Easy Sugar Cookies
Easy sugar cookies are soft and chewy. This recipe requires few ingredients and no chilling the dough—just roll the dough into balls and bake!
What would baking be without a recipe for easy sugar cookies? They are classic American cookies—soft, chewy and sweet. This recipe calls for a few basic ingredients and there’s no need to chill the dough! How easy is that?
It’s hard to beat a chocolate chip cookie or peanut butter cookie, but there’s something about a sugar cookie that makes you reminisce about your childhood. This was the cookie that you made at Christmas time with your mom or grandma. It was the cookie everyone had at their birthday party. It’s the cookie that is perfectly sweet and irresistible.
Sugar cookie ingredients
- All purpose flour helps hold together the moist ingredients without making the cookies dry.
- Baking powder gives the cookies a little lift in the oven making them thick and soft.
- Salt
- Unsalted butter makes the cookie soft. Make sure it’s at room temperature so it’s easy to mix. Use unsalted butter for the best flavor.
- Granulated sugar makes this cookie a sugar cookie!
- Light brown sugar is kind of a secret ingredient. One tablespoon helps make the cookies extra chewy.
- Egg binds the ingredients together
- Vanilla adds flavor. For the best flavor, use high-quality pure vanilla extract.
Looking for cookies to decorate? Try this cut-out sugar cookie recipe.
How to make easy sugar cookies
Once you have your ingredients, making the cookies is simple. Here is goes…
- Preheat oven to 375° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Whisk flour, baking powder and salt together in a medium bowl and set aside.
- Mix butter, sugar and brown sugar together in the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.
- Add egg and vanilla. Mix just until combined.
- Slowly add flour mixture with the mixer on low. Mix just until combined. With a silicone spatula, give the bowl a finally stir getting the sides and bottom to make sure ingredients are mixed.
- Scoop dough into balls using a 1-inch cookie scoop or Tablespoon measure. Roll balls in 1/4 cup granulated sugar. Place on prepared baking sheet 2 inches apart.
- Bake at 375° F for 8 to 10 minutes or until the cookie edges are set, but not brown. The center of the cookies will look soft and pillowy.
How to keep sugar cookies soft
Let cookies cool completely on a wire rack, then store them in an airtight container. Keep the container in a cool place in your kitchen, such as the pantry, or in the refrigerator for longer storage. Cookies will stay soft for up to a week if stored properly at a cool temperature.
Can you freeze sugar cookies?
Yes! Once baked, let the cookies cool completely. Sugar cookies can be kept in a freezer bag and frozen for up to a month. You can either wrap the cookies individually in plastic wrap and store in a freezer bag OR layer cookies on parchment paper or wax paper in an airtight container.
With that said, I do prefer to freeze sugar cookie dough instead of baked cookies. Wrap sugar cookie dough in plastic wrap, then aluminum foil. Store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Defrost in the refrigerator before rolling into balls and baking.
How to decorate sugar cookies
These cookies can be decorated with sprinkles or frosting! I suggest adding a 1/2 cup sprinkles to the dough and stir it in by hand right before rolling the dough into balls. You can also frost sugar cookies with my buttercream frosting and then add sprinkles. Other options include dipping the cookies in chocolate or sandwiching frosting between two cookies. I also like adding a simple icing, like for Taylor Swift’s chai sugar cookies.
Related Recipes
Looking for more delicious baking goods? Try these recipes next!
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Get the Recipe: Easy Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups (281 g) all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (2 sticks or 226 g) unsalted butter,, room temperature
- 1 cup + 1/4 cup (250 g) granulated sugar,, separated
- 1 Tablespoon packed light brown sugar
- 1 large egg,, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract,, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or using a hand mixer), beat butter, 1 cup sugar and brown sugar together on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl halfway through.
- Add egg and vanilla. Mix until combined, about 30 seconds.
- With the mixer on low, slowly add the flour mixture to the bowl. Mix just until combined. Batter will be thick. Use a spatula to scrape the bottoms of the bowl to ensure all flour bits are mixed in.
- Use a 1-inch cookie scoop (about tablespoon) to scoop dough. Use your hands to roll dough into a ball and roll each ball in remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Place on prepared cookie sheet 2 inches apart.
- Bake cookies 375° F for 8 to 10 minutes or until the cookie edges are set, but not yet brown. The centers of the cookies will be soft and pillowy (they will fall as they cool). Let cookie cool on the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
