What would you choose for dessert; a sugar cookie or a slice of chocolate cake? If you’re anything like me and those two items were in your home, the sugar cookies would be hanging around long after the chocolate cake was polished off.
Don’t get me wrong, I do like sugar cookies, but love them… Not so much. But trying to decorate chocolate cake to give as gifts – that wouldn’t work as well as sugar cookies do. Which leads me to the reason why I’m writing this post today – I’ve come up with a sugar cookie recipe by playing around with some favorite recipes. It’s definitely tasty, although it’s still not in the ‘chocolate cake’ category. If you try it out I’d love to hear what you think in the comment section below.
Before I get to the recipe, let me share a little introduction to the ‘Polar Bear Parade’ cookies with you.
When I saw this ribbon months ago at Michael’s Craft Store I just knew I had to make a cookie version of it. Pretty colors, a simple shape and such a cute little polar bear.
These were finished before Christmas, but I wasn’t able to post them in time. If you’d like to create these, you could make just the polar bear or substitute another object for the gift instead. It’d be a nice winter-themed cookie I think. The ribbon is probably on sale now too!
I used the KopyKake drawing projector to help me draw the image (believe me – I need it!), but you might be able to freehand as it’s a fairly simple shape.
Some of these are made of a new gingerbread recipe I found on-line, but I wasn’t entirely happy with the results (taste).
As I mentioned earlier, I’ve been playing around with some of my ‘go-to’ sugar cookie recipes – a few of the main ones being Peggy Porschen’sand the NFSC (No Fail Sugar Cookie) recipe (from cakecentral.com), to come up with my own combination. The latter two are still favourites for me, but now I’ve got a third choice. This is what I’ve come up with (please also see notes at the bottom of the recipe):
Sugar Cookie Recipe
Sugar Cut Out Cookie Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups unsalted butter, room temperature
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 3 tsp vanilla extract *or seeds from 1 vanilla bean
- 5 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder *take this out if you don't want your cookies to spread
- 1 tsp salt
Instructions
- Cream the butter and sugar together in the bowl of an electric mixer on low to medium speed. (Use the paddle attachment). Mix until thoroughly incorporated - for about one minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a plastic spatula and mix again for a few seconds more. Over mixing the butter and sugar in this step will cause too much air to be incorporated into the dough. If you'd like a light and fluffy cookie, that's ideal, however the dough will spread more during baking; not ideal if you'd like the cookie to hold its shape.
- Add eggs slowly and mix. Scrape down the bowl with your spatula at least once and mix again.
- Add liquid vanilla extract. Stir briefly. Alternatively, cut open your vanilla bean and scrape the seeds out. Add to mixing bowl and stir.
- Sift your dry ingredients together. (Flour, baking powder and salt).
- Add all of the flour mixture to the bowl. Place a large tea towel or two small tea towels between the edge of the bowl and the electric mixer so that the flour won't escape. Mix on low speed for 30 seconds. Remove the tea towels and observe the dough mixing; when it clumps around the paddle attachment it's ready. It's also important at this stage not to over mix the dough (the glutens in the flour develop and the dough can become tough).
- Roll the dough out between 2 large pieces of parchment paper. Place on a baking sheet and into the fridge for a minimum of 1 hour.
- Roll out the dough further if you need to, and cut out cookie shapes. Place on parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Re-roll scraps and repeat.
- Put cookie dough shapes back into the fridge for 10 minutes to 1 hour to chill again. They will then hold their shape better when baked.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F or 176°C.
- Bake cookies for 8-12 minutes or until the edges become golden brown. The baking time will depend on the size of your cookie.
- Let cookies cool to room temperature and decorate!
Notes
A few notes about the recipe (also listed in recipe):
These have already been included in the recipe above, but just in case you didn’t see them, they are important to read, so I’ve included them again.
*Butter – The butter needs to be soft, or room temperature. I leave mine out the night before I do my baking. If you forget, you can grate the butter on the largest hole of your box grater, so that the sugar and butter will mix together better.
*Amount of Butter – I’ve noticed some people who’ve tried the recipe who live in a warmer climate have trouble with 2.5 cups butter, and although the extra 1/2 cup butter taste is nice, to make the dough easier to work with in any climate, I edited the recipe to say only 2 cups of butter. The printable version is uneditable, so still says 2.5 cups of butter.
*Baking powder – I hardly use any baking powder in my recipe because the dough will spread and rise more during baking, thereby making the shape of the cookie less crisp. The only time I use it now, is if I’m just making round shortbread cookies and I don’t care about the cookies spreading.
*Chill your dough if it gets too soft work with. It’s a softer, sometimes sticky dough (depending on your environment as well), but in my humble opinion, makes up for it in taste.
*Read these tips here on stopping dough from spreading.
*Added May 19th, 2019 – Clarification – the sugar used for the cookies is granulated sugar not icing sugar or confectioner’s sugar.
I’ll do an in-depth tutorial with pictures on making the sugar cookie dough in a future post.
Hope you enjoy this recipe!
xo,
Marian
Marian says
AmySue, do you mean shaped cookies made with cookie cutters etc.?
This is the recipe I use for mine.
There are certain tips to follow to make sure they keep their shape; follow the recipe and notes below it carefully (i.e. Don’t overmix butter and sugar, chill dough in between steps, use little or no baking powder etc.), and it should work.
Hope that helps!
D says
Thanks so much for ALL your responses.
How about a VIDEO tutorial some day?
Marian says
Thanks D!
I would like to and plan to!
Laura says
Hi Marian!
I tried this recipe on the weekend and loved it! The cookies were delicious and they didn’t spread!
Do you have a recipe that you use for chocolate cookies and gingerbread?
Thanks! Laura
Julie M. says
These are so cute!
aurora says
I don’t know what I did wrong… I’m so bummed. I’ve been looking forward to making these cookies for Easter for so long. I measured everything to the “T”. Made sure I didn’t OVER Mix anything.. and I all I have is dough that is too gooey… and after I put it in the fridge the dough becomes brittle. I did manage to bake 4 cookies… (they tasted just like shortbread cookies). As I was trying to remove them from the sheet they just cracked and broke all over the place. basically I had crumbs for cookies… Very tasty crumbs though. I just don’t know where I went wrong. Did I UNDER Mix??? Help!
Marian says
Oh dear! I’d have to see how you made them… dryness usually means too much flour, however they were gooey before you chilled them, so that means it probably wasn’t dry.
I hesitate to say, ‘add more flour’, if they were that gooey as this recipe always works so well as is for me. As a rule of thumb though; if you do find dough too gooey, it does help to add flour.
If you take really chilled dough out of the fridge it can crack because it’s so cold… maybe leave it out for a couple of minutes and then try cutting the shapes out.
A couple of tips for removing them from the sheet; if they stick to the parchment, try to pry the parchment away from the cookies instead of the cookie away from the parchment.
A large metal spatula dusted with flour can work as well.
If the measurements are off it can mess up the recipe as well, but you mentioned you measured to the ‘T’.
Hard to pinpoint without seeing the process and your dough!
I’m going to work on a video tutorial for making this recipe and hopefully that will help!
Michelle Adams says
I don’t know where this recipe has been all my life, but it is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!! Perfect, easy, beautiful and beyond tasty! Though these taste more like shortbread than sugar cookies…which is definitely not a bad thing (short breads are my fav!). I will NEVER use another sugar cookie recipe again. Thank for posting this!!!
aurora says
Thank you Marian for responding so quickly. I did let my dough chill over night. I guess I have to be more patient as it thaws out to a workable consistency. And I did forget to bake on the parchment. I have the day off tomorrow… so I’ll be in a better mindset than trying to rush through these after work and before “bathtime”.
Thanks Marian so much. I’ll keep you posted.
Fingers crossed the Royal Icing part doesn’t kick my butt!!
aurora says
Yippie, I finally finished my cookies and the royal icing was easy. I just have to practice a little more. This is definitely a skill that will get better with time! Got lots of compliments at our family Easter party!
Jay says
Hi Marian
Is the recipe posted the final /updated version? I noticed quite a few comments about weights and measurements, so thought I should check before trying a batch.
Thanks.
PS. Super-cute!
Marian says
Hi Jay,
This is the recipe I use which works out – I haven’t edited it for weights yet but the flour weight is in the comment section somewhere. 😉
Make sure you read the notes at the bottom of the recipe and follow instructions precisely (baking is a science), and it should work out.
Happy Baking!
Nicholas says
Thanks so much for this recipe! Helped a bunch!
Tiffany Nielsen says
Hi Marian!
I’ve used your sugar cookie and royal icing recipies. They are wonderful. BUT my cookies, when baked, come out with a “fluffy” top rather than a smooth top. I’ve tried letting them sit int he fridge to harden a little more before baking and I’ve tried just putting them right in the oven. Both turn out the same. Is there anything I can do? Also, when the icing dries, it looks a little grainy… is there a way to avoid that!? Thanks!
Marian says
Hi Tiffany,
Have you tried taking out the baking soda from the recipe altogether? How long did you leave the cookies in the fridge? I guess try for minimum one hour if you haven’t then.
For the icing, besides sifting all the ingredients and using the icing when it’s fresh, I can’t think of anything else. If you send me a pic of the cookies (close up of the ‘graininess’ -if that’s a word lol), I’ll be able to have a better idea of what you mean.
Christine says
Marian,
LOVE your blog! Incredibly helpful, detailed, and beautiful to look at.
I have a question about the sugar cookies (similar to Tiffany’s). I make the sugar cookie dough the same each time, and yet sometimes when baked the tops are bubbly/flaky/crackley, and sometimes (though rarely) they’re completely smooth. I don’t know what I’m doing wrong, I usually let it chill overnight.
Thanks so much! -Christine
Marian says
If you’re getting some smooth and some crackly it might have to do with how much the dough has been rolled out.
For example, the first time you roll out the dough and cut the cookie shapes out, the dough has rarely been handled. -Those cookies tend to hold their shape very well.
The more you roll the scraps together and re-roll, the less the dough seems to hold it’s shape.
If you find it’s happening with the same batch of dough that could be the issue. If it’s not happening in the same batch I’d have to ask a few more questions. Let me know and I’ll try my best to help.
Tiffany Nielsen says
Marian,
That is exactly what happens! But I have never had any turn out smooth. Not even the first time they are rolled out. They are always the bubbly/flaky/crackly. Any ideas Marian? I roll it out using powdered sugar instead of flour. Could that be it?
Tiffany
Monali says
Marian,
Absolutely love your blog. And this recipe is perfect and YUMMY!! I am from Bangladesh and sugar cookies are still a rarity here. I happend to be a big fan of them. I just used your sugar cookie recipe yesterday and they came out perfect. they were flat and ready to be decorated. I might have overbaked them a bit but no one seemed to notice and my family enjoyed them to bits. Could you please tell me what should be the idea thickness of the rolled out dough before cutting the cookies?
Thanx a bunch once again for sharing this delicious recipe with us 🙂
Monali
Marian says
Hi Tiffany,
How much baking powder do you put in? Perhaps try none.
Also try rolling it out between two sheets of parchment paper instead of powdered sugar. That way you’re not adding anything to the surface of the dough. (The sugar could have been carmelizing on the top). If you send me a picture it’ll help me try and determine the reason.
Marian says
Hi Monali,
I’m so glad you like the recipe!
I usually roll mine out about 0.75 cm.
I have gone a bit thinner (0.50 cm) or thicker (1cm), when I felt like it though.
Happy baking!
Cheron says
Hi, my biscuits (as we call them in South Africa) lost their crispness while I left them out waiting for the icing to dry. They looked gorgeous and the icing ent hard but the actual biscuit was soft.Is there some way to keep them crunchy before putting them into a storage container?
Thanks for an amazing tutorial site thats FREE !
Marian says
Hi Cheron,
A couple of things; what recipes did you use for the cookies and the icing? I haven’t encountered that problem with the recipes I use.
The other thing I’m wondering about is the humidity. If that issue is happening even with the recipes I use could be a matter of moisture in the air. Would you be able to decorate and let them dry in either an air-conditioned room or a room with a dehumidifier?
Let me know how it works out for you!
:) says
You had mentioned that you will be posting weight measurements for the sugar cookie recipe. Will that be soon?
Joy says
This is the ABSOLUTE cookie recipe, I have ever used! The cookies turn out perfectly EVERY SINGLE TIME!!! It is AMAZING!!!! I recommend using the cookie and icing recipe! It is the best and you get a high quality product EVERY SINGLE TIME!!!! It never fails!
Christine says
Ok, after much practicing, I’m finding that the MORE I roll out the dough, the smoother it comes out after baking. As long as I don’t let it get too soft or too warm, the cutouts still seem to hold their shape. So now I have a new question! Lately my royal icing comes out very grainy/sandy and doesnt harden quite as well. It takes much longer to harden, and has a very matte finish. I havent been doing anything differently. Any ideas as to why this may happen? Thanks again!@ Marian:
marian says
Hi Christine,
Are you decorating in an environment which is now more humid than when the cookies dried faster?
Kaitlyn says
Hi Christine,
I am really eager to try your recipe. I was curious as to about how many these would make, I know it depends on what kind of cookie cutter you use, but what about the standard circle? I am making a huge batch this weekend and was curious as to about how many you usually get out of one recipe!
marian says
No worries Kaitlyn! I would say about 25 cookies for sure! It of course depends not only on the size, but the thickness as well.
Happy decorating!
Kaitlyn says
Why I said Christine in the above post, I will never know…. I think I clearly I need another coffee today! Sorry Marian! I don’t know where my head is today 🙂
Shikin says
Hi Marian…u r an INSPIRATION. believe me
Q..after decorating and waiting for it to dry..where do u leave it? esp wen we have a lot to bake. 24 hrs seems very long..hehehe..
marian says
Shikin,
It does seem like it, but the icing acts as a sealant and the cookie doesn’t get stale. It needs to really dry so that the icing doesn’t get ruined/dented etc. when you put the cookies in bags. I leave mine on my baking sheets in a baking rack.
Christine says
Aha! @Tiffany- Found the source of the crackly/bubbly surface- it WAS the powdered sugar. Duh, I was using tons of it. This week I tried rolling them using a *little* flour instead, as well as parchment paper. What a difference. And they still taste great. Plus. the royal icing adds plenty of sweetness.
Phew! No more losing sleep over cookies. Not that that’s every happnened…
Jill says
Hi,
Here’s a fan all the way from Holland, loving every word and picture in your blog. unfortunately it’s gonna cost me… I definitely want the Kopykake!!! Lucky me it’s very expensive and have to save/bake some more.
But enough talk, here’s my question: In holland we use the metric stelsel, and I do not have a clue how I can converte your recipe. (the internet isn’t helping me either…). Can you help me?!!!Thanks!
XJill
anne laney says
i have a question about this recipe. are your cookies greasy? mine seem to be overly greasy.
marian says
I don’t think so. Try the recipe out and let me know how it goes for you.
The one thing I will say, is that if your recipe is sticky (I roll my dough out between sheets of parchment), add more flour.
anne laney says
it’s after they have been baked they are greasy. i will try less butter see if that helps. it’s a yummy sugar cookie though. thank you. btw i didn’t have any problems rolling out or any sign they were overly greasy while raw. so hmm not sure.
marian says
Try baking them a little longer; that makes them crisper too.
Kerrianne Giuffrida says
This is by far the BEST sugar cookie recipe I have EVER made!!!! They are so delicious .. I love how they are not too crispy on the outside, but the inside is super light and moist!! 10+ stars in my book!!!
marian says
Kerrianne, I’m thrilled you like it! Thanks so much for the glowing report!
I’d love to see some pics of the cookies you’ve made if you’d like to share them on my facebook page. =)
Ashley says
Hi!
I was just wondering roughly how many cookies you get out of this dough? I know all cookie cutters are different sizes and the dough thickness varies, but a rough number would be so helpful!
Cheers,
Ashley
marian says
Hi Ashley,
I’d say about 25-30.
Happy baking!
Ashley says
@ marian:
This cookie dough recipe didn’t work for me at all! I’m an avid baker, so baking isn’t new to me. I followed your directions to the T, but all my cookies just baked into blobs and the edges burned before the middles were done! I’m just flabbergasted at the whole thing. 🙁
marian says
@ Ashley:
=(
A few troubleshooting tips:
***how thick is your baking sheet? A thick one is better than a thin one. Thin makes them spread and brown faster on the bottom.
***measurements – probably not for you as you mention you’re an avid baker, but perfect measurements are important.
***Chill the dough between all stages longer
***Oven temperature needs to be calibrated. If your oven isn’t hot enough that can happen. Check it by using an oven safe thermometre.
*** Only place your cookies in the middle of your oven if you don’t have the convection setting.
The recipe works for me and many others, hopefully the things I mentioned above help!
jay says
hi marian. i stumbled upon your beautiful cookies on my quest for perfecting my own sugar cookies. your cookies are breath taking and i simply must invest in a projector! amazing work! i do have a question about your use of various sugar cookie recipes. i have tried many recipes that claim to be the ideal cookie for “thick-cut” cookies but am still not convinced i have it quite right yet. i am looking for a recipe that will produce very thick cut cookies which retain their shape during baking (with little-to-no spread) AND still taste good. my desire is to produce cookies of the thickness one would find in a cookie bouquet type cookie. i am wondering if the recipe you share on this page (i.e., the one you say you came up with) would be what i am looking for, or perhaps one of the other ones you recommend. i would say i should just go ahead and give each of them a try and see how they bake up … but quite frankly, i am tired of trying new recipes and being disappointed with the results … so i figured i’d just come out and ask what you have found in your experience to be the best recipe for thickly cut cookies (i.e., 1/2″ or more). Thanks for sharing!
marian says
Hi Jay,
My recipe (a combination of the No-Fail-Sugar-Cookie Recipe by Antonia74 and Peggy Porschen’s), is a moist one… I like it for the taste and like the fact that it’s not dry.
The tips in the recipe (#1, 6 and 8 work for me) -not over mixing sugar and butter and incorporating too much air and really chilling the dough between each step.
Since I’ve posted the recipe I’ve realized that a few things have contributed to other people’s cookies spreading (I’ll have to do a new post with the add-ons, as well as weights for people who prefer it):
a) Make sure your oven really is at 350 degrees. Check the oven temp. with an oven-safe calibrated thermometre to make sure.
b) Your baking sheet should be thick. Cookies tend to spread more when the baking sheet is thin.
c) Use a good quality butter – (least water content the better). If you need to use a cheaper butter for budget or if you’re not sure what the butter’s water quantity is, take out 1/2 cup of butter from the recipe.
That and chill, chill, between each step!
Hope that helps and let me know how it goes!
bianca says
So I’m still experimenting with sugar cookies and I decided …..to try your.recipe….my dough seems to be very buttery :/ I tried to roll it out in between parchment paper and I cant seem to get the same thickness throught….I decided to chill the dough before trying to roll it again…. hope that works 🙂
Tricia says
First, let me say that I really enjoy your site. You are very talented and give great instruction to those of us just learning.
I have a question about keeping the shape of the cookies “crisp”: (1) In one of your posts, you mention using less leavening; do you mean less leavening than you show in your recipe above? (2) Do you bake your cookies on parchment? (3) Do you remove your cookies from the oven before they are set and let them cool completely on the cookie sheet before removing to a cooling rack? Thank you so much for any help you can provide.
marian says
Thanks Tricia!
1) Take out the leavening agent in my recipe, or any recipe you’re using.
2) I bake my cookies on parchment
3) When my cookies are baked, I remove them from the oven and set the whole baking sheet on a cooling rack and basically leave them there until they’re ready to decorate.
HOpe that helps!
Tricia says
@ marian: Thank you … this is very helpful!
Sharlene says
Hi,
i tried to do the cookie dough but realised i have put short of one cup of flour!! and e dough is already in e fridge.. is there any way i can salvage the dough now?? pls help!! thanks 🙁
marian says
Sharlene; When you roll it out, work with small pieces of dough (about the size of your hand spread out), roll it out in lots of flour, put lots of flour on your rolling pin, and/or try rolling it between two sheets of parchment paper also coated with flour. It will be finicky, but can be saved! If the dough is warm, chilling it can help so that it’s not so sticky as well.
Once it’s rolled out put it back into the fridge to chill for at least an hour, then cut out your cookie shapes and place them on a baking sheet. Chill those for an hour again and then bake.
Let me know how it goes!
Sharlene says
Hi Marian..
OMG!.. i think i left out more flour dan i expected.. maybe 2 cups! (my daughter was doing e measurements) .. ok i’ve tried e methods u mentioned, but e cookie cracked when it was baking in e oven.. is it because i’ve added too much flour? how does e dough look/feel like? thanks..
marian says
Sharlene, if the cookie cracked it probably was too dry (yes too much flour). =(
Before it’s baked the dough should be soft, moist, but not too sticky. (I’m thinking a video is needed, what do you think?)
Sharlene says
@ marian:
let me try again.. there is still more than half a batch of wet dough in e fridge. will put less flour this time.. e cookies were dry but tasted good none the less 🙂
Meichmoi says
Looking forward for the cookie dough tutorial 🙂
I love to decorate, but no patience to bake cookies, ur post to freeze d cookies was really helpfull 🙂