Soft and Chewy Cut Out Sugar Cookies
If your ideal sugar cookie is chewy and soft, flavorful but not too sweet, holds it's shape and is easy to work with, keep reading because this recipe is for you!
Ingredients
Sugar Cookies
- 6 oz salted butter (still cold, but just soft enough to make small dent when pressing firmly on it) (12 tbsp)
- 2 oz cream cheese (cold) (4 tbsp)
- 10.5 oz granulated sugar (1 ½ cups)
- 1 egg plus 1 egg yolk
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1.5 tsp almond extract
- 14.8 oz all purpose flour (3.5 cups)
- ½ tsp salt
- 40 grams cornstarch (1/3 cup)
Vanilla Almond Sugar Cookie Buttercream
- 12 oz softened salted butter (1 ½ cups)
- 17 oz powdered sugar (4 cups)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp almond extract
- 1 pinch salt (1/8 tsp ish)
- 1 tbsp french vanilla coffee creamer (Optional sub. heavy cream and add extra vanilla and almond extract to taste)
Instructions
Sugar Cookies
- If using the no chill method, preheat oven to 350° and line two baking pans with silicone mats (or parchment paper). If you plan on chilling the dough, preheat the oven and prep pans just before rolling out dough and cutting shapes.
- In a medium sized bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and cornstarch. Set aside.
- Beat the butter in a large sized bowl using an electric mixer until butter has begun to evenly spread around the sides. Add in cream cheese and mix just until combined. Scrape down the bowl, and repeat.
- Add in granulated sugar, and mix until well combined scraping down the sides of the bowl and beater as you go. Do not continue mixing to make it light and fluffy.
- Mix in the egg and egg yolk, and beat until incorporated. Add in extracts and mix them in as well, once again scraping the bowl to ensure even mixing.
- With the mixer on a low speed, slowly add in the flour mixture, and allow dough to come together until no dry ingredient streaks are remaining. Stop the mixer, scrape down the bowl and beater, and beat for another several seconds on medium speed.
- If chilling, divide the dough in two pieces and press each half into a 1 inch thick disk or square, and then wrap in saran wrap. Place the dough in the fridge for two hours.
- Lightly flour your work surface and your dough, and roll out half of your dough out until it's 3/8 inch thick. Every several rolls or so, pick the dough up and swipe your hand across the back of it and the counter to check for adequate flour amounts to prevent sticking. Use minimal flour, just enough to prevent dough from sticking to the counter and rolling pin. Dip cookie cutter in flour every other cut to prevent sticking as well.
- Cut out as many cookies as you can from your first roll out, and place them on to the prepared baking sheets with 1" of space minimum. Squish together the scraps in saran wrap and place them back in the fridge while you roll out the second half of the dough.
- Once you've cut shapes from the second half, squish together remaining scraps of dough from both halves to re-roll. Continue rolling the dough, cutting shapes, and squishing together scraps until no dough remains. (Try not to knead the dough together when working with the scraps, but instead squish it and pull the seams to the backside. The goal is to work the dough the least amount possible.)
- For the most even bake, bake one tray at a time on the center rack for 13-16 minutes, or until the tops of the cookies are no longer shiny, but instead are an eggshell/matte finish. Do not bake cookies to the point of browning because it will dry them out. (You can bake multiple trays at a time, but run the risk of cookies baking less evenly. If you choose to do multiples, make sure to rotate trays around halfway through.)
- Allow cookies to cool completely before frosting. Store in an airtight container.
Vanilla Almond Buttercream
- Beat room temperature butter in the bowl of an electric mixer on medium high for 1 minutes. Scrape down the bowl and add vanilla and almond extract, and beat for another 3-5 minutes until light and fluffy.
- With the mixer on a low speed, slowly pour in the powdered sugar along with the pinch of salt. Once the dry ingredients have been incorporated, turn the mixer up to medium high and beat for 5 more minutes.
- Turn the mixer on low, pour in the coffee creamer (or heavy cream). Stir until combined, and then allow the mixer to run on a low speed for another 5 minutes remove the majority of the air bubbles. (For optimal decorating texture, allow finished buttercream to thoroughly chill in the fridge, and then rewhip it until smooth but still slightly chilled.)
- Frost cookies in your preferred method, and eat within 3 days. Store in an airtight container. Enjoy!