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These cut out sugar cookies are the BEST. They are soft, easy to decorate, have neat edges, and the dough doesn’t require refrigeration!
This recipe is BY FAR my favorite sugar cookie recipe EVER. Each batch turns out perfectly every time and are perfect for decorating. We love making these for just about any occasion and they are so easy, they kids can help make them too! Keep reading to learn all of our tips, tricks, and secrets to making these cookies and our favorite ways to decorate them.
Ingredients in Sugar Cookies
- Granulated Sugar
- Powdered Sugar
- Unsalted Butter
- Shortening
- Eggs
- Vanilla Extract
- Almond Extract
- All Purpose Flour
- Baking Powder
- Salt
- Decorations – frosting, icing, sprinkles, candies, etc
Why This is the Best Sugar Cookie Recipe
- Neat edges – Neat edges are a must for having pretty sugar cookies. Other recipes go flat or puff up too much in the oven. This recipe gives you perfect, straight edges.
- Flat tops – Flat tops are critical for decorated cookies. You want that royal icing to stay put and not slide off.
- Soft – Nobody likes biting into a hard cookie but sometimes that is what happens when you have perfectly formed cookies. Not so with this recipe! These cookies keep their shape, but are chewy and soft in texture when you bite into them.
- Not too sweet – With frosted or iced sugar cookies, you want the cookie itself to not taste as sweet so the flavors of the icing/frosting stand out without overpowering you with sweetness. These cookies do just that.
- NO chilling needed (the best part in my opinion) – This is a “no chill sugar cookie”… not that they can’t relax and have fun like any other cookie 😉 This sugar cookie dough does not need to be refrigerated before rolling out. You can make these start-to-finish in minutes! This really makes it an easy sugar cookie recipe.
Decorated Sugar Cookies
These cookies are meant to be decorated. The cookie itself is not as sweet, which is totally on-purpose so you can decorate them with icing or frosting and they don’t come out over-the-top sweet. If you want a sweeter sugar cookie, then you can add a little more sugar, but trust me, you won’t even notice there is less sugar in this recipe and will love the balance of flavors. Decorate these cookies with either icing or with frosting (or even fondant). You can decorate them as simply or as extravagantly as you would like (Cookie credit for decorating the Alice in Wonderland cookies above goes to @heidissweettooth. Follow her on Instagram)!
Sugar Cookie Icing
Take these cookies to the next level by decorating them with royal icing. Royal icing is perfect for sugar cookies because it pipes well and can also be used for flooding. It is not as thick and fluffy as frosting and makes for a prettier, smoother cookie. I like royal icing because it has a gorgeous sheen to it and you can make all sorts of fun designs. It takes more patience than frosting but it is totally worth it! Click HERE to learn how to make royal icing as well as all the techniques you need to know for decorating sugar cookies.
Sugar Cookie Frosting
If you aren’t in the mood for decorating sugar cookies with icing, then you can always frost them instead. Although I prefer frosting on cookies like our soft and chewy Grandma’s Soft Sugar Cookies (pictured above) or our Copycat Swig Cookies, frosting will still work great with these cut-out cookies. Frosting spreads on thick, unlike royal icing, and sticks better to sprinkles. Try our cream cheese frosting, vanilla buttercream frosting, easy chocolate buttercream frosting or any of these copycat Swig cookie frostings. Don’t forget to let the cookies cool before decorating! They should be room temperature or cooler.
What Supplies Do I Need To Make Homemade Sugar Cookies?
- measured rolling pin – Use 3/8″ thickness on the measured rolling pin to get the perfect thickness
- cookie cutters
- baking sheet or cookie sheet
- silicone baking mats (or parchment paper)
- cooling racks or wire racks
- a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or hand mixer
How To Store Sugar Cookies
These sugar cookies can easily be made ahead of time and stored for later– even after they have been decorated with royal icing! After placing cookies in an airtight container or bag they can be stored in the refrigerator for 2 weeks and can be stored in the freezer for up to 6 months. Storage times are the same whether they are iced or not. If icing with royal icing before storing, then just make sure the icing is completely dry. Allow to dry for 24 hours before storing. If you are wanting to frost the cookies with frosting, then it is best to wait until the day of serving before adding the frosting. Frosting doesn’t freeze as well as icing and the frosting is more likely to get smashed up in the process.
Frequently Asked Questions
In our opinion, sugar cookies should be soft! They should have a nice clean edge, but the middle should be pillow soft.
We say why not both?? This recipe uses both butter and shortening – maximum flavor and texture!
Definitely after! The icing will melt in the oven if decorated before.
Read More: 33+ Easy Dessert Ideas (with Pictures + Simple Recipes)
More Cookie Recipes:
- Christmas Cookies
- Sugar Cookies with Raspberry Cream Cheese Frosting
- Firecracker Sugar Cookie Bars
- Gingerbread Cookies
- Homemade Oreo Cookies
How To Make Sugar Cookies
Best Cut Out Sugar Cookies (No-Chill Recipe)
Ingredients
- ¾ cup sugar
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 1/4 cup shortening
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract
- 3 cups flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup flour (for rolling out)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400-degrees F. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine sugar, powdered sugar, butter, and shortening. Mix until well combined.
- Add eggs, vanilla, and almond extract and mix until combined. Scrape the sides of the bowl.
- In a medium-sized bowl whisk together the dry ingredients – flour, salt, and baking powder.
- Add flour mixture to sugar mixture a little at a time. Mix until the dough pulls away from the sides and forms a soft ball when pressed together.
- Remove dough from bowl and roll out onto a lightly floured surface (about ¼ cup flour). Roll out to 3/8-inch thickness (see notes above).
- Cut out shapes using cookie cutters.
- Bake cookies on a lined baking sheet for 7 minutes (6 minutes for smaller cookies). Remove cookies from pan and allow to cool on a cooling rack.
- After cookies have completely cooled, they are ready for decorating (see notes above).
Have you tried it with all butter an no shortening? I don’t have any on hand!
We haven’t, but if you are in a pinch I think it will be okay! They might not perfectly hold their shape, you might want to actually chill the dough for a bit in the fridge.
This was a perfect dough recipe as I didn’t have time to chill before cooking and my cookies came out delicious! My 3 year old grandson and 2 year old granddaughter will enjoy these tomorrow Easter! Thanks again for sharing on Pinterest!
Erica, I obtained see ones your cut out cookie recipe when searching flooding icing recipe. Looks delicious and do I understand, the dough doesn’t need to be chilled? WOW!
Do you have a gluten-free cut out cookie?
Thanks!
Merry Christmas from Texas
We don’t have a gluten free recipe yet, but that is a great idea!
There is a note in instruction #5 that says (see notes above). #5 tells you to roll out to 3/8 inch thickness (see notes above). I can not find any notes related to the thickness of the cookie. Am I missing something?
Hi Anita– the note is referring to the measured rolling pin that is linked above and that shows in the picture. In order to get that perfect thickness you want to use a measured rolling pin (any measured rolling pin will do). Hope this helps!
Can you chill overnight IF you need to? Also, love the almond flavor-curious if you could also make a batch by replacing almond with peppermint for Christmas 🎄 🎅🏻 Thanks for the BEST sugar cookie recipe I’ve made ☺️
Yes you should be able to chill it overnight! And yes the peppermint idea sounds delicious!!
Totaly awesome! This is my new favorite cookie recipe.
The dough was easy to roll out and held their shape nicely. The problem is that these are probably the most tasteless cookies I have ever tasted even though I added extra vanilla and almond extract. I won’t be making them again. Moving on to other recipes.
Hi Janet- did you use icing/frosting on these cookies? They purposely aren’t as sweet so icing or frosting can be added and the sweetness isn’t overwhelming. The cookie and the frosting balance each other out. The flavors of the cookie will come through best when combined with the icing. Hope this helps!
Such a great sugar cookie recipe! I love using it for every holiday I can!
These look fabulous! I love that there is almond extract in them – such a great flavor for sugar cookies!
We absolutely love this recipe at home! They will be my new go-to sugar cookie recipe! I just made it today with my kids and both enjoyed them 🙂
Delicious cookies! They roll out so nicely! WHERE did you get that heart shaped cookie cutter? I am in LOVE with it! It is in the set of cutters you linked above? Thank you for the awesome, easy roll out cookie recipe!
These were incredible! So easy and I love that I didn’t need to chill the dough! Thanks for the awesome recipe.
Not having to chill the dough is HUGE! It makes all the difference! I’m so glad you like the recipe!