The Ultimate SoftBaked CutOut Sugar Cookies A Tea Time Classic

Soft Cutout Sugar Cookies Recipe

0.0 / 5 (0 Review)

Preparation time:20 Mins

Cooking time:40 Mins

Servings:30-36 medium cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (225 g) Unsalted Butter, softened
• 1 cup (200 g) Granulated Sugar
• 1 large Egg, room temperature
• 1 ½ tsp (7.5 ml) Pure Vanilla Extract
• 3 cups (360 g) All-Purpose Flour
• 2 tsp (10 g) Baking Powder
• ½ tsp (3 g) Fine Sea Salt
• 2 cups (250 g) Confectioners' Sugar (Icing Sugar), sifted (optional for glaze)
• 3 4 Tbsp (45 60 ml) Milk (optional for glaze)
• ½ tsp (2.5 ml) Vanilla or Almond Extract (optional for glaze)

Instructions:

• Combine Dry Ingredients: Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl. Set aside.
• Cream Butter and Sugar: In the bowl of a stand mixer (fitted with a paddle attachment), beat the softened butter and granulated sugar on medium speed for 3 4 minutes until light and fluffy. This is crucial for incorporating air.
• Add Wet Ingredients: Scrape down the bowl. Beat in the egg and vanilla extract until just combined. Do not overmix here.
• Incorporate Dry Mix: With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the dry mixture to the wet mixture. Mix only until the flour streaks have almost disappeared and a cohesive dough forms. Stop mixing immediately.
• Shape and Chill: Divide the dough into two even portions. Shape each into a flat disc, wrap tightly in cling film, and refrigerate for a minimum of 1 hour 30 minutes, or up to 2 days.
• Preheat and Prep: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Roll the Dough: On a surface lightly dusted with powdered sugar, roll one chilled disc of dough to a thickness of approximately ¼ inch (6mm).
• Cut the Shapes: Dip cookie cutters in flour or powdered sugar before pressing firmly into the dough.
• Transfer: Carefully use a spatula or palette knife to transfer the cut-outs to the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 1 inch (2.5 cm) between them.
• Second Chill (Recommended): Place the trays of cut-out cookies back into the freezer for 10 minutes. This prevents spreading and guarantees sharp edges.
• Bake: Bake for 10 12 minutes. The edges should be set and very pale gold, but the centers should still look slightly soft. Bake in batches, ensuring baking sheets are cooled between uses.
• Cool: Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring them gently to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Prepare Glaze (Optional): Whisk together the sifted confectioners' sugar, milk, and extract until smooth. Adjust consistency as needed. Decorate once cookies are completely cool.

Nutrition Facts

Calories	90 kcal
Protein	1.0 g
Fat	4.0 g
Carbs	13.3 g
Fiber	0.2 g
Sodium	1352 mg

Recipe Info

Category	Dessert
Cuisine	American

Bidding Farewell to Brittle Biscuits

If you’ve ever wrestled a stiff, overly dry sugar cookie off a cooling rack, only to find it snapped in half before the icing stage, you know the frustration of a failed attempt.

Many traditional recipes for cut-out biscuits sacrifice tenderness for structure, leaving you with crunchy little paving stones rather than a delicate treat. Today, we are resolving that conflict entirely.

This guide will walk you through the process of creating the Best Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe Cutout —a buttery, tender biscuit that holds its shape magnificently, making it the perfect canvas for holiday designs.

Whether you are aiming for a refined afternoon tea offering or the perfect Christmas Sugar Cookie Recipe , precision is the key, and the results are truly melt-in-your mouth magic.

The Kitchen Magic Behind Tender Cut-Outs

The reputation of Sugar Cookies often precedes them as being tricky, but the fundamental science is simple: control the temperature and minimize the development of gluten. Our objective is a biscuit with enough structure to survive stamping and transfer, yet one that yields softly to the bite.

This requires a calculated dance between the fat, sugar, and flour. We rely on the traditional creaming method to incorporate air, which yields a light lift, combined with a crucial chilling step that prevents any undesirable spreading.

The Secret to Achieving a Tender Crumble

The tenderness of this Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe comes down to three factors: high fat content, proper aeration, and the ratio of leavening. We use a full cup (225 g) of softened unsalted butter.

When creamed with the sugar, this fat coats the flour molecules, inhibiting excessive gluten formation. Unlike cakes or breads that need significant rise, we only use a careful two teaspoons of baking powder.

This provides just enough lift to avoid a dense result without causing the cookies to balloon or spread excessively thin. The result is that beautiful, slightly chewy, and exceptionally tender crumble everyone craves.

Why Creaming Temperature Truly Matters

When whipping the butter and granulated sugar together, the butter must be perfectly pliable softened, but definitely not greasy or melted. If your butter is too cold, you won't incorporate sufficient air. If it’s too warm, the air pockets will collapse, leading to flat, dense cookies.

The butter, alongside the single large, room temperature egg, ensures that the emuon is stable and ready to accept the dry ingredients smoothly. We aim for three to four minutes of whipping until the mixture is visibly pale and fluffy, signifying optimal air incorporation.

Elevating the Simple: The Art of Great Sugar Cookies

Even the simplest recipes benefit from attention to quality. Since the flavour profile of a Basic Cut-out Sugar Cookie Recipe is so straightforward largely butter and vanilla using high quality pure vanilla extract (or paste, as we’ll discuss) is paramount.

On top of that,, this recipe ensures that the mixing stops the moment the flour streaks disappear, protecting the dough from becoming tough due to over agitation, a common mistake when mixing sugar cookies recipe easy .

Understanding the Science of Non-Spreading Dough

The structural integrity of a perfect cut-out depends almost entirely on cold butter. When the dough is made, the butter is softened; however, before baking, the dough requires a minimum of one hour and thirty minutes of chilling. This hardens the 225 grams of butter again.

When the chilled dough enters the hot oven, the butter takes longer to melt, allowing the flour mixture to set first. This is the simple yet vital secret to ensuring your shapes be they intricate snowflakes or simple circles maintain those sharp, clean edges, which is essential for sugar cookies for decorating .

Essential Kit for Flawless Cookie Preparation

While baking Sugar Cookies doesn't require specialized machinery, having the right tools vastly improves the process and the final outcome. The stand mixer is truly essential for achieving the necessary pale and fluffy creaming of the butter and sugar.

Beyond the basic mixing bowls and baking sheets, investing in a proper rolling pin with adjustable thickness guides will guarantee that every single cookie is rolled to a precise 6mm (¼ inch) thickness.

Uniform thickness ensures uniform baking; nothing ruins a batch faster than having some cookies burnt while others are underdone. Finally, a thin, flexible palette knife or metal spatula is non-negotiable for transferring those delicate, chilled cut-outs from the counter to the baking sheet without distorting their perfect shapes.

Related Recipes Worth Trying

• Midnight Cocoa Comfort The Ultimate Fudgy Hot Chocolate Cookies — These arent your average biscuits Bake the ultimate chewy Hot Chocolate Cookies packed with mini marshmallows and deep cocoa flavour Essential chilling time...
• The Best Fudgy Hot Chocolate Cookies with Marshmallow Swirl — Skip the powder and bake the ultimate Hot Chocolate Cookies These are rich deeply fudgy and perfect for Christmas Desserts Party sharing Get the recipe
• The Ultimate Moist Coffee Cake with Brown Sugar Swirl — Stop buying dry cakes This homemade Coffee Cake recipe delivers a ridiculously moist crumb a buttery cinnamon swirl and the crunchiest streusel topping

Choosing the Right Sweeteners for Optimal Texture

For this particular Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe , granulated white sugar (200 g or 1 cup) is the ideal choice. Its sharp edges cut into the softened butter during the creaming process, creating the tiny air pockets that lend the cookies their light texture.

While alternatives like brown sugar can offer moisture, they also increase spread, which we must strictly avoid in a cut-out recipe.

Gathering Your Pantry Staples: The Dry Mix

Our dry foundation includes three cups (360 g) of all-purpose flour, the aforementioned 2 tsp of baking powder, and a necessary half teaspoon of fine sea salt. Before combining this dry mix with the wet ingredients, whisking them thoroughly is critical.

This distributes the leavening agent evenly throughout the flour, ensuring a consistent rise and preventing random dense spots or overly salty bites.

The Golden Rule of Butter and Egg Temperatures

As previously stressed, temperature control is paramount. Using butter that is softened (around 67°F or 19°C) and an egg that is also at room temperature ensures they integrate seamlessly, preventing curdling and creating a stable emuon.

A cold egg hitting the creamed butter and sugar can cause the mixture to seize, breaking the delicate airy structure you worked so hard to achieve during the creaming stage.

Tools You'll Need for Precise Cut-Outs

To successfully create shapes perfect for sugar cookies for decorating , you will need sturdy cookie cutters. Metal cutters generally provide a sharper edge than plastic ones.

Also, remember to keep your rolling surface lightly dusted a trick we cover below and have at least two large baking sheets lined with parchment paper ready. This allows you to chill one tray of cut-outs while the other is baking, ensuring the dough always hits the heat while cold.

Vanilla Bean Paste vs. Extract: Making the Splurge

We call for 1 ½ teaspoons of pure vanilla extract, which offers beautiful flavour. However, if you are creating the absolute Best Sugar Cookie Recipe , consider upgrading to vanilla bean paste.

The small seeds not only offer a visual appeal but deliver a deeper, richer, and more complex vanilla aroma, truly elevating this simple biscuit from ordinary to spectacular.

The Role of Baking Powder (It's Less Than You Think)

In this recipe, the 2 teaspoons of baking powder serves less as a powerhouse riser and more as a texture enhancer. Its main role is to introduce a controlled lightness, preventing the cookies from becoming dense hockey pucks.

Since baking soda reacts immediately, we opt for baking powder, which provides a slower, more sustained lift once the dough is in the oven, complementing the chilled fat structure perfectly.

Crafting the Perfect Dough Foundation

Creating the dough is a process of careful addition and precise timing. Start by thoroughly combining the dry ingredients the flour, baking powder, and salt. Only once that mixture is homogeneous should you begin the creaming process, which forms the vital foundation of this Basic Cut-out Sugar Cookie Recipe .

Rolling, Cutting, and Achieving the Ideal Bake

The Crucial Step: Whipping Butter and Sugar to Pale Perfection

Using the paddle attachment on your stand mixer, beat the softened butter and granulated sugar together on medium speed. Resist the urge to rush this step. After three to four minutes, the mixture should have doubled slightly in volume and lightened significantly in colour.

This aeration traps air, which expands during baking and is responsible for the final tenderness. Once achieved, scrape the bowl down and beat in the room temperature egg and vanilla extract until just combined.

Mixing the Wet and Dry Components Without Overworking

Lower the mixer speed to the absolute minimum and gradually introduce the dry mixture. Mix only until the flour is about 90% incorporated. There should still be a few faint streaks of flour remaining. Stop the machine immediately.

At this point, turn the dough out onto a clean surface and use your hands to gently press the remaining loose flour into a cohesive mass. Overmixing develops gluten, turning your soft cookie into a tough chew.

Forming the Disk and the Necessity of Chilling Time

Divide the finished dough into two equal portions. Crucially, press each portion into a flat, thick disc (about 1 inch thick). Wrapping these flat discs in plastic film and chilling them for the mandatory one hour and thirty minutes minimum allows the butter to solidify evenly and quickly.

Trying to roll warm dough is impossible; it sticks, requires too much extra flour, and will spread upon baking.

Techniques for Uniformly Rolling Sugar Cookies (No Tapering Edges!)

Preheat your oven to 175°C (350°F) and line your trays. Now, take one chilled disc and place it between two sheets of parchment paper. Roll the dough evenly until it reaches the desired 6mm (¼ inch) thickness. Using thickness guides on your rolling pin is the fastest way to guarantee this uniformity.

Dip your cutters in powdered sugar (or flour) before pressing them into the dough, then press down firmly without twisting the cutter. This ensures a clean, sharp edge, ideal for future sugar cookies with icing .

The Cold Tray Transfer Trick

Once cut, use that thin palette knife to gently transfer the raw shapes onto your prepared baking sheets, leaving 2.5 cm (1 inch) of space between each. The ultimate secret to preventing spread is the "cold tray transfer trick": place the baking sheets filled with cut-out cookies into the freezer for 10 minutes before sliding them into the oven.

This second chill sets the butter rock solid, guaranteeing sharp edges and zero spread, producing beautiful Christmas Sugar Cookie Recipe shapes.

When is 'Done' Truly Done? Observing the Edges

Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes. The most common mistake is baking them until they are fully golden brown, which results in a brittle cookie. For the Best Sugar Cookie Recipe , you must pull them out when the edges are just set and barely hint at pale gold.

The center should still look slightly soft and matte. Allow them to rest on the hot tray for five minutes to finish setting before moving them to a wire rack to cool completely this ensures stackable structure while maintaining maximum softness.

Expert Solutions for Common Cookie Catastrophes

Stopping Dough Stickiness During Rolling

If you find your dough sticking, avoid dusting the surface with all-purpose flour. Using too much flour changes the delicate fat-to-flour ratio, resulting in a drier cookie. Instead, lightly dust your rolling surface and pin with confectioners' (icing) sugar.

The sugar not only prevents sticking but also melts invisibly into the dough during baking, helping to preserve the tender crumb of the Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe .

Fixing Cookies That Spread Too Much in the Oven

Excessive spreading is typically a temperature issue. Check that your oven temperature is accurate and, more importantly, ensure your butter wasn't too soft when you started, or that you didn't skip the necessary chilling time.

If you find spreading is still a problem, try adding 1 2 tablespoons more flour to the dough mixture next time, or ensure you implement the recommended 10-minute freezer chill on the cut-outs before baking.

Tips for Stackable Storing and Longevity

To keep your cookies fresh and prevent them from crumbling, allow them to cool completely before storing. If iced, ensure the icing is fully hardened (which can take several hours). Store them in an airtight container at room temperature. For stackable storage, layer the cookies separated by squares of parchment paper.

These cookies will stay fresh and delicious for 5 7 days.

Freezing Baked and Unbaked Cookie Dough

This sugar cookies recipe easy is highly freezer friendly. Unbaked dough can be wrapped tightly (as discs) and frozen for up to three months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before rolling and cutting.

Baked, un-iced cookies also freeze well; simply cool them fully, stack them tightly in an airtight container, and freeze for up to two months. Thaw at room temperature.

The Best Royal Icing Recipe Pairings

These buttery cut-outs are the ideal base for a sturdy decoration. While a simple milk glaze (using 250 g sifted confectioners' sugar and 45 60 ml milk) works wonderfully for a quick finish, if you are making truly detailed sugar cookies for decorating , a true royal icing made with meringue powder or egg whites offers the necessary strength and smooth finish for elaborate piping and flood work.

Calculating the Nutritional Values Per Biscuit

We estimate that a medium, un-iced cookie yields approximately 120 140 kcal. Of course, adding a generous layer of sugar cookies with icing will increase both the calorie and sugar content.

These values are based on the core ingredients butter, sugar, and flour and serve as a helpful guideline for those monitoring portion size, reminding us all that these delightful treats are perfectly reserved for occasional indulgence.