Easy Sugar Cookie Recipe (2024)

This Sugar Cookie Recipe stands the test of time. Crisp on the outside, but buttery soft on the inside, this is a family favorite!

These are amazing, and I also have a recipe for perfect Cut Out Sugar Cookies.

Easy Sugar Cookie Recipe (1)

This recipe for sugar cookies is one of my very favorite baked goods. I have made this recipe so many times, I can practically do it in my sleep.

Originally from America’s Test Kitchen, you know it is a winner.

By following my simple tips for how to make sugar cookies, these will turn out perfect for you as well. You’ll never need another recipe.

This is an older recipe that I’m updating with tons of tips and a video! But it stands the test of time, check out the reviews on it. It’s a winner!

WHY THIS WILL BE YOUR FAVORITE COOKIE RECIPE

These cookies have a simple delicious buttery flavor that wins over everyone.

The texture of these sugar cookies is perfection. They are crisp on the outside and buttery soft on the inside.

These homemade sugar cookies don’t need any chilling, which means you are that much closer to being able to eat them.

This is an EASY sugar cookie recipe. If baking intimidates you, read on! You can do it.

Whether it is Christmas time, a birthday, or a party at work, this cookie recipe fits every occasion.

Easy Sugar Cookie Recipe (2)

HOW TO MAKE SUGAR COOKIES

As I said, these are easy to make. Once you do it, the steps will feel like second nature. And the tip section below will help too!

  1. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
  2. Cream together room temperature butter and sugar.
  3. Mix in the eggs, one at a time. Then the vanilla extract.
  4. Add the flour mixture.
  5. Shape into balls, and roll in sugar.
  6. Bake and fall in love.

Done and done.

HOW TO ADD FLOUR TO CREAMED SUGAR

In the last year or so I’ve changed how I do this, so I wanted to bring your attention to it.

I’ve done some reading and what I’ve learned is that adding a flour mixture a little at a time is more likely to result in over mixing.

Once flour hits wet ingredients, the gluten begins to develop. If you beat the flour in too long, it will result in unpleasantly chewy cookies.

For a long time I added flour just a scoop or two at a time. Now, I have a new faster method.

Add in all of the flour mixture at once. Beat on low, just long enough so the flour doesn’t fly all over. Then beat on high, just enough so it is combined.

Be sure to scrape your bowl at the bottom with a spatula to make sure all the flour was mixed in. We also don’t want to under mix.

Check out the video in the recipe card to see this in action!

Easy Sugar Cookie Recipe (3)

SUGAR COOKIE BAKING TIPS

These tips apply to a lot of my cookies. But I always feel like they need repeating. They help so much.

  • When measuring the flour, scoop the flour into the measuring cup and then level off. Not scooping right from the container prevents packing the flour and adding too much to the recipe.
  • Make sure your baking powder is still good. To test, add a little to some water. It should bubble right away.
  • Fully whisk your dry ingredients. There is no risk of over mixing when it’s all dry ingredients and no one wants a pocket of salt in their cookie.
  • Make sure your butter is room temperature. Don’t soften in the microwave. Cut it up and let it sit on the counter for 30 minutes. You should be able to easily dent it with your finger but not push all the way through.
  • Fully cream your butter and your sugar. It should look light and fluffy after mixing. Doing this will create lighter cookies. And BONUS! You will get more cookies out of your batch of dough.
  • Use room temperature eggs. Fill a bowl with luke warm water and let the eggs sit in there while you are doing your other measuring and mixing.
  • Using a cookie scoop (1 1/2 tablespoon) will make sure that all of your cookies are uniform in size.
  • Rotate your baking sheet half way through baking so that if your oven doesn’t cook evenly, your cookies still will.
  • Invest in more than one baking sheet so that your dough can start out on a cool baking sheet, not one hot from the oven.

FREEZING SUGAR COOKIE DOUGH

This is a great dough to make ahead and freeze. To do that, follow the recipe through rolling the balls in sugar.

Then you need to:

  • Press the dough down lightly.
  • Place on wax paper on a baking tray and put in the freezer for an hour.
  • Take out and transfer to an airtight container.
  • Put back in the freezer and store the dough for up to three months.
  • When you are ready to bake, proceed as directed in the recipe card but bake for an extra 2 minutes.

If you would like to bake the cookies completely, but then freeze the whole cookie, that works too.

  • Place the baked and cooled cookies on a wax lined baking sheet.
  • Freeze for an hour.
  • Remove from the tray and put in an air tight container.
  • Freeze for up to three months.
  • Allow to thaw at room temperature before eating.

SPINS ON THIS SUGAR COOKIE RECIPE

I love this recipe so much that I’ve used it again and again to create some pretty amazing cookies. Check them out!

If you make these cookies and love them, join the others leaving a comment and letting me know!

Easy Sugar Cookie Recipe (4)

Easy Sugar Cookie Recipe (5)

4.85 from 32 votes

Perfect Sugar Cookies

Serves: 32 cookies

(tap # to scale)

Prep: 15 minutes minutes

Cook: 10 minutes minutes

Total: 25 minutes minutes

This Sugar Cookie Recipe stands the test of time. Crisp on the outside, but buttery soft on the inside, this is a family favorite!

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Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups sugar plus extra for rolling
  • 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 14 tablespoons unsalted butter room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 large eggs

Instructions

  • Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

  • In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

  • With your mixer on medium, mix together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

  • Mix in the eggs (one at a time) and then the vanilla until well combined.

  • Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients. Mix on low until combined enough it won't fly everywehre. Then turn up the mixer to high just long enough that you don't see streaks of flour. Scrape down the bowl and ont he bottom to ensure that all the flour is added. Only mix long enough to combine the flour. (See more detailed instructions in the post.)

  • Roll the dough into one inch sized balls. Roll the balls in sugar. Place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Space the cookies about two inches apart.

  • Bake for 10 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking. (I baked mine in three batches)

  • Let cool on the pan for about two minutes before moving to a cooling rack to cool completely.

  • Once cool, store in an airtight container for up to two weeks.

Serving: 1cookie Calories: 121kcal (6%) Carbohydrates: 16g (5%) Protein: 1g (2%) Fat: 5g (8%) Saturated Fat: 3g (19%) Monounsaturated Fat: 1g Cholesterol: 25mg (8%) Sodium: 84mg (4%) Potassium: 5mg Sugar: 9g (10%) Calcium: 5mg (1%)

Author: Lisa Longley

Easy Sugar Cookie Recipe (6)

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Perfect Sugar Cookies

I’d love to see what you made! Tag me @lisasimplejoy and hashtag it #simplejoyrecipes!

Easy Sugar Cookie Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How to make sugar cookie mix taste homemade? ›

Here are some easy switches you can make to upgrade your cookie mix and give it a homemade taste.
  1. Butter Instead of Margarine. ...
  2. Substitute margarine or shortening for butter using a 1:1 ratio. ...
  3. Coconut Oil Instead Of Other Fats. ...
  4. Maple Syrup Instead Of Granulated Sugar. ...
  5. Vanilla Extract. ...
  6. Almond Extract. ...
  7. Rum and Ginger. ...
  8. Cheesecake.

What happens if you use all white sugar in cookies? ›

Using granulated white sugar will result in a flatter, crispier and lighter-colored cookie. Granulated sugar is hygroscopic, so it attracts and absorbs the liquid in the dough. This slows down the development of the gluten (flour), which makes the cookies crispier.

Is it better to use powdered sugar or granulated sugar in sugar cookies? ›

Granulated sugar also helps tenderize batters and binds with water to keep baked goods moist. Powdered sugar in cookie dough will give you chewier cookies (if there's egg in the recipe).

What are the 4 basic dry ingredients that are mainly used when baking cookies? ›

While there may be countless variations, each cookie at the core has four ingredients – butter, sugar, flour & eggs. The proportions of ingredients and the methods of mixing are what define our cookies. Dough spreads – Inside the hot oven, the butter starts to melt and the dough gradually starts to spread out.

What happens if you bake no bake cookie dough? ›

We do not recommend baking our Bite-Sized Edible Cookie Dough [flavor/products]. It does not contain eggs or leavening agents, which are key ingredients in developing texture and lift in baked cookies. (If needed) Exposure to high oven temperatures will cause the product to liquefy and possibly burn.

How to enhance sugar cookies? ›

Take plain sugar cookies up a notch with exciting mix-ins like chocolate chips, rainbow sprinkles, toasted chopped nuts, chopped dried fruit or M&M's. Add these after blending your butter and egg into the sugar cookie mix.

How do you moisten sugar cookie dough? ›

Dry – “Dry” or “Crumbly” dough is a product of over-mixing or using too much of any ingredient during the mixing process. This can be reversed by adding one to two tablespoons of liquid (water, milk or softened butter) to your mix.

Why do you put powdered sugar in cookies? ›

Why? Powdered sugar (also known as confectioners' sugar) contains cornstarch. The cornstarch absorbs moisture from the rest of the ingredients, making an extra tender and chewy cookie.

What does cream of tartar do in sugar cookies? ›

Cream of tartar makes cookies chewy, as it precludes the sugar in the dough from crystalizing, which would lead to crispiness (ie: the opposite of chewiness).

Should I use baking soda or baking powder in cookies? ›

Baking soda is typically used for chewy cookies, while baking powder is generally used for light and airy cookies. Since baking powder is comprised of a number of ingredients (baking soda, cream of tartar, cornstarch, etc.), using it instead of pure baking soda will affect the taste of your cookies.

What happens if I use regular sugar instead of powdered sugar in cookies? ›

"This means, cup for cup, there would be more sugar in a cup of powdered sugar than in a cup of regular sugar." In addition to inconsistent measurements, regular sugar won't dissolve and mix as well into recipes like frosting and icing. You'll end up with a grainy, unappealing texture.

What defines a sugar cookie? ›

A sugar cookie, or sugar biscuit, is a cookie with the main ingredients being sugar, flour, butter, eggs, vanilla, and either baking powder or baking soda. Sugar cookies may be formed by hand, dropped, or rolled and cut into shapes.

What does less sugar do to a cookie? ›

When you decrease the sugar in a cookie recipe, you won't just get a result that's less sweet. You'll get cookies that are harder, drier, crumblier, and spread far less. It was also interesting to note that decreasing the sugar also yielded 1 less cookie dough ball.

What is the difference between a sugar cookie and a chocolate chip cookie? ›

A chocolate chip cookie is not a sugar cookie with chocolate chips. Their recipes have a completely different ratio of ingredients. Sugar cookies use more flour than their chocolate-speckled counterparts. Sugar cookies also call for white sugar, while chocolate chip cookies usually use both brown and white sugar.

Are sugar cookies soft or hard? ›

For sugar cookies, if you take them out just before the outside starts to brown. and while the edge offers no resistance, you'll get a cookie that is soft and chewy all throughout. Bake a few more minutes until the edge turns a light golden brown.

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