This post may contain affiliate links. Please see my full disclosure for details.
Hi Bold Bakers!
WHY YOU’LL LOVE THIS RECIPE: This soft sugar cookie recipe is the only one you will need this winter. These cookies are perfect for all kinds of celebrations as they can be decorated to the nines with all kinds of fun rainbow sprinkles! Oh… and they are so tasty too!
- Perfect texture: Not crispy, not chewy but perfectly soft.
- Kid-friendly: Easy recipe that can be whipped up in one bowl by hand! No need for a stand mixer.
- Make ahead: Great dough to have handy in the freezer, especially around the holidays!
- Under 30 minutes: 15 minutes of prep time and 10 minutesin the oven is all you need.
If you’ve been looking for a bakery-style soft sugar cookie, search no more! There’s something really special about mastering a classic and my Soft Sugar Cookie recipe has got all the techniques to make your own version of Lofthouse cookies! I make this sugar cookie every year and from my experience I suggest making sure your butter is properly softened and you whip it well with the sugar for a few minutes. When you are shaping your cookie log make sure you get good traction on your counter top which will ensure you will get a perfectly round cookie once chilled.
Bold Bakers Loved This!
“Made these cookies and they are literally the BEST thing that’s ever happened to me. Doubled your batch and my family ate them all within a couple hours. 100% recommend!!!” — Lola WS
“I and my sister just made these the other day and they are awesome, just the right amount of sugar so when you frost them they aren’t to sweet. Also my dad usually hates sugar cookies but he loves these.” — EstellaBella
“Great easy and no fuss sugar cookies with awesome decorating ideas. A little cinnamon oil in the cookie batter gives them an extra something special. Thank you Gemma!” — Pine T.
Table of Contents:
- What are Soft Sugar Cookies?
- Tools You Need
- Key Ingredients
- How to Make This Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe
- How to Make Frosting for Sugar Cookies
- Gemma’s Pro Chef Tips
- Make Ahead and Storage Instructions
- How to Frost Sugar Cookies
- FAQs
- More Cookie Recipes
What Are Soft Sugar Cookies? Icing vs Royal Icing?
Sugar cookies are sweet cookies made with basic baking ingredients: butter, flour, sugar, egg, and baking powder.
There are just a few tweaks that take sugar cookies from crisp to super soft. The ingredients are the same, but it’s all in the ratios.
- Soft and Crumbly: A high ratio of butter and egg yields tender and pillowy cookies.
- Crowd-pleasing flavor: Sweet vanilla and buttery perfection.
- Shapes and colors: Like cut-out cookies but easier and topped with your favorite colors and flavors.
In baking, the word “Icing” refers to a mixture of sugar and liquid that is used to top baked goods.
The icing used in this recipe is spreadable, which makes decorating the cookies very easy!
- Sweet vanilla: Reinforces the vanilla flavor present in the cookies.
- Spreadable: The icing in this recipe is butter-based so it’s similar to buttercream frosting.
- Royal icing: This icing is egg white based and contains no butter, which makes it runnier and a tad trickier to master. It is mainly used to ice cut-out cookies and make more intricate designs.
Want to challenge yourself? Try my Royal Icing Recipe!
Tools You Need:
- Measuring Cups and Spoons
- Whisk
- Spatula
- Cling wrap
- Knife
- Baking sheets
- Parchment paper
- Offset spatula or small spoon
Key Ingredients:
Butter
- Room temperature is important here because we want to cream it with the sugar.
- This process incorporates air into the mixture and makes the cookies lighter and more tender.
Sugar
- Provides flavor, texture and caramelization.
Eggs
- Act as a binder and add moisture to the dough. Their presence here is key for the softness of the cookie.
Vanilla
- Key ingredient for the iconic sugar cookie taste.
- Make my Homemade Vanilla Extract!
All-purpose flour
- Perfect protein content to ensure the cookie does not fall apart but is not tough either.
- Alternatively, you can try gluten-free flour blends or my Easy Almond Flour Baking Mix.
Baking powder
- This is the leavening agent which provides rise and lightness.
Vanilla Icing
- Powdered Sugar: Essential in this recipe because its fineness will ensure a smooth icing.
- Butter: Allows the icing to set.
- Milk: Makes it softer and easier to spread on the soft cookies.
How To Make My Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe
You don’t need to get fancy to make these cookies — and you definitely don’t need to be a professional to decorate them. By the end of this recipe, you’ll be confident in your ability to get the same results I did. I’ll let you in on a little secret: decorating isn’t my strong suit, and yet these cookies look great!
Make the sugar cookie dough
- Mix butter and sugar: In a large bowl, using a whisk, cream together the butter and the sugar until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
- Next, add the eggs one at a time, followed by the vanilla. Mix until just combined.
- Mix the dry ingredients: In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Combine dry and wet: Add the dry ingredients into the creamed butter and mix until a dough is formed.
Shape cookies
- Lay some cling wrap on your counter and spoon your dough on top and form a log about 17 inches long. Roll up the log like a sausage and chill the dough for at least 1 hour or pop in the freezer and freeze for up to 8 weeks.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C). Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper (or a silicone mat) and set aside.
- Slice the cookies around ¼ inch thick. Place the cookies about 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheet.
Bake
- Bake for roughly 10-12 minutes or until slightly golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.
How To Make Frosting for Sugar Cookies
Make the Vanilla Icing
- Using a whisk, combine the powdered sugar, butter, milk, and vanilla until you have a smooth thick icing.
- Color the icing with a few drops of food coloring then mix until even in color.
Decorate the cookies
- Using a small offset spatula or the back of a small spoon frost the cookies then scatter over sprinkles. Allow setting for about 30 minutes.
Gemma’s Pro Chef Tips for decorated cookies:
- Chill your dough: Don’t skip the chilling – this is where flavor develops and it keeps your cookies from spreading too much.
- Play with flavors: Customize your cookies by adding spices or extracts.Try cinnamon for Christmas sugar cookies or pumpkin spice for Thanksgiving treats!
- Food coloring: Use gel food colorings for brighter colors. Gel food coloring is more concentrated than the water based kind, which means you will need less of it and you don’t run the risk of thinning out your icing.
Make Ahead and Storage Instructions
Make ahead:
- Refrigerate The dough: Make the sugar cookie dough and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. When ready to use, let it come to room temperature before you shape and bake!
- Freeze The dough: Freeze the log of sugar cookie dough for up to 1 month to make your holiday prep a breeze! When you are ready to make your cookies, let the dough sit at room temperature for 5 minutes then slice and bake! (You will need to increase the baking time about 3 minutes since you are baking from frozen).
- The icing: Make your icing and store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 1 month.
Storage:
- Room temperature: Store the baked cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days if they are unfrosted or 3 days if you’ve already decorated them.
- Refrigeration: Store the unused frosting in the fridge. Let it come to room temperature before you start decorating.
Shipping:
- These cookies are the perfect Christmas gift! Here’s how to ship them.
How to Frost Sugar Cookies
A sugar cookie is great on its own, but what takes these Soft Sugar Cookies to the next level is the icing.
- Made of powdered sugar, milk, vanilla, and butter, this frosting is made specifically for super soft sugar cookies.
- It stays thick and malleable thanks to the butter, and this makes them perfect for swirling atop the cookies using a butter knife or offset spatula.
- After frosting, I top them with sprinkles. Optional? Yes. But just look at them and tell me if it’s really a choice!
- Also, the icing will set over time and harden on the outside — but the inside will still be soft, perfectly complementing the texture of the cookie itself.
FAQS
Why are my sugar cookies crispy instead of tender?
- Don’t overbake these cookies! Although most cookies should be baked until golden brown, these soft sugar cookies shouldn’t take too much color in the oven because we want them to stay soft, unlike traditional sugar cookies.
- The thinner you slice your cookies the faster they will bake so they might become a bit crispy.
Can I make my cookies into other shapes?
- Yes! Use this recipe and roll out the dough instead of shaping it into a log. However, this dough is a bit sticky, so I would recommend placing the dough between 2 pieces of parchment paper, then rolling with a rolling pin and refrigerating before cutting out your shapes. Keep in mind that the cookies will spread a little and lose some definition so use simple shapes!
- You can also use my best ever sugar cookie recipe, which is perfect for traditional cut-out cookies.
How to Decorate Sugar Cookies
Baking with kids should be fun and I have you covered there! Check out 3 Easy Christmas Cookies to Bake With Kids including a Snowman, Christmas Trees, and even a Reindeer!
Get More Cookies!
- Chewy Sugar Cookies Recipe
- Classic Snowball Cookies
- 3 Easy Christmas Cookies to Bake With Kids
- Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Have you seen my two new cookie lists? Check out The Top 10 Classic Christmas Cookies and The Top 25 Most Googled Christmas Cookies.
And don’t forget to buy my New Bigger Bolder Baking Every Day Cookbook — it makes the perfect gift!
Try These Recipes!
Watch The Recipe Video!
Soft Sugar Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
Sugar Cookie Dough
- ¾ cup (6 oz/170 g) butter, at room temperature
- ¾ cup (6 oz/170 g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 ¼ cups (11 ¼ oz/319 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Vanilla Icing
- 2 1/2 cups (10oz/287g) powdered sugar, (sifted)
- 3 tablespoons (1 ½oz/43g) butter (at room temperature)
- 3 tablespoons milk
- ½ tablespoon vanilla extract
- food coloring of your choice
- Festive sprinkles
Instructions
To Make the Sugar Cookie Dough
- In a large bowl, cream together the butter and the sugar until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
- Next, add the eggs one at a time, followed by the vanilla. Mix until just combined.
- In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Add the dry ingredients into the creamed butter and mix until a dough is formed.
- Lay some cling wrap on your counter and spoon your dough on top and form a log about 17 inches long. Roll up the log like a sausage and chill the dough for at least 1 hour or pop in the freezer and freeze for up to 8 weeks.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C). Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
- Slice the cookies around ¼ inch thick. Place the cookies about 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheet.
- Bake for roughly 10-12 minutes or until slightly golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.
To Make the Vanilla Icing
- Using a whisk, combine the powdered sugar, butter, milk, and vanilla until you have a smooth thick icing. Color the icing with a few drops of food coloring then mix until even in color.
- Using a small offset spatula or the back of a small spoon frost the cookies then scatter over sprinkles. Allow setting for about 30 minutes.
- Once set, cover and store the cookies in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
I made these the other day and smuggled them into the movie theater with me. Perfectly soft so no crunchy sounds to give me away during the movie. Delicious!
Tip from the pros: Wait until after you chill the dough for 1 hour before you preheat your oven.
Made these cookies and they are literally the BEST thing that’s ever happened to me. Doubled your batch and my family ate them all within a couple hours. 100% recommend!!!
I want to try these cookies but use a lemon glaze instead of icing. Any suggestions?
Perhaps you need to read the direction all the way to the end, before you turn the over on.
Such a great recipe. I was craving the lofthouse cookies and this turned out to be exactly like them !!! Like wow. Super easy recipe, and tasted so soft and so delish. Will definitely make them again !!
Hi, I’m the one that added more flour because the dough was so gooey… I refrigerated the dough over night. It could’ve been filled out but I doubt it would’ve kept it’s shape??? Idk?? The cookie tasted really good but it must have lots of sugar sprinkles or frosting…it is too dry by itself! I baked them at 350 for 8 minutes in my oven, and my oven seems to always run a bit hot. I made balls then mashed with the bottom of a glass. I made small cookies about 1/2″ thick at most. Cooked till barely starting to… Read more »
Yummy! I made them. They’re very yummy! I subbed Irish cream for the vanilla in the cookies, and Subbed Irish cream for the milk in the frosting. Very tasty! ????????????
me and my sister just made these the other day and they are awesome, just the right amount of sugar so when you frost them they aren’t to sweet. Also my dad usually hates sugar cookies but he loves these.
For my family these were not sugar cookies, you couldn’t really taste the “sugar”flavor..