The Best Swig Sugar Cookies {Copycat Recipe}
These are the best little frosted sugar cookies on the planet! A knockoff from the popular soda shop, these Swig sugar cookies are amazing (and so easy – no rolling or cutting out!).
Have you hopped on the Swig sugar cookie train? Not the buying-of but the making-and-devouring-of train?
I’m guessing many of you have. I mean, knockoff recipes for these popular pressed and frosted sugar cookies are certainly nothing new. And I’m not reinventing the wheel from scratch today.
But I AM sharing my go-to, favorite copycat recipe for these Swig sugar cookies, and I may be biased, but this recipe really the best one I’ve made out of the dozens of recipes I’ve tried for these cookies over the years.
If you’ve been around since the beginning of MKC time (bless you), you might recognize this old Sugar Gems recipe. Posted long before these popular soda/cookie shops started popping up everywhere, it’s proof that pressed (no rolling or cutting!) and frosted sugar cookies have been a favorite for many of us long before they became trendy and went viral online.
I’ve used that Sugar Gems recipe many times when I’ve needed a quick frosted sugar cookie fix that didn’t require digging out the cookie cutters. And over the years, after making many of the knockoff Swig recipes out there (like this popular one Mandy posted years ago) and using the Sugar Gems recipe as a base, I’ve come up with my own slightly different Swig copycat cookie recipe.
It’s not vastly different from other versions, but it does have some variations that make it worth living in a blog post all its own.
A couple keys to success for the perfect Swig sugar cookie is to:
-use just the right amount of flour in the dough
-don’t press the cookies too thin (I aim for between 1/4- and 1/2-inch)
-underbake just slightly (or at the very least, don’t overbake!)
I’ve given both a cup measure and a weight measure for the flour in this recipe. If you don’t have a kitchen scale, make sure to fluff the flour in the container before scooping in your cup and leveling off. You don’t want the flour packed into the measuring cup, otherwise the baked cookies will probably be dry and crumbly.
At the same time, this isn’t a super soft, sticky dough. It’s thick and a little stodgy, but the rolled dough should press easily.
I use my large #20 cookie scoop {aff. link}, and roll the thick dough into balls. The rest is simple – grab a flat-bottomed glass, spray with cooking spray so the first dip into sugar sticks, and then press each dough ball (dipping the bottom of the glass again in sugar between cookies).
The cookies will spread just slightly while baking but if the dough is perfectly floured, they should retain their ruffly edges for that signature soda shop look.
The truth is, though, no matter how wonderful the sugar cookie is, it’s not going anywhere without a killer frosting. Bad frosting will ruin these Swig sugar cookies faster than you can say “swig style sugar cookie” ten times fast.
Good thing this ultra-creamy, delectable frosting is not rocket science. It’s just a little butter, a little sour cream (go with it – it’s what sets this frosting apart!), powdered sugar and a few extras, like vanilla and cream.
Whip it up, frost those cooled cookies, and then grab some sprinkles and go to town. The possibilities for colored frosting/festive sprinkles to match literally any holiday or occasion is almost mind boggling.
Walker, the resident 13-year old around here, made three double batches of these cookies last fall for a middle school leadership fundraiser. The first day he took them, they were the first baked good to sell out. We’re talking within minutes. The second day, the secretaries in the front office, knowing of their popularity from the day before, snuck a few cookies in advance (they paid!) in order to beat the inevitable rush.
And the third day after the cookies sold out in record time again, three of Walker’s friends told him he should forget school and go into the cookie making business.
In order to streamline the process, we made and froze the rolled cookie dough in advance…and I’ve read many comments online that say the frosted sugar cookies freeze well, too! Who knew? That’s pretty awesome (although I haven’t tried it myself).
Anyway, all I’m saying is, these Swig sugar cookies are good. Like, really good. Like, now that I have this easy soft and chewy drop sugar cookie recipe in my life and now this go-to pressed sugar cookie, I’m not sure I’ll ever pull out the cookie cutters again.
Also, I may have waited too long for a basic version, but way back in the archives is this insane chocolate frosted Swig cookie, and it is one of my favorite cookies EVER! Looks like you have no excuse not to be baking cookies within the hour. 🙂
One Year Ago: How to Make Cinnamon Rolls Ahead of Time
Two Years Ago: One-Bowl Monster M&M Cookies {Gluten-Free}
Three Years Ago: Russian Cream with Berries
Four Years Ago: Curried Lentil and Sausage Soup with Toasted Almonds
Five Years Ago: Classic Crème Brulee
Swig Sugar Cookies {Copycat Recipe}
Ingredients
Cookies:
- 1 cup (227 g) salted butter, softened
- ¾ cup neutral-flavored oil, canola, vegetable, grapeseed, etc
- 1 ¼ cups (265 g) granulated sugar
- ¾ cup (86 g) powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon cream of tartar or baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons sour cream
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (see note)
- 5 ½ cups (781 g) all-purpose flour (I use unbleached)
- Granulated sugar for pressing the cookies
Frosting:
- ¾ cup (170 g) salted butter, softened
- 2 tablespoons sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 6 cups (684 g) powdered sugar
- 1-2 tablespoons cream or milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (or 325 degrees F for convection bake) and line several half sheet pans with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a bowl using a handheld electric mixer), add the butter, oil, granulated sugar and powdered sugar. Sprinkle the baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt across the top of the sugars (don’t add the baking soda and cream of tartar in one lump or it might clump while mixing). Mix until well-combined and super creamy, 1-2 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Add the sour cream, eggs and vanilla and mix until well-combined, 1-2 minutes, again scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Add the flour and mix until no dry streaks remain and the mixture is evenly combined; don’t overmix.
- Scoop the dough into about 3-tablespoon sized portions (I use a #20 cookie scoop) and roll into balls. Place several inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Add about 1/2 cup granulated sugar to a shallow dish or bowl. Lightly spray the bottom of a flat-bottomed glass with cooking spray and dip the bottom of the glass into the sugar. Press each cookie into an even thickness dipping the bottom of the glass into the sugar between each press (no need to spray it again with cooking spray after the first time). The edges of the cookie will ruffle out a bit. It’s really up to you how thick or thin to press the cookies. I like them between 1/4- and 1/2-inch thick.
- Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes until just set. Try not to let them get golden on the edges or very much on the bottom – that means they’ve baked too long and they may be dry and crumbly instead of creamy and soft.
- Let the cookies cool for a few minutes on the baking sheets before removing to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- For the frosting, in a medium bowl (can use a handheld or stand mixer) combine the butter, sour cream and vanilla. Mix until thick and smooth and creamy, 1-2 minutes. Add the powdered sugar and cream (or milk) and mix until well-combined and creamy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add additional cream, if needed, to adjust the consistency of the frosting so it is thick but still soft and spreadable.
- Frost the cooled cookies and decorate with sprinkles, if desired.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: adapted from my old Sugar Gems recipe and this popular recipe at Vintage Revivals; frosting recipe adapted from A Bountiful Kitchen’s recipe
311 Comments on “The Best Swig Sugar Cookies {Copycat Recipe}”
Came across your recipe yesterday and knew I had to try them I have looking for a good sugar cookie recipe. This recipe is bad news because now I can make the best sugar cookie I have ever tasted right at home. I love them so much.
I made all the flavors of this cookie at Christmas time and everyone that ate them loved them! I especially like the lemon. Thanks for the recipes.
I love that you are using a Bosch I’ve only use them
Have for the last 40 years
These are delicious!! For those who have asked if you can use for cut out cookies the answer is yes! I rolled the dough out on lightly floured surface, cut out with heart cookie cutter, put in freezer for 10 min then baked per directions.
Thank you for this recipe, Mel! At 9PM tonight I decided to send my husband in to work with some sugar cookies for his employees. I needed a sugar cookie recipe that didn’t have to sit in the fridge for hours. This recipe tastes so good and was quick and easy! It will be a highlight for one person in particular who loves sugar cookies and will mostly be alone for the holidays. Thanks for helping me spread some Christmas cheer!
I can’t bake to save my life (but, I’m a gourmet chef when it comes to cooking!) and I’ve made these cookies at least 10 times. They come out PERFECT and everyone about dies over them! I’m making them again for a cookie exchange next week and am going to try making them a little bit smaller. Hopefully it works out!
Hi Mel,
I have made these Swig Sugar Cookies numerous times and they are a family favorite. Quick question: can they be rolled and cut out like a traditional sugar cookie or will that not work with this recipe? Thanks.
I haven’t tried that – not sure if they would keep their shape. Good luck if you experiment!
Amazing! I love all Mel’s sugar cookie recipes. These were so delicious! They froze well, and left on the counter to thaw for a few minutes they were perfect. I recommend weighing the ingredients like Mel suggests. I was unsure of the size dough ball to make so I did what someone else suggested and did 1.5 ounces. The first dozen were a tad too big so I only got about 30 cookies. The frosting is so yummy! Thanks Mel
These turned out great and were so easy! I froze the baked cookies in advance and frosted them on the day since they take a lot of room to store when frosted. Worked perfectly. I plan to try more flavors!
Just made this recipe for the first time. They are delicious! Is it possible to bag up these cookies or will the frosting get smashed? I wanted to give them away as a favor.
The frosting does stay softer than a royal icing that hardens.
I thought I remembered that you had posted you could make these, frost them and then freeze them? I’m making about 250 cookies for a youth trip and would be so happy if I’m not making this up….:)
You aren’t making it up! I’ll add a note to the recipe. But yes, these do amazingly well baked, frosted, sprinkled and frozen. They thaw perfectly!
Love these as cookies. Make them every year for Christmas! Wondering if you’ve ever used this recipe as a bar in a jelly roll pan? If so, how long do you bake?
I haven’t tried that with this recipe so I’m sorry I don’t have any good tips. I usually use this sugar cookie bar recipe: https://www.melskitchencafe.com/sugar-cookie-bars/
I love all of your recipes! They have always turned out for me in the past and they are always so good.
The cookie part of this recipe turned out perfect. They are a tad crunchy on the edges and soft on the inside. So good.
But I had trouble with the frosting which just makes me laugh because I bake a lot and the recipe isn’t too complicated. The frosting was really thick and when I went to spread it on the cookie it was pulling away a lot as I’m spreading it. I was difficult to work with.
I didn’t measure the powdered sugar so I will do that next time and I used heavy whipping cream (because that’s what I had on hand ) so maybe I should have used just milk instead?
I thought the frosting was too sweet for my liking but I realize that’s just a preference thing.
I looked through all of the comments and it doesn’t seem like anyone else had trouble with the frosting so I’ll have to remake it and see if I can figure out what went wrong. LOL!
Thank you for your recipes. I do enjoy them and I love looking through and finding all kinds of things I want to make. I use your recipes for dinner a lot too and they are all so good. Thanks:)
This happened to me too. The frosting was super thick – I added about 2 1/2 tablespoons of whipping cream to mine. I left it as is because I did patriotic cookies for a potluck at our lake and I didn’t want the icing to just melt off. But next time I will add another tablespoon of milk or cream at least. They are delicious though!
If you make the cookie dough, roll them out and then freeze, whats the process before going in the oven? Do they need a while to thaw on the counter?
You can cook from frozen – just add a few minutes onto the baking time.
These cookies are delicious. Thanks for the great recipe Mel!
I will make these again this Easter!
Truly the best frosted sugar cookie recipe and maybe best cookie recipe of all out there. This one is a showstopper!
Has anyone tried making the dough a few days ahead and storing it in the fridge before baking?
Yes! They bake up perfectly! I make the dough, smash them, then freeze. When I pull them out to bake, i don’t let them thaw, just bake a minute or two longer and it bakes exactly the same! Amazingly delicious!
Seriously, 6 cups of sugar? I finally quit trying to mix it in at about 4 cups and it was plenty for 32 cookies and was certainly sweet enough.
The cookies themselves aren’t overly sweet so the frosting balances that out. Also, the cookies are small enough that you don’t need a large amount of frosting
I always cut the sugar back in recipes but when making these I go whole-hog on the sugar!
I just made these for the first time. They turned out perfectly and will now be in my cookie rotation. Love that they are a new kind of sugar cookie. Love them!!!
These cookies are so good! I live in Utah and am very familiar with the Swig cookie – these really do taste like them!! But I think they are better because they are homemade and there’s more love in them. So so tasty!!
Wow- just made these this morning and they are delishhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!! I will give this recipe the in my cookie file on my ipad. Gonna try to make Valentine hearts with the dough next. Thanks for another great recipe.
meant to say “thumbs up”. oops. Julie
Oh my, my mistake. I just reread the ingredient list and realized there is baking powder, not a double measure of baking soda if you don’t have cream of tartar. Sorry! I should have read it again before asking a dumb question!
LaFern
HI Mel,
These sound easy and delicious but I have one question, does this recipe have cream of tartar AND baking soda OR not the cream tartar and double the amount of baking soda? I was a little confused when reading the ingredient list.
Thanks!
LaFern
Delicious cookies, very rich and sweet. The recipe worked really well, I did have to substitute the sour cream for plain Greek yogurt, as that was all I had on hand and couldn’t wait to make them.
These are so *expletive* good!
These were yummy. I’ve never had a real Swig cookie but have seen recipes floating around for years and finally wanted to try them. I used all butter, melting the portion that was replacing the oil. The texture is great, soft, but firm and slightly crumbly on the edges. I must have made my cookies giant (or ate a lot of dough ) and only made a half batch of the frosting as I only had 17 GIANT cookies. I will probably make again but make them smaller. Thank you for the recipe!
Hi Mel,
I haven’t tried your recipe yet, but just made the copycat recipe for the Crumbl sugar cookie, which is similar. I didn’t care for the taste of the cookie. I used canola oil, but the cookie tasted like oil (it was not rancid) and didn’t have much flavor at all. So I’m wondering if it is possible to use all butter in this cookie recipe…? I am an avid baker, and prefer the taste of butter over just about anything! Do you think it would change the texture of the cookie very much?
Hi Cathy – you can definitely try to use all butter. If so, I’d melt part of the butter so the consistency of the cookies is similar to the recipe (they might be dry or the dough too stiff if you use all softened butter)
I actually thought about melting the butter if I attempted to do this! I have done that in other recipes with success! Thanks for your input! I enjoy your blog and recipes! 🙂
Can you leave out the sour cream? I just don’t have any right now.
You can try – the texture and flavor might be a bit different (and you might want to decrease the flour slightly).
Could you elaborate on the Flour amount?
You’ve listed 5.5 cups or 781 grams. According to several sources a cup of flour weighs roughly 120 grams. That said, 5.5 cups would be 660 grams, or if you’re using your gram weight listed it would be 6.5 cups.
Also Granulated Sugar is is roughly 200g per cup, so the amount you have listed at 265 would be closer to 1.3 cups
If you’re looking for good sources for proper weights of ingredients, I’d recommend
King Arthur Ingredient Weight Chart
Aqua-Calc Food Volume to Weight
Hi Bryan, different sources use different weights for ingredients as recipes are tested. I use 142 grams per cup of flour when testing all of my recipes. And 212 grams per cup of sugar. My recommendation is to use the weights listed in a recipe if they are included because it means the recipe has been tested with those weight (and volume) measurements. I find that the weight measures King Arthur Flour uses are too low to achieve when measuring by volume (using measuring cups without a scale) so I use a slightly higher flour and sugar weight so that those measuring by volume have better success, too.
These sugar cookies are so good!! Such an easy recipe to make and were a big hit in my house (especially for the 2 year old who loves sprinkles). I didn’t have cream of tartar so I googled for a substitute and used lemon juice. I also ran out of powdered sugar so my icing ended up only having 3 cups which turned out fine as it wasn’t super sweet. Even with my modifications they turned out great! Will definitely be making them for the holidays.
Any tips for making these with GF flours?
I haven’t made them gluten free, but I believe others have by using a cup for cup gluten free flour in place of the all-purpose flour.
Super easy. Sent to my sister’s workplace. Gone quickly and several people asked for recipe. Love that they are not too sweet.
I’m wondering if freezing the cookies with frosting and sprinkles works. I would only need to freeze them for3 days before serving them but worried about the sprinkles melting and bleeding into the frosting.
Yes, they freeze great frosted and sprinkled.
I am making these cookies for a bridal shower this weekend…but am possibly needing to make them at least 4 days in advance. Will the be okay to sit in the freezer/refrigerator until then?
These cookies freeze great (even frosted).
I am getting so much spreading with these. Any suggestions?
It sounds like you might need to add a bit more flour (do they keep the crinkly edge shape or flatten?). Try another 1/4 to 1/2 cup flour and see if that helps.
I’m going to try this recipe tomorrow!! I was just curious on how long/many day I can leave these out or if they need to be refrigerated?
Hi Alicia, if I’m not serving them within a few hours, I refrigerate them (they keep well in the fridge, covered, for a couple of days – they also freeze great, even frosted)
These freeze AMAZINGLY well. And they taste even better than fresh when they’re almost all the way thawed out.
I have tried several copycat swig and these come in first every.single.time!
I must have cooked them too long as they were a bit dry. Wondering if being in Virginia could make a difference too.
Question of the day. How much did your son sell these for at the sale?
I don’t remember, it’s been a long time and the middle school handled the sales (and prices). Sorry!
My go to cookie EVERY TIME!! One of the BEST cookie recipes I’ve EVER tried over the MANY years. I must admit though, I’ve never had a Swig cookie before, but who cares, this cookie recipe IS THE BEST!!!!!
Never had the original swig cookies but it doesn’t even matter because this recipe is to die for! Can’t imagine that the original can be any better than this! My husband who is usually an only chocolate dessert kinda guy prefers these to his usually all time favorite chocolate chip cookie! And that says a lot! Thank you for never disappointing Mel!
I have made these a number of times and these really are so much better than Swig sugar cookies.
I’ve actually wanted to lie and let people think that I am the mastermind behind these treats.
These cookies are amazing. The recipe is perfect as-is. Great to give as gifts.
Wow o wow o wow. These are so very good. I cooled, frosted and then froze the trays of cookies, which then allowed me to stack them in Zip Lock Twist n Loc containers once frozen. Who am I kidding…these containers allow me to take one out at a time and eat it frozen. Has anyone tried adding a bit of almond flavoring to these? May try that next time. Once again, a real winner–thank you for sharing Mel.
Are you freezing these with the icing on ?
I freeze them frosted – works great!
These sound amazing, and I love your other swig cookie recipes (the lemon ones are my FAVORITE COOKIE IN THE WORLD.) I totally appreciate the pressed style, but my kiddos want to cut out shapes for holiday cookies. COULD I roll this dough out and use cookie cutters, do you think they bake firm enough to frost like a traditional cut-out cookies?
Hi Kelle, I haven’t tried it, but I do believe others in the comments have used these for a rolled and cut cookie.
These are absolutely divine! I followed the recipe exactly and used a kitchen scale for the flour. I also weighed each cookie to make sure they were uniform in size and they were roughly 1.5 oz each. It made 36 cookies. I took them out of the oven right at 10 minutes and they were perfectly done – edges were set but not golden. The frosting also turned out wonderful. Next time I make them I am going to have to freeze them because I literally could not help myself from scarfing them down! Thank you for sharing the recipe!!
Mel, you’ve done it again. I can always rely on your recipes to achieve exactly what I was looking for! I had Crumbl for the first time last week, and I became obsessed with making a copy cat of their sugar cookies. This hit the nail on the head. Better than Swig’s in my opinion! Mmmm and thank you as always!!
In order to make the frosting set a little harder for transport perhaps adding a tablespoon (or two ) of meringue powder? Thoughts?
I haven’t tried that, Leslie – so I’m not sure how it would affect taste and consistency – worth a try thought!
I don’t know what Swig’s is, but I saw this recipe and figured I’d try it. These are great! Soft, texture was great, easy and generous amount of frosting. Yum!
Perhaps it was my technique, but I did not get a good texture with these cookies. Your pictures make them look dense and fudgy, mine were light and airy. Maybe there’s little room for error. I made half a recipe, maybe that was a factor, though I’m pretty good at dividing recipes.
Baking is precise. If you divided the recipe without using baking percentages…you caused the less than desireable product.. That DOES NOT warrant a two star rating. 600 other people must be wrong…
I just dont understand people…
So I love this recipe, with a few variations.
I press the glass bottom in to the dough in the bowl to get it moist (no need to use cooking spray) then so in a mixture of 1/2 c sugar and 1/2tsp salt before pressing on the dough ball, just put the glass in the sugar mixture before you smash each dough ball. Just enough sugar on the top when it bakes that we enjoy without frosting.
I have used coconut oil, gives just a hint of coconut to the cookie, great with lime frosting.
She didn’t mention if you could use coconut oil but that’s all I had on hand. I loved it as well.
“Wow!!! These are even better than Swig’s”, said by all of my family members who had one! I’ve tried so many different recipes for sugar cookies and these will be my forever go to! I’ll just add different frosting colors and sprinkles for each holiday!! Thanks Mel!!
Thanks so much, Brenda!
Made these cookies last night. My son says it is just as good as the original from Swig. Followed the recipe exactly. So yummy.
These are really good and fairly easy to make but they are a very sweet cookie. My kids loved them but I can only eat one.
Is there a secret to getting your edges to ruffle? I’ve made your recipe like 3 times and have not got pretty edges like yours. I weigh my flour and chill the dough. Any other pointers?
How thick are the cookies once you press them? Also, the size of glass can make a difference. I like to use one that is small enough that the edges of the cookies press out beyond the glass edge (by just a tiny bit).
This is what made mine look perfect !! I had to big of a glass the first few times. Thanks for the best recipes Mel.
Merry Christmas
I’ve made these a few times now and LOVE them! I mean, frosted sugar cookies within an hour? So tasty! I find that the full amount of cream of tartar is too strong for me and I only use half, so 1/4 tsp. Thanks Mel for a total winner! And my SIL told me that Swig must have changed their recipe and the cookies are not as good now so this is extra awesome to have this nugget!
These are most excellent. Will go in my “Recipe Keepers” file. I live at high altitude (>5000 ft) and made no alterations. I was short on powdered sugar due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, but 3 c of powdered sugar was perfect. Thanks for a great recipe.
Oh my gosh, heroin. Seriously. I even froze them thinking I could stay away. And then discovered they are super good also as they are thawing. Can’t. Have. Them. In. My. House.
Do I need to make a high altitude adjustment for 4500-5000 ft?
I’d try to make them per the recipe first to see if adjustments are needed. I don’t live at high altitude so I’m not sure.
Peg I live at 6600 feet and did not adjust at all. They were amazing.
Hi!
I would love to bake these for valentines as a heart-shaped cookie.
Is it possible to roll the dough out and punch hearts out or will the dough be too soft to be rolled?
TIA
I haven’t tried rolling and cutting – I’d probably suggest using a recipe written to be a cut out cookie – not sure these will hold the heart shape very well.
I made these today and the ones baked on my older pan browned on the bottom. This made the flavor of the oil overwhelming and I had to toss them. The batch on the new pan stayed light and they tasted just like Swig! Do not let them brown or they are inedible!
Made these again with the leftover dough from the first batch – used the convection mode on the oven – perfection!
They do taste good, they’re incredibly sweet, but the bake time given was just nuts for me. After 12 minutes I had raw dough – they fell thru the cooling rack. Ended up putting them back in & baking another 8 min. Could be my baking sheets – they’re double bottomed to prevent burning.
For what it’s worth, I had a double-bottomed baking sheet and finally got rid of it — so infuriating! Everything always baked totally wrong on it!
Mine was the opposite! After 10 minutes mine were golden brown! I had to reduce my time to only 8-8.5 min and they were perfect.
Do you recommend refrigerating the cookies after their frosted or would the be ok in a tin on the counter?
They are fine left out for a few hours but any longer and yes, I refrigerate them.
Hi, could I freeze half the made dough to use at a later time?
Yep!
Unbelievable cookie! I bake a ton of cookies, and husband said these are possibly the best ones I’ve ever made! I add 1 tsp. almond extract to dough, and 1/2 tsp. almond extra to icing. So wonderful!
Instead of the vanilla or in addition to?
Our family has a dairy intolerance and egg allergy. I used energy egg replacer and min dairy versions of other elements, and they taste amazing. In case anybody need the same adjustments. ❤️
Non dairy
I’m getting to make these egg and dairy free too… what did you use as an egg replacer? Thanks Myrianne!
Our family has a dairy intolerance and egg allergy. I tried the Energy egg replacer and non dairy versions of the other elements (sour cream, milk and butter) and the cookies tasted amazing. Just in case anybody has similar food restrictions. ❤️
Has anyone used an egg replacer with this recipe? My family has allergies.
Oh my! These are so delicious!! I never have to buy these at swig ever again! Dare I say these are even better than the soda cookies? Yum!!
King Arthur Flour has a handy guide for weights. It looks like powdered sugar weighs 3 oz or 170 g.
3/4 cups of confectioners sugar weighs 7.50 ounces on my scale?
Hmmm, that’s a lot more than on my scale. I usually get about 4 ounces per cup. Did you tare out the scale so it doesn’t include the bowl/cup you are measuring in?
I would like to make these cookies for a church function. Is it possible to stack the frosted and sprinkled cookies, or must they be kept in a single layer? I am trying to figure out the best way to store and transport them.
Thank you.
Hey Jocelyn – the frosting stays pretty soft on these cookies so I usually use big cookie sheets and keep them in a single layer. However, once the frosted cookies have been chilled, the frosting sets up and you could double stack at that point.
I transport in pizza boxes in one layer.
I made these today and they are delicious! We have a lot of extra frosting. This may be a silly question but can you freeze and re-use frosting later?
It can get kind of grainy if you freeze just the frosting and then thaw, but if you want to make extra cookies…surprisingly, the frosted cookies freeze really well!
We are making Father’s Day treats for the men at church, and my daughter wants to make extra big cookies. Do you think it would work to combine 2 scoops into a ball and then press with something a little bigger, like a pickle jar? We may just experiment and see what we come up with! Thanks for all your amazing recipes!
Yes, I think it would!
Ah! yum yum yum – however the bake times were so tricky for me! I knew to underbake, so I did 8 min at 350. they still got so brown around the edges and dry/chalky. ah! should I bake even less time? i feel like they also were smaller than you recommended, don’t know if that made a difference. so I made them bigger, but same thing happened.
There’s a good chance your oven just bakes a little hotter than mine, so if they are getting too browned on the edges, try reducing the oven temp by 15-25 degrees.
I totally made these with half the butter for some reason… but they came out really good still!
My favorite sugar cookie recipe ever.
Can these be rolled out?
I haven’t tried rolling them out, but they might work that way.
I rolled them out once just slightly to make hearts. Worked fine.
I don’t normally like cookies of any kind … especially sugar cookies. I CAN’T STOP EATING THESE! WOW! So yummy! Thank you!
Hi Mel! I’ve made these cookies three times now and I’m starting to think they might be my new favorite cookie (which surprises me since I’ve never loved sugar cookies)! These cookies are so good! Thanks for sharing your talents with everyone!
That makes me happy – thanks, Marcie!!
Can i make these a few days in advance and freeze them unfrosted?
Yes!
how much did you sell them for, were having a fundraiser and i’m making these. just curious. thanks!!
I think they were $1.50 a piece (it was at the middle school and my son took them for his leadership class fundraiser so I wasn’t there to check the actual cost per cookie).
Thank you!! That’s helps!!
Made these for a bake sale today and they were so good!! We did have some trouble with the frosting, mostly cause we didn’t read directions well and mixed powdered sugar before butter was mixed first. Fixed it with some water though and it was fine.
I’ve now made these delectable delights twice. Once for a men’s event at church and I was told later that they were devoured and the first dessert to go. Today I made a batch to divide up and give for family birthday gifts at our Easter gathering tomorrow. With festive spring sprinkles and a jelly bean in the center they look so inviting. I’ll be proud to give these cookies and I know my sisters and brother will really enjoy them. I usually prefer a crisp cookie but these creamy, buttery, vanilla-ee treats are irresistible. Thanks Mel!!
can these be made ahead and stored in the fridge like your other sugar cookie recipe?
I mean the dough
Yes!
This is hands down the best sugar cookie I have ever made! However, my frosting was much more yellow than in your picture….did I do something wrong?
What brand of butter did you use? The frosting will lighten the longer it’s beaten/whipped so that could make a difference, too.
I followed the recipe and instructions without substitutions and my cookies ended up with a great texture IMO, but the flavor is flour-y. When the dough was raw is smelled kind of like play dough. Does flour expire? I also don’t know what type of flour it was. It was just in the bin in the pantry.. I fluffed the flour first too with a fork so I’m pretty confident in the measurement. I just wish I would have opened a new bag, but alas, this is what I got. Just wondering if that has every happened and what may have caused it?
Hey Ashley – what type of flour did you use? Bleached? Unbleached? I use unbleached all-purpose flour and haven’t noticed that smell??
I wish I knew! Lol I am going to try them again tho so I know exactly what is going in and see if that makes a difference <3
Ashely I had this same problem too!
Yes, flour can go rancid. I make these cookies often and they never smell like playdough. Did you add vanilla? If you omit vanilla they will taste bland and floury.
I had the same problem and just realized it was my OIL that had gone rancid. I just opened a new bottle and it didn’t have that smell. I will try them again tomorrow.
Flour can definitely go bad. I will say my flour was fresh and I thought the dough was floury too. I used a scale to measure. I wasn’t in love with the cookies the day I made them. I thought they were WAY better the next day. Now I want to make them again and try to be patient while they mellow for a day.
This was truly the best sugar cookie recipe I’ve ever tried. And I’ve tried a few! I’ve been on the hunt for the perfect recipe and now my searching is over. Thank you! I hope I get to take these to a bake sale soon.
I’ve been making these since the email blast came out and tried them various ways (coconut oil the first time (hands down the best version), canola the second, and 1 1/2 cups milled hard white wheat subbed the third). Every time they’ve been a hit! I’ve also frozen them iced and they been delicious thawed. Maybe I am a risk taker, but I’ve never refrigerated them. I’ve even shipped them to a relative out of town! We’ve never had an issue with taste or sickness, and we live in North Georgia. They are our new favorite dessert! Trying the chocolate version next!
Love, love, love this feedback and all your variations. Thanks, Randi! Interesting that coconut oil was the best version of all. I’ll be trying that!
I use 100% Pure Refined Cononut Oil, so there’s no coconut flavor, in case you try it! I tried the chocolate icing yesterday. It’s tasty, but I’ll never mess with the original recipe and icing again! Nothing compares
A.MAZ.ING!!!!!!
Loved these so much! I did add almond flavoring to the frosting and dough. My favorite swig style cookie recipe that I’ve tried so far!
Mel – I made these tonight and they are so much better than actual SWIG cookies! So yummy!! You’ve done it again!
Thanks, Katie!
My wife is a self proclaimed sugar cookie snob. So I knew that when she only had good things to say after trying these that they had to be great. The oil gives these a really great texture. They stayed soft for days. I did sub in almond extract in addition to the vanilla and a small amount of lemon zest. I did have one batch that was a bit more crumbly than the other. But I’m sure that was because of baking them in an ancient and inconsistent oven.
Glad the sugar cookie snob in the fam approved these!! 🙂
Paired with a cute “Sprinkled with Love” tag I found on Pinterest, these were a huge hit at our Galentines gift exchange! I’ve had several ladies seek me out to say how delicious they were, and I’ve had to make the recipe again with my daughter so that we could have some for the family. I ended up putting a dozen frosted cookies in the freezer (we have no restraint around here), and I’m curious to see how they taste after thawing. Thanks for another great recipe!
I’m so glad they were a hit, Vicky! I’ve heard the frosted cookies freeze really well. I hope that’s really the case!
These are amazing!!! Do you have a recipe for the chocolate frosting as well?
https://www.melskitchencafe.com/chocolate-frosted-swig-style-cookies/
I cut recipe to half for 2 of us — I already had a yummy sugar cookie recipe ,but this recipe exceeded that one — these are divine !
Definitely will make these again and again ! —————–thanks for sharing Mel—
Okay, maybe this is a silly question, but I made a bunch of these cookies and froze them, now I need to frost them, should I un thaw them first? Or can you frost frozen? And how long do you think they will stay good after un thawing them?
Either way works! Once they are thawed and frosted, they should stay delicious for 2-3 days (I keep them in the refrigerator).
I was thinking of making these for a Galentines exchange next week. Does the frosting set up enough that I could slip cookies into individual bags for gifting?
It doesn’t firm up like a royal icing, but it does set up and crust over just slightly enough that I think as long as the cookies didn’t get stacked, they could be slipped into bags.
That should work! Thanks!
I’ve been looking for the perfect sugar cookie recipe for a long time, and I’ve finally found it!!! Tastes just like the soda shops cookies around. We baked them for 9 min, but I might try 7-8 minutes next time to make it gooier. LOVED LOVED these cookies!!
I made these for dessert for our Valentine’s Day family dinner. I was VERY excited about trying them, and they wildly exceeded my expectation. SO good! My ten-year-old who doesn’t like frosting (who is this kid???) gobbled them up. Everyone loved them. For dinner I made your best ever glazed meatloaf which was also a HUGE hit! My husband declared it the best meatloaf he has ever had by far, and has claimed all the leftovers for himself. Thank you for helping to make my Valentine’s Dinner so special Mel! I’m so thankful for your constant recipe inspiration 🙂
Thank you so much, Tiffany!!
These are so yummy! I added a couple extra tablespoons of flour for our high altitude, and an extra teaspoon of vanilla. And used olive oil, but it was the pure olive oil (from Costco) that has a lighter flavor than EVOO, and it doesn’t interfere with the flavor of the cookies at all. They didn’t turn out with quite the crackly edges that yours have (I probably could have used a couple more tablespoons of flour even and gotten them) but they are soft and tender and absolutely delicious. I got 30 good-sized cookies out of the batch, just rolling them into balls by hand since I don’t have a cookie scoop. Worked great.
Enjoyed these, my favorite thing was the rustic look with both the pressed cookie and the frosting (kid friendly). They aren’t my favorite dessert in the world but hey, they are essentially a sugar cookie which are mostly about looks anyway. We enjoyed them both plain or with frosting and as you caution, they are no good when dried out, so despite me cooking them spot on (not even golden) I left them out overnight accidentally and the following day they were crumbly messes. 🙁 but will probably keep in my recipe box. 🙂
Baking these cookies as I type! The dough is amazing!!!! I am a sucker for cookie dough! Very dangerous to leave it in my fridge! I recently got a new oven that has the convection baking option. What are your thoughts on a convection oven? Is it good to use when baking goods like cakes, cookies, etc?
Yes! I use my convection setting almost every time for cookies (25 degrees lower than the recipe states usually)
We just made 3 double batches of these to raise money for my daughter to go to EFY (church camp) this summer. We ended up with 15 dozen cookies (give or take a few) and each cookie weighed about 50g before cooking and was 3.5″ across after. We froze the cookies for 2 nights before frosting and they were still perfect. The frosting gets a crust pretty fast, so we recommend putting on sprinkles after each cookie or so is frosted or they won’t stick. Everyone LOVED them and between these and the chocolate swig cookie recipe here my daughter made enough money to cover the cost of half her goal. Thanks so much for all the ways you enrich our lives Mel. <3
I hope the fundraiser went well!! That is a ton of cookies – your feedback is so helpful!
This may sound silly, but I have never made something with such lovely dough! It was an absolute delight to go through the process, and the cookies came out beautifully. Thank you for all your work and effort to perfect the recipe; I see myself referring to it for years to come.
This made me so happy – thank you, Meridith!
Making these as I type for Valentine’s for teachers (pairing it with their fav soda)! They are smelling amazing and looking delicious!
Hi Mel,
Can you confirm the oz measurements. I usually weigh my ingredients because it’s faster for me but the oz does add up to the cup measurement. Thanks!
Hey Jenn, the weight measures are correct! 🙂 The volume of a cup is 8 ounces, but the weight of different ingredients will vary (for instance, a cup of flour weighs between 4-5 ounces and a cup of sugar is more like 7.5 ounces).
I have enjoyed many, many of your recipes with many raves and much success.
I followed this cookie recipe to a ‘T” and found that the cookie lacked flavor. Thankfully the frosting saved them to a degree. The only thing that I did was use the suggested avocado oil and wonder if that affected the over all flavor of the cookie.
I was going to take these cookies to an event but now am not sure if they will be enjoyed.
Your thoughts or suggestions are appreciated. I am still a great fan of yours.
The oil shouldn’t affect overall flavor unless it’s a strong flavored oil like olive oil (which would not be a good fit for this recipe). I’ve used avocado oil many times in this recipe without a flavor difference. There’s no chance you accidentally left out the salt? I’m sorry you weren’t super happy with the result!
These cookies turned out great for me, super soft and yummy, but after the first batch came out and I tasted them I wanted more flavor, too. I figured it was because I used imitation vanilla instead of vanilla bean paste like I usually do (too expensive now!) so I added another teaspoon of imitation vanilla and that did the trick. I’m going to order some vanilla butter emulsion like Mel suggested and try that next time. Thanks for the great recipe, Mel! I’ve tried several sugar cookie recipes without success at my high elevation, but this turned out great with just a little added flour!
Thanks for the feedback!
These were hands down, the best sugar cookies I’ve ever eaten in my life! I made them using Mexican vanilla, and they were phenomenal! Thanks for sharing!!!
Mexican vanilla – YUM!
Do you refrigerate the cookies b/c of the sour cream and heavy cream in the frosting?
I refrigerate if the cookies will be out longer than 4 hours or so.
What are your thoughts on buttercream made with heavy cream? Do you refrigerate cookies that are frosted with it?
If they are going to be left out longer than 4 hours, then yes, I refrigerate.
WOW! I waited for my butter vanilla emulsions to arrive before making it and it was SO worth it! These were delicious! I have to say that I think it is my favorite frosting of ALL time. The flavoring was divine. I made the cookies too big to start, but next time (there will definitely be repeats of this cookie at my house) I will make them smaller. Ha, I only made 21 super cookies.
I live at 6,000 feet above sea level and usually have to make adjustments like decreasing sugar to cookies. I didn’t do anything at first and realized the cookies were too crumbly so I added 1 more tablespoon of sour cream to the batter and it worked great after that.
And… yeah. I used the entire bowl of frosting. Full recipe. It isn’t swig unless it has all that frosting. YUM!
Did not disappoint! Thanks Mel! Looking forward to trying the chocolate version.
Thanks for letting me know, Katie! LOVE the idea of those huge “super cookies” – haha.
I took the super cookies to a Treat your Teachers on Tuesday event this morning. They could not believe they were home made. They thought they looked and tasted like bakery cookies! Yay! Goal accomplished. (No one has ever heard of swig cookies here in Colorado. )
That is the best praise! So happy they were well received!
I used my small scoop and got 110 cookies! Very easy to make and delicious. Will definitely keep this recipe for graduation season!
Oh Mel! I wanted these to work so badly! But the first 6 in the oven spread out soooo much! Chilled the dough for a bit, and that stopped the spreading. Then my icing was so thick, that I omitted a whole cup and a half of icing sugar, and added at least an extra 4 tablespoons of sour cream to get the icing to even be spreadable. End result = still totally edible (and yummy!) but not exactly ‘right’. I won’t give up though, and will try, try again!
Sorry these didn’t work out for you! I wonder if it’s a difference in how we each measure the dry ingredients? Sounds like your cookie dough could have used a touch more flour, maybe.
Quick question, how big do these cookies turn out? I know that generally a large scoop will turn out to be about 4 in. Does that hold true here?
Mine came out at 3.5″ I used the 3tbsp #12 scoop. Nice big cookies. I just tried to eat half of one, but I felt the need to eat the whole thing…so delicious! And while I was typing this my husband texted me a picture of his half eaten cookie with “Exquisite” as the description! Just go make them.
Mine came out at 3.5″ I used the 3tbsp #12 scoop. Nice big cookies. I just tried to eat half of one, but I felt the need to eat the whole thing…so delicious! And while I was typing this my husband texted me a picture of his half eaten cookie with “Exquisite” as the description! Just go make them.
Haha. Exquisite is a very appropriate description! Glad they were a hit!
It really depends on how flat/thick you press them. When I make them, they are probably about 3 inches.
Can you explain the vanilla butter emulsion?
Big delicious cookies! My husband who does not give idle praise labeled these fantastic and perfect. Sending some to my son in college for Valentines Day!
So happy to hear that, Michele – thank you!
Question: How critical is cream of tartar to a good (delicious, tender) end result? I would likely be purchasing it just for this recipe. Thanks!
It definitely has a chemical purpose (it is an acidic ingredient), but I honestly don’t know the ins and outs and can’t say for sure whether it is 100% necessary. I think it plays with the leavening agents and lightens up the cookie texture. You could maybe try making the cookies without and see how they fare before going out and buying cream of tartar??
I’ve never heard of Swig before, let alone tried their cookies. In any case, we loved these & will likely replace our usual cut out sugar cookies with these next Christmas! Will need to try the chocolate version next.
Thanks, Barb!
Well Mel, these are great! I’m not going to lie, when I saw avocado oil on the ingredient list I doubted. I should never doubt your genius! The true test will be my Mom tomorrow but for me…these are fabulous! I personally love topping them with some Guitard Milk Chocolate Jimmies. Just a little hint of chocolate is fabulous with this cookie!
Oh yum…love the little flair of chocolate on top!
Oh MEL!! I can’t wait to make these 🙂 Getting ready to be snowed in for the weekend in Yakima, WA and I made sure we had all the ingredients on hand! I picked up some sour cream so we are a go Stay safe and warm!!
I have two babies at home and one of them has been sick the last two days. I made these because I knew I needed something to get me through the day! They are awesome! I always substitute plain yogurt for sour cream and that worked great in this recipe. They were a tad on the dry side, but that was on me for not measuring the flour (I was in a rush, squeezing in cookie making before the next nose or bum needed to be wiped!) It could also have been the yogurt. It sure isn’t going to stop me eating them all and trying again next time!
I’m glad these worked out *ok* – and you are amazing for baking with little babes probably hanging on your legs. But I totally get it! A little therapy for momma to get through the day. Hope your little one gets feeling better! Cam was home sick every single day this week. When I finally took her in to the dr (I always wait way too long…either that or I take them in too soon and the dr makes me feel like I totally overreacted over a runny nose) and she has strep and mono. Yikes! Looks like I’ll be making some cookies to get us all through as well.
Made these cookies and they are delicious! Added a little almond extract to the frosting. Thanks for recipe!
I bet the almond was yummy in the frosting! Glad you loved the recipe!
I’m headed to the kitchen to make these .. day off school activity !! I can’t wait to try them! And about those Sugar Gems, we love that recipe and use it as a base recipe anytime we find a recipe that calls for a “boxed/pouch sugar cookie mix”. A few years ago I made around 200 of them dipped in silver and gold sprinkles for my daughters wedding !! That recipe will always be a favorite
I bet they were beautiful, Helen!
My wife is throwing a galentine’s party for my daughter’s friends today and wanted to frost sugar cookies. I found this recipe and shared it with her, and these are what she wanted to make. If anyone wants the perfect sugar cookie, this is it. These blow every other sugar cookie out of the water! The only addition I made was to add 1/2 tsp of imitation butter extract because of the note that the butter vanilla emulsion worked great (I didn’t have any emulsion on hand so just added butter extract with the vanilla). I want to try adding almond extract to the dough, since that is how I grew up making and enjoying sugar cookies. My wife wanted hearts for the girls, so we took a baking mat, a quarter of the dough and rolled it into a rectangular-log-shape. We took the bottom of a clean baking sheet, sprayed it with cooking spray and spread the granulated sugar over the spray. The excess we caught in a bowl before flipping it onto the dough. We took the cookie sheet and pressed it uniformly over the dough, checking for thickness. When ready, we removed the baking sheet and cut using our cookie cutters. If you plan to use cookie cutters, we found that they turned out better if they were on the thicker side. Not only because we had to move them to the pan, but also after cooling they didn’t break as easily (we only had one ).
The frosting has a great consistency, but is a little too sweet for us. I liked the addition of the sour cream, so may try other frosting recipes and incorporate the sour cream.
Overall, this recipe hits checks all the boxes. Thanks, Mel!
Wow, thanks so much for the review, Turell! Super happy these worked out rolled with a cutter (loved the details on how you rolled them out!). I hope that party is super fun for your daughter and her friends (she’s lucky to have parents going the extra mile).
I didn’t hate this recipe, but I didn’t love it either (sorry!). The cookie was a bit dense for my liking. My kiddos gave it the same review. Also, I yielded 50 decent-sized cookies and took the suggestion of another reviewer and cut the frosting by 1/3, which was just the right amount. This recipe will makes a lot of cookies, which is great for a bake sale, but too many cookies for a weekday batch of cookies to have around the house (at least for my size family). If you want to try this recipe for the 1st time, I suggest maybe making half a recipe.
Thanks for the review, Nancy!
Made these fab cookies today. Thank you for making me an adventurous and fun mom through baking and cooking. 🙂
Thanks, Jaci! 🙂
Thanks for the recipe! I love several of yours. Do you use 3 teaspoons of dough per cookie, or 3 tablespoons? I saw that you said Tbsp in the recipe, but the link to the #20 cookie scoop is 3 tsp. Just want to get it right. 🙂
I think that’s a typo on the cookie scoop (when you click to Amazon) – the #20 scoop is the largest one I have and it is 3 tablespoons. 🙂
Thanks! Bought the #20 scoop and pulled my last batch out of the oven a few minutes ago. Yum! I can’t wait to try them with frosting! ❤️
I made these last night for our new beginnings and the girls LOVED them! Thank you!
So happy to hear that, Jeanine!
Mel, thanks to you and for the first time in my life, I am measuring my ingredients, most notably flour. Whoa!! What a difference that makes! My cookies are turning out amazing. I can’t believe I waited this long to use my kitchen scale! Thanks for your advice and this great cookie recipe – it’s amazing!! Love your blog. 🙂
I don’t know why, but that makes me SO happy. Like a proud parent sitting over here watching their child launch from the nest. Haha. Yay! Weighing ingredients was life changing for me, too. 🙂
How do your recipes turn out perfect every tome for me? You’re amazing. This cookie recipe is perfect. So easy and extra yummy. Looking forward to your new cinnamon roll recipe this weekend. Thanks for all you do for us!!
Thank you so much, Maura!
Question: You said you can freeze the rolled cookie dough. Do you mean the rolled balls before smooshing with the cup? Also, how long do you thaw them for before baking?
Yes, I froze the dough rolled into balls (before pressing). I let them soften to room temperature – just enough to press with the glass before baking (if you plan ahead, you could put the frozen cookie dough in the refrigerator the night before).
I had the same question about making them ahead of time. For clarification, if you freeze them, you skip the step where you smoosh with a glass? Do they spread out to about the same thickness? Thanks so much for all the help!
Hey Laura – I actually just edited my comment above to Lauryn because I realized it was unclear. I did freeze the dough before pressing with the glass…but it meant that the dough had to soften enough out of the freezer to press before baking. I think you could press the cookie dough and then freeze the pressed rounds and then you could bake right from frozen!
Thanks! I am making these today but freezing some for Valentine’s Day.
Do they have to be frosted? I was going to use colored sugar with a vase as the glass that has a design on the bottom?
I think that’s a good idea! The cookies themselves aren’t overly sweet; the frosting kind of helps amp up the sweetness, but with just sugar on the outside, I think they’d still be tasty.
Mel, these cookies were fantastic! I tried a cookie a while ago from the local Swig store, and I was disappointed. These are so much better! Thanks for adding a new cookie recipe to fuel my baking addiction 🙂
Thank you, Lynn!
Made these today and got to share with our young women’s youth group tonight. Delish! These could be dangerous to have around! This was my first chance to use the vanilla butter emulsion. I’m sure it was the combination of ingredients including the emulsion, but the flavor was amazing.
Yay! So happy you and those cute YW loved them!
I did some googling to find out what Swig is since we are apparently missing out on the craze here in Michigan. But I was intrigued enough to make the cookies. I prefer my sugar cookies chewy and unfrosted,but these are obviously a different type. Really yummy! My edges didn’t do the crackle thing and I should have paid more attention to the exact size and dimensions you gave, but even though not perfect, they still taste great. Thanks for all your wonderful recipes!
Thanks for the comment, Jenny! Glad you liked these (I agree, though, sometimes an unfrosted chewy sugar cookie is the way to go!)
Yep. Definitely a keeper! My kids and I made these swig cookies today and loved them! I always make a recipe as stated the first time, when I make them again, I might add a little lemon or orange emulsion flavoring to the frosting. I think that would give them a nice little “kick” of flavor. Thanks again, Mel, for an awesome recipe!
Thanks, Christina!
Made these today for all the neighborhood because of day two snow day here in WA. They were a hit! Delicious! Thank you for your blog. It is my first stop if in need of a recipe.
Perfect cookie for a snow day – and your neighbors are sure lucky to live near you!
Oh goodness those chocolate swig ones you posted a while back are probably one of my favorite recipes on your site. I can’t wait to try these. I think I will have to make these and the chocolate ones again. Seriously heavenly!
It makes me so happy you love those chocolate cookies because they are a favorite of mine, too.
Mel, I just made these for my husband’s office and oh my goodness! They are wonderful! I’ve always been intimidated by this cookie, but your directions gave me the courage to give it a try and I’m so glad I did. I think these will turn up at every holiday and special occasion from now on. Thank you so much for sharing and for the excellent directions.
I haven’t tried these yet but I’m wondering if you think they would hold their shape well enough to use rolled with cookie cutters. I don’t like most rolled cookies, I find them dry and bland but I know my kids will revolt if I try and have them frost plain round cookies for our holiday cookie decorating!
That’s a great question – I don’t know for sure, but the dough is definitely stiff enough that I think it could probably be rolled (it’s not soft and sticky).
And then this popped up… Pretty sure my days plans just changed.
I made these today and they were fabulous! Very similar to the soft frosted sugar cookies sold at WM and Kroger, but these are so much better! I followed the recipe exactly, I live in humid, low elevation Arkansas so I could have added an extra tablespoon or two of flour for a more ‘crackled’ edge. I measured flour by weight so it would be precise. I also didn’t have a #20 scoop, so I used my small cookie scoop, which holds about 1 tablespoon. I used two scoops and rolled them together into a larger ball. After baking and frosting, each cookie measured 3 inches in diameter and were pressed to about 1/4 inch thickness. I ended up with 42 cookies total. I also had quite a bit of frosting left over and I spread them thick. If I were making these again, I would reduce the amounts and use 1/3 less of all frosting ingredients. Very good recipe Mel! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for the detailed review, Larissa!!
Your chocolate swig cookies are seriously one of my favorites in the chocolate cookie category. I gave them out for Valentine’s Day treats to friends two years ago, and a family that my husband visited requested them again afterwards. I’m sure these ones are just as good! I’ll have to try them out this year.
I love that you love those chocolate ones so much because they are serious contender for my favorite cookie ever.
Hi! I’m getting ready to make these tonight. Do you think a doubled batch will fit in a Bosch mixer? I feel like it could be close!
I’ll answer my own question – Yes, a double batch fits in the Bosch. Barely! 🙂
Yes! I’ve doubled it in my Bosch and it works great. 🙂
Have you tried the Blueberry “Swig” Cookies: https://www.thekitchenmccabe.com/2014/08/28/fresh-blueberry-frosted-swig-copycat-cookies/
These are pretty amazing as well with just a little bit of fruit in the frosting.
Interesting!
I can honestly say I’ve never even heard of a Swig Sugar Cookie. How is it different from another sugar cookie? What does Swig mean?
Swig is just the restaurant that made these type of cookies famous in the Utah/Idaho area, but really it’s just a pressed sugar cookie with frosting and sprinkles (and the homemade version is way better than the ones you can get at the soda shops popping up everywhere now, in my opinion). 🙂
How many cookies does this recipe make using the #20 scoop?
I got about 28 cookies with mine!
Thank you!
Does this frosting set? If not how do you package these for transport? I know you can’t stack them if the frosting is wet.
Just made a batch for a birthday lunch with friends and they look delicious!! Quick question – mine didn’t retain (or ever even have right after pressing) that pressed looking sugar cookie edge. They are fairly round and spread a bit – they look like soft bakery sugar cookies. I mean, that’s probably not a bad thing, but obviously not what I was going for. Should I have added more flour? I live in southern Oregon. It’s very humid here and our elevation is low. Less than 1,000 feet above sea level. I usually have to add more flour to my yeast breads, but haven’t noticed a need to with other baking. What do you think!?
Thanks for the details…based on where you live in a humid climate with low elevation, yes, I think you might need more flour (I live in a very dry climate). How did you measure your flour? Do you spoon it into the measuring cup or scoop and level? That can make a difference, too; I think a few tablespoons extra flour (maybe up to 1/4 cup) could help the crinkly edge factor.
Thanks for your response! I actually measured it by weight on my kitchen scale! Side note – the cookies are DELISH!
Thanks, Carly!
Since there’s milk and sour cream in the frosting of swig cookies, do they need refrigerated?
Yes, I refrigerate them if I’m not serving them within about 4 hours.
It’s a snow day here in Seattle and for some reason I always feel like baking when it snows. These were delicious and the kids were so excited when they came in from playing. And the pink frosting screams February!
Lucky kids!! 🙂
Uh-o.. these are gonna be bad news.. ♀️
I love a good sugar cookie! Last year my kids had a lemonade stand and they sold homemade swig cookies (I used Mandy’s recipe). They seriously had a line up of people when they first opened their stand. So popular, and for a good reason!
Recently I went to Utah and partook of my first real Swig cookie. I was so disappointed that they are now mass producing them and they don’t have the signature crinkly edge. What’s up with that! They need that crinkly edge! I can’t wait to try your recipe!
Serious?? It’s been ages since I’ve had a real, live Swig sugar cookie, although I’ve had the ones at Sodalicious a time or two (I think they still have the crinkly edges??).
The real story, I believe, is that the cookies were originally made at a gas station down the street from my house in southern Utah, and sold to swig. In 2012, we had a bad rainstorm and a small dam broke, flooding the small gas station and many surrounding homes, and putting them out of business temporarily. This is when Swig started making their own cooking and, in my opinion, the quality suffered. Thankfully, the gas station was only out of commission for a few months, and they still make the cookies. And best of all (or worst, depending on how you look at it ) I live about 2 blocks away!
Oh, that’s interesting!
In my opinion, Dutchman’s cookies are way better than Swig too. Swig never should have started making their own.
Should they be stored frosted in the fridge or unfrosted with the cookies being stored at room temperature and the frosting in the fridge?
If I’m making them more than 4 hours in advance, I frost them and put them in the refrigerator (but I like to take them out 20-30 minutes before serving). Any shorter than that and they are fine at room temperature.
Oooo, I’ll definitely have to give this a try! We have a Sip’N Spot in town and I looove their sugar cookies, and they happen to be MUCH tastier than Swig’s – they just have a better flavor. Swig had a great texture and things but was pretty bland. And now that my baby is old enough to see the menu out the window, I can’t just run over and grab myself a cookie, haha. So this would be a better method, for everyone. haha!!
Can’t wait to try this recipe Mel! I have tried a couple other swig recipes but I know yours will be the best. The last one I tried didn’t call for any eggs and I didn’t love the texture. Will be making these next week for Valentines Day. I also love using that butter vanilla emulsion. They have one also called sweet dough that is excellent in cinnamon roll dough. Yum!!
Oh wow, I bet that sweet dough flavor is delicious! I’ll be looking for it!
So, if the cookies are going to be frosted, is the sugar for the pressing doing much? Crunch would dissolve in the frosting. I suppose if it keeps the dough from sticking to the cup….. .? We will have to try the regular and chocolate versions regardless!
The sugar for pressing helps so the glass doesn’t stick to the dough. 🙂
Question– I’ve wondered about your flour cup-to-ounce conversion. I’m used to using King Arthur’s chart for converting cups to ounces and they say 4.25/120 grams for a cup of unbleached all-purpose flour. But I also trust you… Conundrum!
This is an interesting issue. Years ago when I started adding weight measures to my recipes, I spent waaay too much time reading trusted recommendations, like King Arthur Flour and Cook’s Illustrated/America’s Test Kitchen. After hours of measuring and weighing, I landed on the ounces per cup (of flour and other dry ingredients) I achieve based on the way that I personally measure ingredients. For all-purpose flour, it’s 5 ounces (which used to be ATK’s recommendation for all-purpose flour, I’m not sure if that has changed). I find it almost impossible to get 4/4.25 ounces per cup, like KAF recommends, when volume measuring in a measuring cup. Because I know most of my readers measure by volume instead of weighing, it felt best to go with a weight measure (in this case, 5 ounces per cup of flour) that could easily be achieved by someone who was measuring by volume. Does that make sense any at all? Haha. Sorry to go off on a tangent. I find this stuff super nerdily interesting. While I personally think using a kitchen scale is the way to go for foolproof results (assuming a recipe has weight measures given and has been tested), I totally respect that others want as-foolproof-as-possible-recipes without having to use a kitchen scale, which is why I was really intentional about finding a weight-per-cup that was reasonable. When I’m remaking favorite recipes from my site and I don’t feel like pulling out my kitchen scale, I know the baking recipes will still work out because I measure the flour (and other dry ingredients) similar to how they would weigh if put on a kitchen scale without having to use fussy methods to measure them. Because I get this same conundrum/question a lot, my recommendation is to 1) use tested and trusted recipes 🙂 and 2) always use the cup measure and/or weight measure given in those recipes even if it’s different than how you would normally weigh or measure. For instance, when I make recipes from the KAF flour site, I always use THEIR weight measures even though they are lower than mine. Anyway, those are my thoughts! Sorry for the novel. 🙂
I was wondering the EXACT same thing! I, too, go by King Arthur’s measurements but you’re my go-to person for all baking recipes, and the difference in ounces has thrown me off a few times. You’re the reason I own a kitchen scale, and I consider your recipes to be trusted! I appreciate your lengthy explanation and am so glad I can sleep at night now knowing your answer 🙂
Perfectly answered– thank you!!
Thanks for the explanation Mel!
While we’re on this topic, is there a kitchen scale you would recommend? I have an Escali, and it has a hard time measuring amounts like .05 oz. ground cloves or .11 oz cinnamon ( a recipe from a local cafe).
This is the one I have and love. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00VAQFXWI/ref=oh_aui_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
However, I’ve never measured that small of an amount so I don’t know how/if it would handle it.
I’ve never had a swig sugar cookie…living in the midwest will do that (although we do have Culver’s 😉 )! I’ve seen copycat recipes and have been interested! I’ll try yours for sure! They would be fun for Valentine’s Day with cute heart sprinkles!
I’ve never heard of a Swig cookie. My son would love them! Sprinkles! Does the frosting form a crust on top? Can the cookies be stacked on a platter?
It forms a really light crust after sitting (at room temp or the fridge) for an hour or so. I think if the sprinkled/frosted sugar cookies have been refrigerated and the frosting firmed up a bit, they could be stacked (in one double layer – probably not more than that).
Your chocolate swig style cookies are one of my ultimate favorites too! They are divine! I tried my first real swig cookie this past November. Honestly, after having your chocolate ones, I was not that impressed. We got one of their chocolate frosted, one of their regular frosted and then a chocolate chip coconut, and the coconut was our favorite. Homemade are soooo much better! Looking forward to trying this! And I think I have been around since the sugar gems recipe! Love it!
Soooooo, will melted butter not work in this recipe?
Do you mean in place of the oil? I haven’t tried it, but it will probably affect the texture (although probably worth a try if you feel like experimenting).
Yes, and, thank you, for replying! I always like to use butter whenever possible for the awesome flavor.
Can you explain the “Swig” part? Is that a brand of sugar? Is it an acronym?
Good question, Clare – I should have explained that in the post. There’s a popular soda/cookie shop called SWIG (started in St. George, Utah, I think) that’s kind of taken the Utah/Idaho/California area by storm and now there are tons of knockoff shops (Sodalicious, among others) and most of them sell a pressed, frosted sugar cookie like this.
As soon as I read this I had to compare it with the swig knock off recipe I’ve been using for years and it’s the one from Mandy you referenced above ha! I like that you use sour cream instead of water in your dough, and the frosting is definitely different, I have no doubt yours will be amazing! So these will be made soon!