Master the Art of Soft Cut Out Sugar Cookies: The Best Recipe & Decorating Guide
Welcome to the ultimate guide for crafting the perfect soft cut out sugar cookies! For years, this beloved family recipe has been a staple, cherished for its incredibly tender, buttery texture and its ability to hold intricate shapes beautifully. While I’ve shared this foundational sugar cookie recipe before with various decoration ideas, it truly deserves its own spotlight and a more comprehensive look at what makes it so exceptional.
A Quick Note on Updates: Since originally sharing this recipe, I’ve developed a slightly different variation that might better suit those looking for a dough with even greater structural integrity for highly detailed cut-outs. You can find that new, more comprehensive tutorial here. However, this original recipe remains a fan favorite for its classic soft, buttery appeal, and many readers continue to adore it. Both are fantastic options, depending on your desired outcome!
What Makes This The Ideal Cut Out Sugar Cookie Recipe?
Crafting perfect cut out cookies boils down to two critical factors that ensure your festive shapes emerge from the oven just as intended, without any frustrating spreading or crumbling. The first is, undoubtedly, the dough itself. You need a robust yet pliable dough that will stand up to rolling and cutting without becoming a sticky mess or breaking apart. I’ve certainly had my share of holiday baking mishaps where intended Christmas trees transformed into shapeless blobs due to a weak dough. This specific sugar cookie dough is formulated to cut out flawlessly, guaranteeing your gingerbread men keep all their limbs and your snowflakes maintain their delicate details.
Unlike some recipes, this dough uses powdered sugar instead of granulated sugar. This is a game-changer for several reasons: powdered sugar creates an incredibly soft, melt-in-your-mouth texture, and it also contributes to a dough that is less prone to spreading during baking. The fine consistency of powdered sugar dissolves more easily, resulting in a smoother, more uniform dough that handles beautifully. It’s truly a cookie-dough-eating-worthy snack! While I generally advise against consuming raw dough on public platforms, I honestly can’t fault you for sneaking a taste of this almond-hinted, addictively soft dough. If you find yourself with less dough for baking than intended, I understand completely.
Let’s clarify the difference between this cherished recipe and my newer variation:
- This Recipe (Classic): Features all powdered sugar and a generous amount of butter, resulting in a distinctly buttery, slightly flakey, and incredibly soft texture. Ideal for general cut-out shapes and a rich flavor profile.
- My New Recipe (Modern): Incorporates granulated sugar and a bit less butter, leading to a thicker, softer, and more moist cookie. This version is particularly excellent for very intricate shapes where holding every fine detail is paramount.
Enhance Your Creations: Don’t forget to explore my Christmas Cookie Frosting Guide for my go-to frosting recipes, expert food coloring tips, and piping techniques! For effortless decorating, check out my 5 EASY Christmas Cookies for Kids for fun and simple ideas!
Achieving the Perfect Dough Thickness
The second secret to the perfect sugar cookie lies in the consistency of your rolled-out dough. This often overlooked step is crucial. Roll your dough too thin, and you’ll end up with a brittle, crunchy cookie that breaks easily during cutting and handling. Roll it too thick, and you’ll face the challenge of uneven baking, potentially leaving you with raw centers or overdone edges. My sweet spot for ideal thickness is around ½ inch. This ensures a beautifully soft, chewy interior with a slight crispness at the edges.
To consistently achieve this perfect thickness, specialized tools can be incredibly helpful. A few months ago, I discovered “The Cookie Thing,” a brilliant, simple tool designed for precisely this purpose. It comes with four sets of boards in different widths, giving you complete control over your dough’s thickness. This tool has been a lifesaver, especially during the busy holiday sugar cookie season!
Another excellent option I frequently use is the Joseph & Joseph adjustable rolling pin. I set it to its thickest ring (the purple one) for consistently perfect results. These tools remove all the guesswork, making the rolling process foolproof and ensuring every cookie bakes evenly to a delightful softness.
I’m particularly thrilled to have “The Cookie Thing” at home because it’s a game-changer for holiday baking. Let’s just say some members of my family haven’t quite mastered the art of rolling dough to the perfect thickness, often leading to disappointing crunchy cookies. With this nifty gadget, those days are over. No more endless questions about whether the dough is thick enough! It means less stress for me during our annual holiday baking marathon, and more perfectly soft cookies for everyone to enjoy.
You’d think I was Martha Stewart with the constant stream of questions during our holiday baking weekend! Honestly, my family might need these tools more than ever. After baking 30 days of cookies, I might just decide to take a year off and indulge in a weekend-long nap under my heated blanket instead of participating in our annual Christmas baking day. Hibernation season, here I come!
For my recent batch, I rolled the dough using the ⅜” thick boards, cut out various shapes, and baked them on a parchment-covered baking sheet. The baking time can vary slightly depending on the size of your cookies. Smaller cookies typically finish in about 8 minutes, while larger ones might need closer to 9 or 10 minutes. The golden rule for these cookies is to remove them from the oven as soon as you observe a tiny, subtle hint of browning around the edges. They might appear slightly underdone at this point, but the residual heat from the hot baking sheet will continue to cook them after they’re removed from the oven. This crucial step ensures they are fully baked and soft on the inside, preventing them from becoming dry or overly crispy.
My Favorite Frosting Recipes for Decorating
Once your beautifully baked cookies have cooled completely, they are ready for the fun part: frosting and decorating! The choice of frosting can dramatically change the look and feel of your cookies. For simple, classic designs and a rich, creamy taste, I adore using my homemade sugar cookie buttercream. It’s incredibly easy to make and provides a wonderful, soft texture that complements the cookie perfectly.
If you’re aiming for a smoother, more refined finish—especially for intricate piping or flood icing—my easy sugar cookie icing recipe is ideal. This icing dries to a beautiful, hard finish, making your decorated cookies stackable and perfect for gifting. Once frosted, arrange your masterpieces on your favorite holiday platter or use these free printables to create charming DIY cookie trays, perfect for sharing the joy of homemade treats.
Expert Tip: For more advanced royal icing techniques or alternative piping ideas, be sure to check out my comprehensive guide on 4 sugar cookie icing recipes without corn syrup. This guide offers versatile options for achieving different textures and finishes without relying on corn syrup.
How to Make The Perfect (Soft) Cut Out Sugar Cookies
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Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter (i.e. 2 sticks) softened to room temperature (*Read Tips below)
- 1 ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon baking soda *See note below regarding puffiness and altitude.
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 recipe sugar cookie frosting (or your preferred icing)
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Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Prepare baking sheets by lining them with parchment paper.
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In a large mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, cream together the unsalted butter (1 cup, i.e. 2 sticks) and powdered sugar (1 ½ cups) until light and fluffy. This should take about 2-3 minutes.
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Add the large egg (1), vanilla extract (1 teaspoon), almond extract (½ teaspoon), and baking soda (1 teaspoon) to the creamed mixture. Continue to beat on medium speed until all ingredients are well incorporated.
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Reduce the mixer speed to low. Gradually add the all-purpose flour in one-cup portions (2 ½ cups total), mixing until just combined. Be careful not to overmix the dough.
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Once the flour has disappeared into the dough, turn off the mixer. Transfer the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Gently knead the dough until it comes together to form a solid, cohesive ball. If the dough feels overly sticky, don’t hesitate to add an additional ¼ to ½ cup of flour while kneading until it’s manageable.
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On a floured surface, use a rolling pin (preferably an adjustable one or with thickness guides) to roll the dough out evenly to a thickness of ⅜ to ½ inch. Remember, thinner dough will result in crispier cookies that bake faster, while thicker dough yields a soft and chewy cookie. For a truly soft cookie, aim for around ⅜ inch. Use your favorite cookie cutters (a 2.5-inch circle or even a wine glass rim works well for basic shapes) to cut out your cookies.
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Carefully transfer the cut-out cookies to your parchment-covered baking sheets, leaving approximately 2 inches between each cookie to allow for slight spreading. For optimal results, especially with intricate shapes, cover the baking sheets with plastic wrap and refrigerate the cut-out cookie dough for 1-2 hours. This chilling step significantly helps the cookies maintain their shape during baking. If making simple circle cookies, chilling is less critical but will still help prevent excessive spreading. For intricate shapes, I recommend cutting them out first and then chilling the entire tray, rather than chilling a large dough block and then cutting.
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Bake in the preheated oven at 350°F (175°C) for 8-10 minutes, or until the edges are very lightly golden brown. Do not worry if the centers still appear slightly soft or underbaked; they will continue to set and bake on the hot cookie sheet after being removed from the oven, ensuring a perfectly soft texture.
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Allow the cookies to cool completely on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to finish cooling. Once completely cool, frost and decorate with your preferred vanilla icing or other creative decorations to match any occasion.
Last Step! Please leave a review and rating letting me know how you liked this recipe! This helps my small business thrive so I can continue providing free recipes and high-quality content for you.
Notes
* A few readers have commented that their cookies puffed up quite a bit during baking. While these cookies WILL rise slightly, they should not become excessively “puffy.” The leavening in baked goods can be significantly affected by altitude. If you reside in a high-altitude area, I highly recommend consulting King Arthur’s altitude adjustment guide before you begin baking. Although I’ve never encountered this issue personally (living in the Midwest), it’s an important consideration for bakers in other regions.
* Tips on Butter: Always use real unsalted butter for the best flavor and texture; avoid substitutes like margarine or shortening. It’s crucial that the butter is softened to room temperature, but not melted. If your butter is too warm or melted, the cookies are much more likely to spread excessively in the oven, leading to distorted shapes.
* This particular recipe has been a treasured part of my family’s cookbook for many years. A helpful reader recently noted its strong resemblance to a classic Betty Crocker recipe. It’s entirely possible this is where our family’s version originated! Feel free to compare it with the Betty Crocker classic here for more in-depth reviews. The primary difference in my adaptation is the omission of cream of tartar, as I found it tends to give these cookies a crunchier texture, and I prefer them soft.
Nutrition
Do you have a go-to sugar cookie recipe that you hold dear every year? After our “30 Days of Cookies” challenge, I’ve certainly discovered a few other contenders, but I’m not entirely sure I’ll be able to persuade my family to deviate from this particular classic. However, now that they have the new rolling pin gadget, perhaps I can delegate all the sugar cookie “dirty work” to them while I indulge in a blissful two-day nap under my heated blanket. It seems hibernation season has officially begun for me!
Looking for an easy homemade cream cheese buttercream recipe to elevate your sugar cookies? Don’t miss my favorite Sugar Cookie Buttercream recipe. It’s rich, smooth, and utterly delicious.
Or perhaps you prefer a sleek, glossy finish for your decorated cookies? Try out my Easy Sugar Cookie Icing Recipe, which dries perfectly smooth and adds a professional touch to your baked goods.
Craving some delightful and creative sugar cookie decorating ideas? Look no further! Here are a couple of my top recommendations to inspire your next baking project.
Easy Reindeer Sugar Cookies
Transform your simple circle cookies into adorable reindeer with minimal effort! This charming idea is always a hit, especially during the festive season. You’ll love how easy it is to bring these cheerful characters to life with a few simple steps and common decorating supplies.
DIY Cookie Trays with Free Printable Plate Attachments
Present your beautifully baked and decorated cookies in style with these homemade cookie trays. This idea is perfect for gifting your delicious creations to friends, family, or neighbors. Plus, with free printable plate attachments, you can add a personalized and professional touch effortlessly. Make your cookie gifts even more special this year!