purpose flour plus more for rolling
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup butter softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie pan with parchment paper or a baking mat and set aside.
- Whisk together the flour baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl or measuring cup. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and sugar. Beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes on medium speed. Stir in the eggs, one at a time, followed by the vanilla. Stir until incorporated.
- Add the dry ingredients and beat on low/medium speed until everything just comes together, about 2 minutes. You will see the dough start to form into a ball.
- Roll the dough 1/2-1/4 inch thickness. The thicker the cookie the softer the end result will be. Do not go thicker than 1/2 an inch.
- Cut using your favorite cookie cutter and carefully transfer to the prepared baking tray. Bake for 10 minutes or until the edges are slightly browned.
- Enjoy as is or decorated with your favorite icing.
Notes
Do I need to chill the dough?
Technically, no. This cut out sugar cookie recipe is no chill. However, if you are looking for a more precise shape, I do recommend cutting out the shapes and chilling for one hour in the refrigerator. Why is my dough so sticky? This sugar cookie recipe can be stickier. You have two options, add a touch more flour or chill for 1 hour before rolling. I find it helpful to roll the dough out between two sheets of parchment paper. This keeps it from sticking to the rolling pin.Nutrition
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Related Recipes:
- Christmas Grinch Cookies
- Melted Snowmen Cookies
- Copycat Oreo’s
- Peanut Butter Kiss Cookies
- Christmas Wreath Cookie Recipe
- Candy Cane Shortbread Cookies
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Comments & Reviews
carina says
Can you please explain what’s up with the flour measurement?
For 24 cookies it says 2-1/2 cups of flour…that just sounds very confusing.
Does that mean that one cup of flour is for the dough and the other half is for rolling the dough?
Is it 2 cups of flour for the dough and 1/2 cups for the rolling?
I feel like it would really help if the recipe would have the weight in grams displayed as well and maybe some more details like: can you freeze the unbaked cut out cookies? and if so, for how long can they stay in the freezer?
Jesseca says
Hi Carina, I’m not sure why it’s confusing. The recipe states 2-1/2 cups of flour, plus more for rolling. I use a medium sized cookie cutter, if you are using a large cutter you might not get as many as 24, if you use a smaller you might get more. King Arthur has an ingredient weight chart that you might find helpful.
Michael says
I prepared your recipe and the cookies turned out fantastic! I rolled some a 1/2″ thick and baked them for 11 minutes. The other half I rolled 1/4″ thick and baked for 9 minutes. Cookies are delicious!
Adrienne says
Recipe calls for baking soda but there’s none listed in the ingredients. Can’t find another recipe with baking soda to figure out what it should be
Jesseca says
That was my mistake. I have fixed the recipe to reflect the proper wording.
Adrienne says
Update! I decided to wing it and added half a teaspoon. I assume that’s the correct measurement because they turned out amazing. Best cookies I’ve ever made!!
Elpy says
Mine turned into a disaster and I was not able to make them. The dough was very sticky when I tried to roll it. Is it melted butter when mixing with sugar? there are a few details missing for someone who is not a professional baker. I thought maybe it was going to be ok once it came together and I added flour. Oh well, I will have to buy already made dough. 🙂
Jesseca says
Hi there, I remade this recipe this morning since you had such a rough time with it. I did make a few adjustments and hope the recipe will come out better for you in the future. Let me know if I can help troubleshoot with you!