Sugar Cookies That Hold Their Shape Recipes

SOFT SUGAR COOKIES RECIPE

Steps:

• In a large bowl or stand mixer, beat the butter on medium speed until it is soft and fluffy, 1-2 minutes.
• Add the softened cream cheese and continue to beat for 1 minute, until well incorporated.
• Add the sugar and beat well, 1-2 minutes, until fluffy.
• Add the egg, vanilla, and almond extract. Beat well. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula. This is my spatula that I love and use for every baking project.
• Add salt and flour and beat until just barely combined, scraping the sides and bottom again. Do not stir too much or you will make your dough tough. The dough is pretty sticky!
• Scrape the dough out onto a sheet of plastic wrap (or into a ziplock or tupperware). Cover or wrap tightly and put it in the fridge for 2 hours (or overnight) or in the freezer for 1-2 hours. (If I am in a hurry I will split the dough in half and wrap separately so that it will chill faster.)
• When the dough is completely chilled, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Line 2-3 baking sheets with silpat baking mats or parchment paper.
• Prepare a work surface with a light dusting of flour.*
• If you have not already split the dough in half, do so now. Put any dough that you are not working with in the fridge.
• Use floured hands to flatten out the dough a bit, then use a rolling pin to roll it and smooth it out a little bit. Don't go too crazy here, remember we want the cookies to be THICK, about 3/8 inch. I actually busted out the measuring tape for this step. No crisp cookies, please.
• Lightly dust your chosen cookie cutters with flour. Press firmly into the dough, utilizing your space wisely. Use your finger or a knife (depending on the shape) to wipe away the excess flour/dough on the outer edge of the cookie cutter before pushing them out onto the pan. This helps you get clean lines.
• Place the shaped dough on the prepared baking sheet. If you are using multiple cookie cutter shapes, bake all of the same shape on the same pan. Otherwise your smaller cookies will get over baked. Leave at least 1 inch in between each cookie.
• If you've taken long enough that your shaped cookies are no longer chilled, place the baking sheet in the fridge or freezer for a couple minutes.
• Scrape together the excess dough and knead it together once or twice (as little as possible), then roll it out again to 3/8. Don't overwork the dough! (It will get tough.) Continue until the dough is gone. Refrigerate the dough as necessary. They should go into the oven cool.
• Bake the shaped cookies at 350 for about 9 minutes for smaller cookies, and about 10-11 minutes for larger cookies. Do NOT over bake. You do not want the edges or tops to brown at all. The cookies should be barely browned on the bottom. See photos.
• Leave the cookies on the pan for 5 minutes, then immediately transfer to a large tupperware and cover until they are completely cooled and you are ready to frost.
• Frost cookies with The BEST Buttercream Frosting for Sugar Cookies!

SOFT CUT-OUT SUGAR COOKIES

Steps:

• Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
• In a large bowl using a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on high speed until completely smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the egg, vanilla, and almond extract (if using) and beat on high speed until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl and beat again as needed to combine.
• Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix on low until combined. Dough will be relatively soft. If the dough seems too soft and sticky for rolling, add 1 more Tablespoon of flour.
• Divide the dough into 2 equal parts. Place each portion onto a piece of lightly floured parchment paper or a lightly floured silicone baking mat. With a lightly floured rolling pin, roll the dough out to about 1/4-inch thickness. Use more flour if the dough seems too sticky. The rolled-out dough can be any shape, as long as it is evenly 1/4-inch thick.
• Lightly dust one of the rolled-out doughs with flour. Place a piece of parchment on top. (This prevents sticking.) Place the 2nd rolled-out dough on top. Cover with plastic wrap or aluminum foil, then refrigerate for at least 1-2 hours and up to 2 days.
• Once chilled, preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line 2-3 large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Carefully remove the top dough piece from the refrigerator. If it's sticking to the bottom, run your hand under it to help remove it- see me do this in the video above. Using a cookie cutter, cut the dough into shapes. Re-roll the remaining dough and continue cutting until all is used. Repeat with 2nd piece of dough. (Note: It doesn't seem like a lot of dough, but you get a lot of cookies from the dough scraps you re-roll.)
• Arrange cookies on baking sheets 3 inches apart. Bake for 11-12 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges. If your oven has hot spots, rotate the baking sheet halfway through bake time. Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating.
• Decorate the cooled cookies with royal icing or easy glaze icing. Feel free to tint either icing with gel food coloring. See post above for recommended decorating tools. No need to cover the decorated cookies as you wait for the icing to set. If it's helpful, decorate the cookies directly on a baking sheet so you can stick the entire baking sheet in the refrigerator to help speed up the icing setting.
• Enjoy cookies right away or wait until the icing sets to serve them. Once the icing has set, these cookies are great for gifting or for sending. Plain or decorated cookies stay soft for about 5 days when covered tightly at room temperature. For longer storage, cover and refrigerate for up to 10 days.

GINGERBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Whisk together your flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Set aside.
• Melt the butter and add it to your stand mixer.
• On low, add in the brown sugar, molasses, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves and mix until combined.
• Let it cool for a few minutes.
• In the bowl of your stand mixer, once the mixture has cooled to about room temperature, add in the egg and whisk until combined.
• Switch to your paddle attachment and add in your flour mixture.
• Mix until the dough starts to form. Dough will still be slightly sticky.
• Divide the dough in half, form it into a rectangular shape, wrap it tightly with plastic wrap, and place it in fridge for at least 1 hour.
• Once the dough has been chilled, roll out the dough to ⅛"-¼" thickness on a clean, floured surface. The thinner you roll your dough, the crisper the cookies will be. If your dough gets sticky, you may need to reflour your dough (both sides) as you go.
• Flour your cookie cutters and cut out all your desired shapes.
• Bake on a parchment lined cookie sheet for 8-12 min or until the edges are slightly brown.
• Let the cookies cool completely for several minutes before removing them from the cookie sheet and placing them on a cooling rack to completely set. This will prevent them from cracking.
• Decorate your cooled cookies!

SUGAR COOKIES

Steps:

• In a large bowl beat the butter and sugar until fluffy - about 2 minutes.
• Add vanilla extract, and almond extract, then mix in the eggs one at a time.
• In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder & salt.
• With the mixer on low speed, beat the flour mixture into the butter mixture about 1/2 at a time.
• Divide the dough into two equal pieces. Form each part into a round, flat disc shape and wrap each in plastic wrap.
• Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
• When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350F degrees and line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Take one disc of dough out of the fridge and let warm up for 10 minutes.
• Flour a clean work surface, and flour your rolling pin. Unwrap the dough and lightly dust both sides with flour.
• Roll out the dough to about 3-5mm thick, or about 1/8 - 1/4 inch thick. Cut into shapes using cookie cutters and carefully transfer to the lined cookie sheets.
• Bake one cookie sheet at a time for 8-10 minutes on the middle rack, or until the tops look just set. Remove from the oven and cool.
• Repeat the process with the rest of the dough.

CUT OUT SUGAR COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Whisk together the flour and baking powder, set aside.
• In a large bowl using an electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth and creamy. Blend in the egg and both extracts. Gradually add the flour mixture and beat until just combined, scraping down the bowl, as needed, including the bottom.
• The dough will be crumbly, so knead it together with your hands as you scoop it out of the bowl until it comes together.
• Roll on a floured surface to about 1/4" to 3/8" thick, and cut into shapes using cookie cutters.
• Place on the prepared baking sheets 2 inches apart and then transfer to the freezer for 10 minutes, while you preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Bake for 10-12 minutes until just barely golden on the bottoms. Watch them carefully and don't over-bake.
• Let sit for a few minutes on the sheet, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely before icing.
• Enjoy plain or decorate and allow to set (usually 3 hours or overnight) before stacking.
• NOTE: Don't miss all the tips in the full article for optimal results and watch the video for visual help.