The Best Cutout Sugar Cookies {My Favorite Recipe!}
This is easily the best recipe for cutout sugar cookies! They are soft and tender but hold their shape very well during baking.
I’ve been making this cutout sugar cookie recipe for over fifteen years, and it is truly the best of the best. For the perfect sugar cookies, make sure to follow all the tips in the recipe!
The Best Sugar Cookie Dough
This cutout sugar cookie dough is pretty straight forward. What makes it a little bit unique (and extra yummy) is the addition of fresh lemon zest to the batter.
That subtle hint of lemon flavor is absolutely phenomenal and may change your sugar cookie game forever.
However, if you don’t have a fresh lemon hanging around, you can leave it out. (Just promise me you’ll try it eventually!)
The cookie dough also calls for granulated sugar AND powdered sugar. This helps make the cookies incredibly soft and perfectly sweet.
To Chill or Not to Chill
This sugar cookie dough benefits from a few hours of chilling in the refrigerator. Not only will it be infinitely easier to roll out and cut into shapes, but the flavor of the cookies will taste better, too.
However, you can roll and cut the sugar cookies right away. The dough will be sticky, so make sure the counter and rolling pin are adequately floured so the dough doesn’t stick.
The Key to Perfect Sugar Cookies
For the best sugar cookies ever, roll the dough at least 1/4-inch thick (slightly thicker is even better).
If the dough is rolled too thin, the cookies can easily over bake in the oven, which means they’ll be dry-tasting and kind of crispy.
And while I firmly subscribe to the “you do you” belief, I’m going to have to put my foot down when it comes to sugar cookies. We want buttery soft, fluffy, ultra-tender sugar cookies.
For that reason, err on the side of rolling the dough thicker than you think you should.
Trust the Baking Temperature
You may notice that the baking temperature in this recipe is much higher than most “normal” cookie recipes.
I promise that there is a method to this madness! Because sugar cookies already go into the oven much thinner than, say, a ball of chocolate chip cookie dough, they benefit from a shorter baking time.
Using a high temperature perfectly bakes the outside of the cookies quickly and leaves the inside of the cookies super super soft. Pull the cookies out of the oven before you think you should. A slightly underdone middle is just fine. The cookies will set up as they cool.
Frosting for Sugar Cookies
These cookies work very well frosted with:
- royal frosting
- other types of hard-drying, stackable icings
- buttercream frosting
- whipped frosting
When this recipe was originally published, I included a recipe for the most amazing whipped cream cheese frosting. It’s the ultimate in super soft, easily spreadable cookie frostings.
If you are looking for that frosting recipe, it’s in a recipe box all its own below the sugar cookie recipe…so keep scrolling and you’ll find it. 🙂
A Favorite of Many
This cutout sugar cookie recipe is beloved by many! With over 300 5-star reviews, it is a tried-and-true favorite.
Ashley says: I have been using this sugar cookie recipe for years and years! It is seriously the best. I omit the almond extract but I love using the lemon zest. It is my kids favorite recipe. They are soft but not doughy at all.
Tracy Ellen says: My favorite, go to sugar cookie recipe.
Jen M says: I don’t know how I’ve never made these before. They are SO good and the dough is a dream to work with. I rolled it out with powdered sugar as suggested and it is so much better than using flour! I’ve made them twice in the past couple weeks. I was worried the lemon and almond would be too strong, but they are just the perfect amount of flavor so the cookies aren’t bland. You won’t regret making these.
PJ says: I’ve been looking for this recipe for a couple decades now. I personally testify that these are the best butter sugar cookies ever! They are so good I’ll eat a plain one while decorating the others.
My Favorite Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
Sugar Cookies:
- 1 ½ cups (340 g) butter, softened to cool room temperature
- 1 ½ cups (318 g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (57 g) powdered sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ teaspoon almond extract, optional
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest, from about 1 lemon
- 5 cups (710 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- In a large bowl, cream together the butter, granulated sugar and powdered sugar for 3-4 minutes, until the mixture is light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs, vanilla extract, almond extract (if using) and lemon zest; mix until thoroughly combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Add the flour, baking powder and salt. Mix just until flour is incorporated and the dough is smooth and soft.
- Press the dough into a thick disc on a sheet of plastic wrap. Wrap until fully covered and refrigerate for several hours (or up to 2 days). *The dough can be rolled out right away; however the cookies won't hold their shape quite as well in the oven – if doing so, you'll need to use quite a bit more flour on the counter to make sure the dough doesn't stick.*
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. If your oven bakes hot, reduce the temperature to 375 degrees F.
- Lightly dust a counter with powdered sugar or flour and roll the dough to 1/4-inch or slightly thicker. If the dough has been chilled longer than a few hours, let it rest at room temperature for 10-15 minutes to soften enough to roll out.
- Cut the dough into shapes. Place the cookies several inches apart on parchment-lined baking sheets.
- Bake for 7-8 minutes. DO NOT OVER BAKE! There should be no browning on the edges or the bottom of the cookies and the center of the cookies may look just slightly underdone.
- Let the cookies rest on the baking pans for 2 to 3 minutes before removing them to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Frost and sprinkle as desired.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe
Recipe originally published October 2010; updated February 2024 with new photos, recipe notes, etc
Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting for Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 8-ounce (227 g) package cream cheese, softened
- 1 ½ cups (171 g) powdered sugar
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups heavy whipping cream
Instructions
- In a large bowl with a handheld electric mixer or in an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the softened cream cheese, powdered sugar, salt and vanilla.
- Mix until very smooth and light and no lumps remain, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- In a separate bowl, beat the cream to stiff peaks. Add the whipped cream to the cream cheese mixture. Mix until well combined and smooth. Store in the refrigerator for up to one week.
Recommended Products
All I can say is you have to try these they are the best I have ever eaten and the easiest I have ever made.
Is the butter for this recipe salted or unsalted?
I use salted butter
As a beginner, I thought 4 eggs sounded like a lot, but decided to trust the process. The result was very cakey / breadlike cookies, which is not what I was looking for. The middle of the cookies rise quite a bit compared to the edges, which makes icing them a pain.
If you like soft cakey cookies, then this is a good recipe. It’s not for me though.
Preparing 6 dozen decorated cookies for a special order. If I baked the cookies a week a head. What’s the best way to store them until I decorate them?
I would freeze them between sheets of wax or parchment paper.
Hello! Wanted to try this recipe out. I was wondering if these cookies have a soft-but crumbly texture as I prefer them that way over soft and chewy.
They are not chewy – definitely have a classic sugar cookie texture and a lot depends on how long they are baked. They’ll be more crumbly if they are baked longer.
Hello! I want to stamp this cookies with a message, you think the recipe will work without the baking powder?
Certainly worth a try – I think these cookies might be a bit too soft to retain the stamp while baking, but good luck if you experiment.
This is the first and only sugar cookie recipe I’ve attempted. I followed the instructions and the cookies were absolutely amazing!
I want to decorate the cookies before baking them with colored sugar like sanding sugar. Can I sprinkle the sugar on the cookies and then bake them? Please let me know
Yes, that should work just fine – you may need to press the sanding sugar into the cookies lightly before baking.
I made this recipe for baby shower cookie favors in the shape of cowboy hats & boots. These cookies are not your typical sugar cookie. I used the almond extract & the lemon rind. I let the dough stay in the refrigerator for 2-1/2 to 3 hours before cutting out the cookies. My oven runs hot so I baked them at 375 for 7-8 minutes. i did not let them brown at all. They are melt in your mouth delicious! I’ve made two batches and this recipe will be a staple in our home from now on. Thank you for sharing this delectable one-of- a kind cookie recipe.
I tried making this and it was a disaster! The dough was super sticky even after adding extra flour. I chilled for several hours and tried rolling it out but it was impossible to cut out shapes and transfer them to the cookie sheet. No matter how much flour/powder sugar I used they would stick and then get deformed because it was too soft. Then when baking they all just flattened out and lost their shape. I was excited because of all the reviews but was extremely disappointed in the end.
Sorry these didn’t work out for you! I’ve never had the dough be quite as sticky as you describe. Was your kitchen overly warm by any chance?
i have to say, i have tried other cutout sugar cookie recipes, but i keep coming back to this one. it is just delicious. was wondering if you have a chocolate version of this recipe.
Hi Jann, I don’t have a chocolate version, but it sounds like a great idea to add to my to-try list!
Love your recipes Mel! I have a question about the cream cheese frosting. Does it firm up or harden a bit so the cookies can be stacked? It sounds like the perfect cookie frosting! And I WILL be trying your cutout sugar cookies soon!!
Hi Julie, the cream cheese frosting in this recipe post is a bit too soft for stacking – the cookies do best in a single layer.
I cheated on my Grandma’s recipe with these and it was worth it. The dough was a lot stickier than I’m used to but after chilling overnight it was easy to roll and cut out. I used the vanilla buttercream recipe from this site and the end result was perfection! Thanks Mel, you and your recipes are to best.
I feel like a bit of a bum as everyone else is going crazy over these but I suppose I just didn’t realize that the frosting would literally just be cream cheese-flavoured whipped cream. Tastes great but a bit too unexpected on a sugar cookie for me. Also just generally very unpractical for storage purposes! But tastes great of course.
These are Fantastic cookies! I doubled the batch and now have cookies coming out of my ears! Made them for a Valentine’s play date and everyone loved them. Followed the recipe exactly and they were just as described. I accidentally left one batch in too long, and they got a little color on the sides, and they were more crisp but still good.
Would you share where we can find those adorable rainbow/cloud sprinkles that are shown in the demo pic? They are SO CUTE!
Hi Lacy! They are Wilton brand – I grabbed them on Amazon a long time ago.
I don’t have a lemon but have lemon juice from concentrate. Will that work? If so, how much do you recommend?
I probably wouldn’t use lemon juice – the flavor might not be the same and might mess with the texture of the dough. You could just leave it out!
Can I use a True Lemon packet in place of the zest?
I haven’t tried that, but you could definitely experiment.
Can I add sourdough discard to these?
Thanks so much!!
I haven’t tried that, but it would be a fun experiment. Good luck if you try it out!
I made *another* website’s sugar cookies over the weekend because I thought I’d just try them out. I felt like I was cheating on you! This recipe is way better and I appreciate your neurotic, detailed instructions (said in the most loving way possible – because I’m the same way!). These are so soft and melt in your mouth. I learned my lesson. Never cheat on Mel!
Haha, this made me laugh, Rikki. 🙂
Mel, have you ever tried baking with sugar substitute of any kind? If so, which one(s), and do you use the same measurements?
Hi Mary, unfortunately, I don’t have a lot of experience baking with sugar substitutes. I’m sorry!
These turned out perfectly! I put it in the fridge overnight and now I’m freezing half of it.
Very sticky and difficult to roll out even after adding extra flour and chilling dough over night I finally rolled balls and stamped them with the bottom of a glass before baking.
I have been using this sugar cookie recipe for years and years! It is seriously the best. I omit the almond extract but I love using the lemon zest. It is my kids favorite recipe. They are soft but not doughy at all. If you don’t like that, Mel has a variety of different sugar cookie recipes you could try. This texture is my absolute favorite and the frosting is perfect.
I used this when I lived in the U.S. but I moved and now live somewhere where butter is low quality and expensive. Will this work with shorting?
I haven’t tried that, but it’s definitely worth experimenting – will probably work!
Can I leave out the lemon zest?
Yes
I made this recipe with dairy free butter for a friend who is dairy free. It’s a little softer and sticky in texture, but I refrigerate it for about a half hour and it turn out perfect.
My favorite, go to sugar cookie recipe.
Do I need to store frosted cookies in the fridge or can they sit out?
They can sit at room temp for a couple hours. Any longer than that and I store them in the fridge.
Mel, I refrigerated the dough overnight and it’s as hard as a rock. Does it need to sit at room temperature for a certain time in order to be able to roll out and cut? Recipe didn’t mention anything so I’m worried I did something terribly wrong when making. Thank you.
Hi Pam, sorry for the confusion. Yes, if the dough is extra chilled, it may need 10-12 minutes at room temperature to soften up to roll out. I’ll edit the recipe to make it more clear.
I love your recipes and have NEVER been disappointed! Just pulled my sugar cookie dough out of the refrigerator to roll out and had the same question. Glad to find the answer. Yes, please edit the recipe.
This was my first attempt at sugar cookies and i was hoping for a little easier recipe. Not that it was hard, but the dough would not cooperate with me. Also, i did not like the frosting. Way too soft for my liking. I may try these cookies again but I’d find a different cream cheese frosting.
Love the addition of lemon to cookies and taste of it all, but my only complaint was my frosting didn’t set up to where I could stack cookies in containers. Frosting was still wet which I don’t like but delish!
Yes, this frosting stays soft because I much prefer a soft, yummy frosting to the royal frostings that set up hard. You might want to google a recipe for a different style of frosting if you want to stack the cookies. 🙂
Love the flavor of these cookies! I’ve made them several time, but haven’t used the icing recipe. They tend to come out puffier than they should. Any thoughts on what I might be doing wrong?
Try to add a bit less flour (maybe 1/4 cup) and see if that helps the puffiness.
I don’t know how I’ve never made these before. They are SO good and the dough is a dream to work with. I rolled it out with powdered sugar as suggested and it is so much better than using flour! I’ve made them twice in the past couple weeks. I was worried the lemon and almond would be too strong, but they are just the perfect amount of flavor so the cookies aren’t bland. You won’t regret making these.
Made the cookies not the frosting. Delicious! Also, had a bit of dough leftover but didn’t want to roll it out so made it into thumbprints – filled with raspberry jams and baked for 8 minutes. SO good. May make another batch just to make thumbprints out of. Thank you!
I’ve made these cookies quite a few times now and I love them. Well, I’m not a huge sugar cookie fan (don’t hurt me ) but because they’re not sickeningly sweet, I like them. I royal ice all my sugar cookies, so a less sweet cookie is PERFECT! I’ve never had an issue with the dough being too sticky, but I pack, tap and level my flour. I roll out immediately on parchment and then chill the rolled out sheet…found it’s a quick and easy way to chill and no killing yourself trying to roll out cold, hard dough!
Asking a question…are these soft or do they have a snap, a bite?
They are soft.
Hi Mel! What type of food coloring do you use? I’ve tried this recipe twice, once with gel food coloring and once with liquid, and both times the frosting separated! It’s still delicious but doesn’t look like your beautiful photos.
Darn, I’m sorry to hear that! I always use gel food coloring.
Is the butter salted or unsalted?
Can’t wait to make these!!
I use salted butter
I’ve been looking for this recipe for a couple decades now. I personally testify that these are the best butter sugar cookies ever! They are so good I’ll eat a plain one while decorating the others. . I first tried these back in the 90’s, but I lost the recipe due to a move. Thank you for sharing.
This frosting is dreamy!!! I could eat bucketloads! I’ve never had anything like it. Have you ever tried it on a cake??! We liked the cookies, but I’m not sure about the lemon. My zester produces rather large pieces and some bites were too lemony for me. I like lemon a lot, maybe just not at Christmastime. My cookies were good, but the edges were a tad crispy, so I lowered the heat and baked them at 375 for about 7 1/2 minutes and then they came out soft. They aren’t very sweet, but I prefer them that way. I found the dough quite easy to work with if I rolled the dough about 1/4 in; that is the key to rolling them out easily. (I also sprinkled powdered sugar down on my baking mat and a little on the dough.) If I rolled them any thinner, it was a disaster, which has been true for all sugar cookies I’ve made over the last 15 years. Frosted sugar cookies are my all time favorites!! And it’s so true about the frosting! I’ve always made a frosting that sets up enough to at least stack between wax paper because I’m super practical, so I’m wondering how you store these??
Have you ever tried freezing the frosting by itself or a frosted sugar cookie?
I haven’t frozen the frosting by itself, but I freeze frosted sugar cookies all the time and it works great.
I decided to freeze almost a double batch of frosting in a cheap, thin-walled storage container for almost 2 weeks and it turned out great! There was no separation or anything. It tasted exactly the same. I froze the sugar cookies, too, in a gallon zip lock bag with wax paper between the layers.
I followed the recipe exactly as written and these are the BEST sugar cookies! Thank you for sharing your recipe!
On first mix following the directions and ingredients it seemed very sticky to me but I smashed it down in the round bowl and left it in the fridge covered over night. I turned it out of the bowl on the silicone mat w/flour for about I’m going to say 20 to 30 minutes as I was doing the other things. It rolled out beautifully to cut out for Christmas cookies.
I am sold!
Hi Mel
I would like to try this recipe for my daughter’s birthday and have her friends decorate and ice their own cookies? Is it possible to add food colouring to the icing and portion of into little individual baggies they can squeeze out to decorate? Just not sure how durable the frosting is … Thanks!
I think if I was doing that, I’d use this buttercream frosting – it will hold up a little better.
https://www.melskitchencafe.com/perfect-vanilla-buttercream-frosting/
I really love the way these cookies look however they’re not sweet enough for me and I was thinking I like my cookies a little bit chewier so if I reduced the amount of flour slightly and add a little bit more sugar what do you think?
Hi Heather, these aren’t meant to be a chewy sugar cookie, but this recipe might be what you’re looking for: https://www.melskitchencafe.com/soft-and-chewy-drop-sugar-cookies/
First time making these. Have yet to do the icing but the cookie dough is Fabulous. So delicious. Will try them when they get out of the oven. Want to try some royal icing on these.
I’m curious how your royal icing turned out with these. Thanks!
Do you have recommendations for favorite freezer containers?
I use some older Rubbermaid flat tupperware type containers – they’re great but I’m guessing there are a lot of brands that would work well, too!
I followed the recipe but the cookies are still sticky. I added 1/4 cups of flour and left it in the refrigerator but it’s still sticky. What to do?
How sticky? If they can be rolled out on a lightly floured counter, they should be fine!
Could the dough be frozen? Love your site!
Yes, I think so!
These cookies are great. The frosting is out of this world! I’ve never made a frosting without butter in it before, but I’m sold on it for sure, The frosting makes it kind of hard to see what the cookie shape is, but I prefer the flavor and texture over appearance anyway.
Perfect cookies for Christmas with the fam. Soft and delicious.
These turned out to be the best sugar cookies I’ve found!! Everyone went crazy over them!! These are now our go-to recipe!