Crisp Vanilla Sugar Cookies Recipe

I’m excited to share my Simple Crisp Vanilla Sugar Cookies Recipe, a tender, buttery cookie that’s perfect for rolling out and cutting into your favorite shapes. These are made with just a few simple ingredients like butter, sugar egg, vanilla extract and flour, and they come together with easy to follow steps. The end result is a crisp edged cookie that doesn’t spread when it bakes which makes it easy to decorate!

Hey team, coming in today a buttery sugar cookie recipe that is perfect for holiday baking! I love making these cookies using my favorite Christmas cookie cutters and decorating them with my easy cookie icing recipe. It’s so much fun to get creative with designs!

These cookies make an awesome addition to any holiday cookie box, alongside some of my other favorite cookies on the site like my buttery Shortbread Cookies, my Raspberry Filled Linzer Cookies (personal favorite) and my Greek Kourapiedes cookies which are an old family favorite!

Decorating these cookies is the really the fun part because you get to be super creative with your designs. This year will be the first year Zoe and I will get to make these cookies and I’m so excited to see what she does with them in between eating the icing of course. I’ll update this post with one of her marvelous designs.

You can go all out with intricate designs using cookie icing or keep it simple by dipping the cookies in the icing and adding sprinkles. For a classic touch, dip them in melted chocolate or drizzle it on top. No matter how you decorate them, these cookies are a delicious crowd pleaser!

In this post I’m going to take you through how to make the cookie dough, a simple trick on how to roll it out to get perfectly even cookies and tips on how to cut and decorate the baked cookies.

Why you’ll love these Sugar Cookies

Here’s why these cookies are going to become your go-to cookie cutter cookie recipe!

• Crisp edges that hold their shape – and that’s because we bake them when they’re chilled so the entire cookie bakes evenly without spreading.
• It uses simple ingredients – like butter, sugar, egg, vanilla and flour. Ingredients you already have!
• They’re easy to decorate – they bake with a flat surface which makes them easy to decorate with icing and helps them look neat.
• You can make them in advance! – you can make the dough in advance or bake them in advance and even freeze them easily.

Simple Ingredients To Make Sugar Cookies

The key to great tasting sugar cookies is to use good quality ingredients. There are only a few simple ingredients you need to make them so using high quality ingredients, especially when it comes to the butter is going to make these taste amazing.

• Butter – I used unsalted butter. You can use salted butter, just leave the salt out of the recipe. Make sure your butter is softened properly to ensure your dough is mixed evenly.
• Sugar – I used caster sugar for this recipe, also known as superfine sugar. It dissolves into the butter easier when it’s whipped without risking overwhipping. If you can’t get caster sugar, granulated will also work.
• Egg – I used one large egg. Make sure it’s at room temperature.
• Vanilla Extract – You want to make sure you use good quality vanilla extract. I have a great Pure vanilla extract recipe that will work well, but you can also use vanilla bean paste if you want little specks in your cookies!
• Flour – I use all-purpose flour, also known as plain flour. Cake flour and bread flour won’t work for this recipe. It’ll either make them too crumbly or tough.
• Baking powder – this will help lighten your cookies and give them a light texture.
• Salt – I used fine salt.

How To Make The Sugar Cookie Dough.

• Cream the softened butter and sugar together for at least 3 minutes until light and fluffy. Then add the egg and vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste and whip until well combined.
• Add the flour, baking powder and salt and use a spatula to mix until an evenly combined dough forms. At this point your dough is finished and we can move onto the next stage which is rolling!

TIP: make sure your butter is softened before making the dough otherwise it won’t cream with the sugar properly. I’ve written about how to soften fridge cold butter in the notes section at the bottom of the recipe card.

How Thick To Roll Out Your Cookies

I roll my dough 7mm / 1/4-inch thick. It takes about 10 minutes for the cookies to bake and get slightly golden around the edges. But you can roll them a little thicker: 10mm (1cm) / 0.4-inches. Thicker cookies should take about the same time to bake but they will be a little softer in the center.

How To Roll Out Your Cookies

• The easiest way to roll out your dough is to use two large sheets of baking paper. Place half of the dough on top of one piece of baking paper and flatten it out slightly with the palm of your hand. Place another large piece of baking paper on top. This will help prevent the dough from sticking to the workbench and rolling pin.
• Use a large rolling pin to roll out your dough. To ensure my cookie dough rolls out to an even thickness I use silicone rolling guides on either side of the dough. You can buy them on amazon. They’re amazing because they ensure all of your dough is rolled to the exact same thickness. That means your cookies will look neat and all bake at the same time!

What does chilling your dough do?

Once you’ve rolled out your cookie dough lay it on a large baking tray, pop it in the fridge and chill it for a minimum of 30 minutes or up to 24 hours before cutting out. Chilling your cookie dough does a couple things:

• Makes it easier to handle – The cookies are easier to cut out and transfer to a baking tray before baking.
• Better flavor – It helps the flour in the recipe soak in the moisture from the eggs and butter which helps the cookies come out tasting better.
• Helps give you nice crisp edges – If you’re using a cookie cutter with detailed edges, especially with holiday cookies, chilling your cookie dough before baking helps the cookies bake evenly and helps the edges retain their nice crisp edges.

Cutting Out Your Sugar Cookies

The best thing about sugar cookies is that they’re designed to be used with cookie cutters and keep their shape! You can use intricate cookie cutter designs or use simple shapes.

• Make sure your dough is chilled before cutting your cookies. Use your cookie cutters to cut the cookies. Give the cookie cutter a little jiggle before lifting.
• Transfer to a baking tray lined with baking paper, spacing about an inch apart. Bake on the middle rack of your oven, one tray at a time for 10 minutes or until slightly golden around the edges. Turn the tray around halfway through the baking time so they bake evenly. Allow to cool completely before serving or decorating.

TIP 1: when you’ve cut out your chilled dough, transfer to a baking tray lined with baking paper and then pop back in the fridge for another 10-15 minutes to get them nice and chilled again before baking

TIP 2: when using cookie cutters, they may stick inside the cookie cutter or stay on the baking paper. If they stick in the cookie cutter, use your finger to gently press it out of the cookie cutter or use a chopstick if your finger is too big to fit.

How To Decorate Your Cookies With Cookie Icing

There are many simple ways to dress up your baked cookies. One of my favorite ways is to decorate it with cookie icing. I have a great 4 ingredient cookie icing recipe that pipes well. I have all my tips and tricks on how to make the icing, color it and use it in different ways in that post.

You can pipe it using a piping bag or dip the top of the cookies in the icing and allow excess to drip off. I love putting sprinkles on top because Zoe loves sprinkles. I mean, which kid doesn’t?

How To Make Sprinkle Sugar Cookies

Adding sprinkles on top is a really easy way to dress up your sugar cookies.

• You can add sprinkles to the top of the dough when you’ve almost finished rolling it out.
• Then add the baking paper on top and continue rolling out.  Chill the dough on a baking tray before cutting out.

Tips And Tricks For Recipe Success!

• Measure out using kitchen scales – measuring ingredients out by weight and not cups is the best way to get consistent results every time! I wrote all about this in my post about using digital kitchen scales!
• Butter – make sure your butter is properly softened before you make your dough to ensure everything is evenly combined and your cookies come out uniform.
• Use baking paper to help you roll out your cookie dough. Silicone rolling guides will help you get an even thickness as well!
• Don’t overmix your dough as this can lead to a crumbly ‘tough cookie’. Mix only until the dough is uniform and no dry ingredients are showing.
• You can roll left over cookie dough up to two times and continue cutting out. Once you’ve rolled the dough out, used your cookie cutters, scrunch the dough back together and then roll out again. Chill and cut.

Your Questions Answered

How to store your sugar cookies

Storing these cookies is really easy. Store them in an airtight container for 7 days. I’ve kept them in a cool, dry place for up to a month and they’ve tasted great.

Can the cookie dough be made in advance?

Yes! Make the cookie dough up to two days in advance. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and store in the fridge or in the freezer for up to a week. Thaw completely before rolling out. Chilling or freezing the dough may cause it to dry out a little so it may crack a little.

How many cookies does this sugar cookie recipe make?

This recipe will typically make about 30 cookies if rolled out to 7mm / 1/4-inch thick. It really depends how thick you roll the cookie dough out. Thicker cookies will result in less cookies. It also depends on the size of your cookie cutters.

Can I roll the cookies out thicker or thinner?

Yes! You can roll them up to 1cm / 0.3-inches or as thin as you like. Thicker cookies will take a little longer to bake. Follow the same baking guide in the recipe. Bake until golden.

How To Make Sure Your Butter Is Softened

You want your butter to be ‘softened’ for this recipe so that it creams with the sugar properly. It’ll ensure you have a nice uniform dough that bakes nicely. Your softened butter should be firm enough that it holds its shape butyield gentle pressure when pressed with your finger.

There are two ways to soften your butter:

• Room temperature method: you can do this by taking your butter out of the fridge and cutting into cubes. Let it sit at room temperature for 1 hour before using.
• Microwave method (quicker): cut into cubes and place in a heatproof bowl or plate. Microwave for 10 seconds at a time until it’s soft but firm enough to hold its shape with some resistance.

Why this recipe is in grams and not cups?

The short answer is accuracy! It is far easier, more accurate and you get more consistent results when you measure ingredients by weight, especially in dessert and bread baking! I wrote all about this in my post about using digital kitchen scales!

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