Julie Clark
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Easy Cut Out Sugar Cookies
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Tips on how to make easy cut out sugar cookies. Buttery and lightly sweet, this cookie dough holds its shape when you bake it. Perfect for Christmas cookies and other holiday shapes, this here is the best sugar cookie recipe!
Cut out sugar cookies aren’t just for Christmas. Yes, rolled cookies are fun at Christmas time with the stocking, tree and bell shapes, but they can be just as festive in the spring with flowers, sunshines and bird shapes. And they are a must cut as hearts for Valentine’s Day.
This is an easy cut out sugar cookie recipe and we’ve been making it for years. Only 6 ingredients. A simple, lightly sweet buttery flavor. The shaped cookies remind me of shortbread texture and I could eat a whole tray of them even without any frosting.
If you’ve been looking for perfect sugar cookie recipe that hold their shape, look no further. Give this one a try!
Looking for a drop sugar cookie? Try our classic Pillsbury copycat cookies or ricotta sugar cookies.
Cut Out Cookies that Hold Their Shape
How do you keep cut out sugar cookies from spreading? There are 4 important things to remember:
- Use real butter. No substitutes! For even better results, use a high fat European butter.
- Don’t add leavening. Baking powder and baking soda both make the dough rise, causing the shapes to get out of proportion and not hold well. This sugar cookie dough is perfect without those ingredients.
- Fully mix the ingredients. If there are pockets of butter, they will melt during baking and cause the cookies to spread. Scrape the sides of the bowl often during mixing to ensure all ingredients get well incorporated.
- Refrigerate the dough. It’s sometimes a pain to wait for dough to chill, but it greatly helps sugar cookies keep their shape.
Ingredients for Cut Out Sugar Cookies
- Butter. Use real butter, not margarine. The butter should be at room temperature, not at all melted. Just soft to the touch. Let the butter sit at room temperature for at least 2 hours before mixing the cookies.
- Flour. Use a kitchen scale to measure the flour accurately.
- Princess Cake & Cookie Extract. I use this extract (get it on Amazon) for my sugar cookies. It gives a unique flavor and people try to guess what it is. Use vanilla or almond extract if you prefer.
✨ See the recipe card below for full ingredients and amounts. ✨
How to Make Cut Out Sugar Cookies
- Whisk the dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, combine the flour and salt with a wire whisk.
- Mix the wet ingredients. In a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar together. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat on medium speed until mixed well.
- Combine the two. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the flour mixture. Mix just until combined, being careful not to over mix.
- Roll the dough. Divide the dough in half. On a lightly floured surface, use a rolling pin to roll out one piece of dough to 3/8″ thick. Use cookie cutters and cut as many shapes as possible, re-rolling the dough scraps and cutting again.
- Refrigerate the dough. Place the shapes on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Refrigerate the cookie dough for an hour.
- Bake the dough. Preheat the oven to 325ºF. Bake cookies for 12-13 minutes, pulling the cookies out just before they start to brown. Allow the cookies to cool for 2-3 minutes, then transfer them to a flat surface to cool.
Sugar Cookie Icing
This easy cut out sugar cookie recipe holds frosting really well.
- They make a great base for royal icing cookies. If you need a royal icing recipe, try this one. We’ve used it before and it works well
- If you want something simpler, you can use a easy sugar cookie icing or simple powdered sugar glaze. Use a spoon to spread the frosting or dip the cookies. The color stays vibrant and the frosting sets well.
- If you’re looking for a fluffy sugar cookie frosting, try our vanilla buttercream frosting recipe. You can pipe this in swirls on the cookies or use a knife to spread it and then top with sprinkles.
Can you freeze cut out cookies?
Yes! This easy cut out cookie recipe freezes really well. Make these cookies up to a month in advance, wrap the cookies well in an airtight container and freeze them. Place parchment paper between the cookie layers. The cookies are soft and may stick together if you don’t. They keep in the freezer for up to 8 weeks.
Allow the cookies to defrost completely either in the refrigerator or at room temperature before you unwrap them. Doing this will help the moisture to stay in the cookies and not become dry.
Read all about how to freeze cookie dough here.
Other Sugar Cookie Recipes
- Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies
- Refrigerated Sugar Cookies
- Chewy Sugar Cookies
- Bakery Style Sugar Cookies
- Chocolate Sugar Cookies
- Rolled Chocolate Chip Cookies
You may also love our brown sugar butter cookies and soft pumpkin cookies.
Easy Cut Out Sugar Cookies
Tips on how to make easy cut out sugar cookies. Buttery and lightly sweet, this cookie dough holds its shape when you bake it. Perfect for Christmas cookies and other holiday shapes.
Servings 36
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Chilling Time 1 hour
Total Time 37 minutes
Ingredients
- 4 cups all-purpose flour 520 grams
- 1/2 teaspoon salt 3 grams
- 1 1/2 cups salted butter (room temperature) 12 ounces
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar 300 grams
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 10 grams
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour and salt with a wire whisk. 4 cups all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon salt
- In a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar together. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat on medium speed until mixed well. 1 ½ cups salted butter, 1 ½ cups granulated sugar, 2 large eggs, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the flour mixture. Mix just until combined, being careful not to over mix.
- Divide the dough in half. On a floured surface, roll out one piece of dough to 3/8" thick. Use cookie cutters and cut as many shapes as possible, re-rolling the dough scraps and cutting again.
- Place the shapes on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Refrigerate the cookie dough for an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 325ºF. Bake the cookies for 12-13 minutes, pulling the cookies out just before they start to brown.
- Allow the cookies to cool for 2-3 minutes, then transfer them to a flat surface to cool. Once the cookies are cooled, decorate as desired.
Video
Notes
- The butter should be stick butter, not tub butter…and not margarine! Use 100% real butter sticks. And make sure the butter is at room temperature, not fully softened or melted at all. The butter should just give slightly when you press into the stick of butter.
- The amount of cookies you get will greatly depend on how thick you roll the dough and how large your cookie cutter is. I’d say you’ll get anywhere from 3-5 dozen cookies with this recipe depending on those factors.
Nutrition
Calories: 155kcal | Carbohydrates: 18g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 30mg | Sodium: 104mg | Potassium: 20mg | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 250IU | Calcium: 6mg | Iron: 0.7mg
I have been looking for a long time for a traditional sugar cookie that does not take cream of tartar and this one was perfect. We did the regular cut-out cookies and put sprinkles on them before we baked them and they turned out beautifully. We’re not much for icing on our cookies in our family.
I dont know what the naysayers are talking about when they complain the dough is “too sticky.” The dough is just fine! It didnt stick any more than other refrigerated sugar cookie doughs I’ve used in the past. If they allowed it to become warm while working with it, or they over mixed it when incorporating the flour (which the recipe warns you not to do), then perhaps they were faced with a stick issue. But this is a great, super easy, recipe that turns out a tasty cookie!
Yesterday I made these cookies and followed the recipe and they turned out so good , all my friends loved them.
Thank you for this wonderful recipe! The cookies are cooling so then we can decorate them. They are perfect, not overly sweet! Our rolled cookie recipe from now on.
Our family tradition making cut-out cookies this one will be the recipe I make every year they were the best tasting cut-out cookies we have ever made. We did not do the flattening with parchment paper, we divided into 2 balls wrapped in plastic, we made the dough the day before and stored in the fridge. Took the dough out about 1.5 hours before we started cutting them out. Very easy dough to work with!! You can make them too thin be careful of that. LOVED!!!! They were so good without any frosting but you have to decorate in this… Read more »
I know leavening agents (baking powder and baking soda) can cause the cookies to spread. Is that why you don’t have it listed as an ingredient?
Can I make the dough ahead of time and leave it in the fridge?
WHAT A MESS!! I followed the recipe exactly. I flattened each half into disks before chilling them for two hours, rolled them between two pieces of parchment paper and everything stuck to both sides! Tried patting them flat, stuck to my hands! Finally I used a cookie scooper made them into balls and flatten them with my fingers. Baked them and they tasted like the mess they looked like. Threw the cookies away, the recipe away and the rest of the batter!!
I have unsalted butter, as that’s what I stocked up on for Christmas baking. How much extra salt should I add to make up for that?
Hi. I was just about to try these! Your recipe says 1 1/2 CUPS of butter, but the video shows 1 1/2 STICKS. Which is it???
Worst cookie I’ve ever made…dough stayed super sticky! Left dough in deep freezer for an hour and a half and the cookie cutters stuck to dough, hands stuck and couldnt roll the dough out. Followed recipe actually.. Not sure what happened
Hi! First off, thank you so much for this recipe! The dough holds its shape so well AND is delicious! My question is, is it okay to keep in the refrigerator for about a week? Or do I need to freeze at that point?
Beyond amazing!!! The best tasting cookies and THEY HOLD THEIR SHAPE. I am so thankful to have found your recipe. The cookies are in my freezer since 3 hours ago and will remain there until next Friday at which time my granddaughters and us will decorate them.
I am going to try your icing recipe and will let you know next weekend but, I have faith it will come out as wonderful as the cookies.
Sorry I have extended myself but, I have tried sooo many recipes that failed until I found yours.
Do I need the cover the cookie cutouts when I put them in the refrigerator to chill before I bake them?
Sorry I’m advance for the long comment but I just can’t say enough about this recipe! I sell decorated sugar cookies locally and have been using a different recipe that was great but not amazing. I like everything I sell to customers to be perfect and this recipe does just that. I add a teaspoon of almond extract to mine and just a smidge more flour. I roll mine out on a lightly floured silicon mat with a guided rolling pin so they’re all exactly 1/4 inch thick. I also freeze my cutouts for 5 minutes instead of refrigerating them,… Read more »