A super soft sugar cookie recipe that is a tried and true favorite. Soft and chewy sugar cookies bake up fluffy then are topped with buttercream frosting for any holiday or party!
Soft and Chewy Sugar Cookies
I’ve been using this delicious sugar cookie recipe for several years, and these really are the best sugar cookies with a super soft, fluffy and moist texture! If you love soft sugar cookies, try brown sugar cookies, copycat Swig cookies and sugar cookie truffles.
This recipe reminds me of bakery-style Lofthouse cookies my mom bought as a kid, but better! It’s one of my tried and true cookie recipes that is a big family favorite.
Ingredients for Soft Sugar Cookies
I’ve tried numerous ingredient combinations for sugar cookies and 2 secret ingredients for the best soft cookies are sour cream and butter!
Find the printable recipe with specific measurements below.
- Unsalted butter and sour cream: Sour cream helps make them super soft and moist, while softened butter makes the outside edges crispy.
- Sugar: A MUST for sugar cookies that adds sweetness and texture!
- Large eggs: Eggs bind and help the dough hold shape.
- Extract: Vanilla extract for rich flavor and lemon or almond extract for additional taste.
- Baking staples: All-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt add structure and gives the sugar cookies lift and rise.
Variations
There are so many ways to make these soft sugar cookies your own!
- Sugar cookie bars: Super soft sugar cookies but in bar form with a sweet flavor, soft base and plenty of frosting and sprinkles.
- Celebrate the occasion: Cut out dough with shaped cookie cutters to match the holiday. Add food coloring to the frosting and festive sprinkles on top.
- Skip the frosting: Roll cookies in colored sugar, granulated sugar or even cinnamon sugar before baking. Fold multi-colored jimmies into the dough like I do in funfetti cake mix cookie recipe.
- No cutting out: Make my no roll drop sugar cookies!
- Half batch. This recipe makes bout 2-3 dozen cookies, so you can easily cut it in half to make less. Or store half of dough in freezer to make fruit pizza.
How to Make Soft Sugar Cookies
The first thing everyone looks for in a sugar cookie is the softness then the flavor, these have both!
- Make sugar cookie dough: In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar.Add in eggs, extracts and sour cream then mix until combined. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Slowly add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Mix just until combined.
- Chill: Split dough in two and place in saran wrap dusted with powdered sugar. Refrigerate dough for 1-2 hours.
- Roll dough: Roll out dough on a baker’s mat or parchment paper to about 1/4″ thick. Add up to another 1/4 cup flour if dough is still sticky.
- Cut into shapes: Cut the cookie dough with a cookie cutter that has been dipped into flour.
- Bake: Bake at 350°F for 8-9 minutes, until edges are slightly golden.
- Cool then frost: Allow cookies to cool on pan for 2 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack.
Tips for the Best Sugar Cookie Recipe
Here are some extra tips to help you make the softest cookies!
- Don’t overmix. Mix the dough until just combined. Over mixing causes them to dry out, and your cookies won’t be as soft and fluffy.
- Chill the dough. Refrigerate dough for at least 1 to 2 hours before cutting shapes to prevent spread in the oven. Just like my easy butter cookies you can also make it a day or two ahead of time.
- Thickness. I like to roll my dough out about 1/4 inch thick. It gives the cookies the perfect width and makes them rise beautifully in the oven.
- Perfectly shaped cookies: Roll out your dough on a baking mat or between two pieces of parchment paper (so you don’t have to peel up the shapes) then dust cookie cutters with powdered sugar or flour and cut out perfectly shaped cookies.
- Cool before frosting. As tempting as it is, let them cool completely before frosting the tops. If they are still warm, the frosting can melt and change texture.
Decorating Soft Sugar Cookies
I love to top these cookies with lots of frosting and sprinkles!
- Buttercream frosting: A light and fluffy buttercream frosting is the perfect compliment. A simple vanilla frosting also tastes great.
- Cream cheese frosting: If you like a tangier frosting, this is a favorite. You will need to refrigerate the cookies due to the addition of the cream cheese. You could also use a sour cream frosting.
- Sugar cookie icing: I especially love using this icing when making Christmas sugar cookies. It’s perfect for decorating, has a beautiful shine and is a bit easier than a royal icing.
Make Ahead and Freezing
- Make ahead: Sugar cookie dough can also be made ahead and kept frozen for up to 3 months. Just wrap the dough in plastic wrap and then stick in a freezer zip lock. Thaw for 2 hours at room temperature to soften before rolling out. You can also keep dough in the fridge and use with 2-3 days.
- Store: These cookies will keep for about 3 weeks, if stored in an airtight container at room temperature.
- Freeze: Store them with or without frosting in the freezer. Just wrap them in plastic wrap and place in a zip top bag for up to 3 months. Just be sure to freeze them the same day you bake them.
More soft cookie recipes include cream cheese cookies recipe, snickerdoodle cookies, gooey butter cookies and chocolate crinkle cookies!
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Sugar Cookies
Video
Equipment
- Cookie Sheet
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter , at room temp
- 1 ¾ cups granulated sugar
- 2 eggs , at room temp
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon lemon or almond extract , whichever flavor you prefer
- 1 cup sour cream
- 5 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
Buttercream frosting:
- ¾ cup butter
- 3 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 3-4 Tablespoons heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
For the cookies:
- Cream sugar and butter. In a large bowl, mix together 1 cup butter and 1 3/4 cup granulated sugar. Beat until creamy. Add in 2 eggs, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1/4 teaspoon lemon extract and 1 cup sour cream and mix together until combined.
- Dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, mix together 5 1/2 cups flour, 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda, 1 teaspoon baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Slowly add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Mix just until combined.
- Chill dough. Split dough in two and press flat in saran wrap (this will make it easier to roll out later). Refrigerate dough for 1-2 hours.
- Cut-out cookies. Once dough has chilled, preheat oven to 350°F. Roll out dough on a baker's mat to about 1/4" thick. Add up to another 1/4 cup flour if dough is still sticky. Cut with floured cookie cutter.
- Bake. Bake for 8-9 minutes, until edges are slightly golden. Then allow to cool on pan for 2 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack.
For the Frosting:
- Combine. For the buttercream, combine 3/4 cup butter, 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar, 3-4 Tablespoons heavy cream and 1 teaspoon vanilla in a medium-sized bowl. Feel free to add in food coloring. Mix with an electric mixer until smooth.
- Frost. Frost buttercream on cooled cookies and serve. :)
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition provided is an estimate. It will vary based on specific ingredients used.
Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to give it a star rating below!
Recipe FAQs
It is a balancing act! You don’t want to have too much butter because that will make your cookies to spread when baked. Chilling your cookies is also helpful.
I don’t recommend ever opening the oven, but getting a closer look and feel with a touch from the spatula, you can tell if they still need a few extra minutes. Looking through the glass and using an oven light this will help to see
Usually if the cookie dough is dry or crumbly it usually means the dough was over mixed or too much dry ingredients are added in the dough. To reverse this process add in one to two tablespoons liquid. Use either water, milk, or softened butter to help.
You will want to make sure that the butter is not too soft but also not melted when you are mixing. Once the cookies are baked, you can use a circular cookie cutter and place around the sugar cookie. In a circular motion, circle to the cookie a few times until it begins to make a perfect circle shape.
Categorized as: American, Birthdays, Christmas, Cookies, Desserts, Freezer-Friendly, Frosted Cookies, Holiday Cookies, Kid-Friendly, Nut-Free, Valentine's Day, Vegetarian
Jamielyn Nye is the founder and recipe creator at I Heart Naptime. She is the author of the I Heart Naptime Cookbook and shares easy family-friendly recipes and desserts for every occasion.
So yummy! A good tip too, is to roll out the dough to the size of your baking sheet and press the cookie cutters right on the sheet. Pull up the excess dough and VOILA! No transferring necessary.
Great idea Jamie, thanks for commenting! :)
I made these cookies for the Fourth of July and let me tell you that they were great! And I did not have time to make the frosting! We ate them plain and they were good! I added 1 teaspoon of vanilla and 1/8 ts almond and 1/8 ts lemon extract! Yummy! Oh and I stuck my dough in the freezer for a couple minutes after I cut them out and they held their shape perfectly! Thanks for a great recipe!
Oh I am so happy they turned out well for you! I tried recipes for years and was very happy with this sugar cookie recipe! Hope you had a fun Fourth of July! :)
just wondering how many Cookies roughly this batch would make ??
thankyou
Hi Lili! Depending on how big the cookie cutter is, I’d say about 2-3 dozen.
Those are delicious! I’ll be sure to make them for my brother’s birthday!
They are so soft and yummy! Hope you enjoy them Julia!
Wow this looks great!
But do you know of a good substitute for sour cream? Not many supermarkets in my area still carry sour cream so it’s a bit difficult to find, and I’m new to baking sugar cookies so I don’t know what I could use instead :)
Hi Ericka! The sour cream is definitely what makes these sugar cookies so soft. I haven’t tried substituting the sour cream in this recipe, but I have heard that you can substitute the sour cream for plain yogurt!
My heart cookies are getting rave reviews today, thanks to your recipe and tips! Thanks so much – keeper!
Oh I’m so glad! Thanks for stopping by again to leave a comment! I’m happy everyone loved them! :)
can i make this without a mixer?
I’ve made it with both my Kitchen Aid and hand mixer and it works great. I’ve never tried it without a mixer. It should work just fine but it might be a little more difficult!
I have used aluminum foil under cookies for about 20 years before parchment was readily available. This is the same technique I use to make pieces of gingerbread for gingerbread houses as well.
Seriously the best sugar cookie I have ever made. Thanks
You just made my day! Thanks for commenting Shannon! :)
How many cookies does this yield? I need 4 dozen.
It should be around 2-3 dozen depending on the size of shapes you make! :) I would double the recipe if you need 4 dozen just to be safe!
Love these! I was wondering if you can use vanilla extract instead of the lemon or almond? Thanks!
Yes, you can use vanilla! :)
I am making these cookies for my boyfriend today and just made up the dough. Wowww the dough itself is delicious!!!! Can’t wait to see what they look like when they are done!(: Thanks so much!
Hi! Just made these cookies! They are delicious with the cream cheese frosting. Do they need to go in the fridge because of the frosting??
Hi Jen! If people will be eating them within a few hours, they will be fine! I usually refrigerate the leftovers! :)
Hi,
Instead of Almond or Lemon extract can I use Vanilla? Or is almond a better choice?
Thanks(:
We made these today and they’re great! Maybe the tinest bit dry? But the kids love them. I used butter, and didn’t have lemon or almond so used more vanilla- the flavor is great!
I’m glad you liked them Shay! I have made these with both butter and margarine…the ones with margarine always turn out softer! So maybe if you want them less dry, you could try that! :)
Yes, you can use vanilla. I like using almond and lemon, but it will work with both! :)
I read a lot of the questions and still haven’t figured this out.Have you ever used plain all purpose flour in these? Do you think it would be fine?
Hi Ronetta! I use all purpose flour in the dough every time. I just use the powdered sugar to help cut the shapes! Hope that helps! :)
My batter seems very sticky, is this normal?!
Hi Danielle! If it’s still sticky, try adding a little more flour, until you reach a good consistency. Everyone measure flour differently so it may not have been enough. Hope that helps! xo
I saw that you can freeze the cookie dough, but wasn’t sure about the baked cookies? How do they taste after coming to room temperature after being frozen?
You can definitely freeze them after you bake them, they might be a little harder since they aren’t fresh! Just be sure to freeze them that day! :)
I was wondering if I can use Royal icing frosting on those cookies?
Yes, it should work great! :)
They look yummy. I have never made cookies with sour cream before. The cream frosting sounds yum. It does not say how many it makes. I am guessing with 5 1/2 cups of flower it should make alot. Thanks for sharing will have to give this ago.
I love using sour cream in my sugar cookies, it makes them super soft and moist! :) It should make about 2 dozen depending on how big your shapes are! :)
I have a nearly identical recipe. I do not add almond or lemon extract. Instead of frosting our cookies, my girls and I sprinkle them with a cinnamon/sugar mixt before baking. The friend I got the recipe from said her grandma made these and served them for breakfast (w/o frosting) and they put jelly on before eating. These cookies are very good. I have always used butter.
The cinnamon sugar mix sounds delicious Nancy! I’ll have to give it a try!