Best Soft Sugar Cookies
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These are the best soft sugar cookies to cut out and decorate for any holiday or party! They’re sweet, buttery, and so easy to make with pantry ingredients.
Those cute, soft iced sugar cookies? They’re actually easy to make at home!
These cut out sugar cookies stay soft for days and using vanilla and almond extract gives them that classic sugar cookie taste.
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This soft sugar cookie recipe uses butter and eggs, but if you can’t have them, don’t worry! Try these vegan sugar cookies!
And if you’re not in the mood to bake, you’ll love our easy vegan cookie dough recipe.
Why You’ll Love This Soft Iced Sugar Cookies Recipe
- These soft cut out sugar cookies only need simple ingredients likely already in your pantry.
- You can personalize your sugar cookies with different flavor extracts and decorations!
- These cut-out cookies with icing are perfect for the holiday season and parties year-round! Serve them as an impressive dessert or arrange them in boxes as gifts.
Ingredients And Substitutions
Unsalted butter – Use soft, room-temperature butter! If it’s melted or cold, you won’t get the ideal fluffy texture when you beat it with sugar using an electric mixer.
Granulated sugar and powdered sugar – Can’t make sugar cookies without sugars!
Eggs – Bind the ingredients and lend moisture to the dough.
Vanilla extract and almond extract – You can play around with different extracts to put your own spin to these soft sugar cookies.
Lemon zest – Keeps the frosted sugar cookies from tasting flat!
All-purpose flour – We haven’t tested this recipe with other types of flour.
Baking powder – Make sure it’s not expired, or your cookie cutter sugar cookies will be flat and dense!
Kosher salt – For balancing the sweetness of the soft cookies.
Vegan royal icing – Did you know you can make one from scratch without eggs? You can prepare different colors and create intricate designs on the delicious cookies with different piping tips.
Tips For Making This Recipe
Do Not Overbake
You don’t need to wait for these soft sugar cookies to turn brown or you’ll overbake them and you’ll end up with dry cookies. These cookies are done once they no longer look shiny.
Use Buttercream Frosting
Besides royal icing, you can also decorate these soft cut out sugar cookies with vegan buttercream frosting in different colors. Pipe it on and create fun designs on the cookies or simply spread it, then top the frosted cookies with sprinkles.
Storage Tips
You can store the leftover soft sugar cutout cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 3 to 5 days.
Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe Recipe FAQs
How do I keep my sugar cookies from spreading?
Refrigerate the dough to firm up the butter. This will keep the cookies from spreading as they bake in the oven.
Why did my sugar cookies come out dry?
It might be from using too much flour. For accurate flour measurement, use the spoon and level method.
Should you chill sugar cookie dough?
Yes! If you skip this step, the dough will be too soft, and the cookies will spread in the oven.
How thick should I roll my sugar cookies?
Roll out the sugar cookie dough between 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick. If the dough is thinner, the soft cut out sugar cookies will end up crispy!
Can you freeze sugar cookies?
Yes, you can freeze these soft sugar cookies for up to 3 months. If stacking them in a container, place parchment paper between each layer.
More Delicious Vegan Cookie Recipes
- Everything Free Cookies
- Plant Based Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies
- Vegan Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Vegan No Bake Cookies
I found this recipe for Vegan Chocolate Crinkle Cookies that I HAVE to try!
Yay! You have made it this far, and I am so glad! Hey – If you make this recipe, I’d love for you to give it a quick review & star rating ★ below. Your comment and/or rating helps other readers!
Soft Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 1 tbsp lemon zest, from about 1 lemon
- 5 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling the dough
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- Vegan royal icing
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Cream the vegan butter and sugar for 3 to 4 minutes until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
- Add the vanilla extract, almond extract, and lemon zest. Mix.
- Add 2 cups of flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix.
- Add the remaining flour and mix just until the flour is incorporated and the dough is smooth and soft.
- Cover and refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes.
- Dust the counter with flour and roll the dough to desired thickness. Cut fun shapes out of the dough.
- Arrange the sugar cookies on the lined baking sheet. Bake for 7 to 8 minutes.
- Let the baked cookies cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely before you decorate them with icing.
Notes
- You don’t need to wait for these soft sugar cookies to turn brown or you’ll overbake them and you’ll end up with dry cookies. These cookies are done once they no longer look shiny.
- Besides royal icing, you can also decorate these soft cut out sugar cookies with vegan buttercream frosting in different colors. Pipe it on and create fun designs on the cookies or simply spread it, then top the frosted cookies with sprinkles.
- You can store the leftover soft sugar cutout cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 3 to 5 days.
Updated in January 2025 with new photos and minor recipe adjustments for improved quality. Enjoy!
Great recipe…my second time making it and it’s awesome. Definitely for keeps.
What do you think about baking these cookies ahead of time then freezing them for a few days prior to decorating them?
Great question, I haven’t tried that yet, so I cannot say for sure. If you try please let us know 🙂
Best sugar cookies I have ever made. Best. Ever.
I need a perfect cookie recipe that not a already mixed tube, lol! Thanks for linking up to Merry Monday! Sharing on Twitter & MM Pinterest Board! Have a great week!
Kim
Yes! you are going to love this recipe. I’m actually making a huge batch this weekend for my kiddo, niece, and nephews to decorate for Santa!
These cookies look SO delicious! Thanks so much for sharing your yummy recipe on the Monday Funday Party!
Pauline, they’re by far my favorite sugar cookie recipe ever!
Love! Love! Love!
Thanks Ashli! That means a lot coming from you because your decorated cookies are amazing!
I’m always in search of the perfect sugar cookie. This looks like a keeper! Pinned!
Thanks for sharing! I am so ready to get baking and decorating this year!
How did you make the icing? Do you have a recipe for that?
Aspen, I wish I could say that icing was my strong point, but I haven’t gotten a perfect recipe or decorating method down yet. A few sites I would recommend for icing and cookie decorating:
Sweetopia (http://sweetopia.net/2009/06/cookie-decorating-tutorial-general-tips-butterfly-cookies/)
The Decorated Cookie )
Good luck!
I love the color of these cookies…it’s a nice break from all the green and red! 🙂
Thanks Ashli. Don’t call me a Scrooge, but I’m really not a fan of that color combo.
I actually love those colors, but I’m a little partial…those are my highschool colors! 🙂 But I love the blue and white also:)
I think the colors are darling! Reminds me of Whoville on the Grinch! So So Cute!
How did you know I needed a good sugar cookie recipe for Santa’s cookies? These look so yummy!
Erin, you will LOVE these. I will never go back to any other sugar cookie. They’re the BEST! and this comes from someone who can’t bake cookies haha!