Rolled Sugar Cookies
If you're looking for an easy rolled sugar cookie recipe, I got you! They're soft, hold their shape really well, and are simple to make at any skill level. Feel free to decorate with melted chocolates or royal icing!
Servings: 20 2-inch cut out cookies
Calories: 106kcal
Equipment
- medium mixing bowl for dry ingredients
- large mixing bowl for cookie dough
- cookie cutters I used heart and bear cutters
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients:
- 1 ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
Wet Ingredients:
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract or paste
- 1 egg room temperature
Decoration (optional):
- royal icing or melted chocolates
Instructions
For the cookie dough:
- In a medium bowl, stir together all of the dry ingredients: 1 ¾ cup all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon cornstarch, 1 teaspoon baking powder, and ½ teaspoon fine sea salt.
- In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to cream the softened ½ cup unsalted butter and ½ cup granulated sugar until light and fluffy.
- Mix in 1 tablespoon vanilla and 1 egg until smooth.
- Dump in all of the dry ingredients. Fold using silicone spatula until no dry spots remains.
Roll out dough:
- Now, you will make a "parchment stack". The bottom layer will be a large piece of parchment paper, the cookie dough in the middle, then parchment paper on top. This will make rolling out the dough much easier + mess free.Lay large piece of parchment paper down on work surface. Plop on all of the cookie dough, then lay another piece of parchment on top of it. Use a rolling pin to roll out the dough into a large rectangle, until dough is about ¼-inch thick.
- Transfer parchment stack to a baking tray and freeze for about 15 minutes. This will make cutting out shapes easier.
Cut out & bake cookies:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F/177°C. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- This step will help loosen the cookie dough from the parchment paper layers. So when you cut out dough pieces, the dough doesn't stick to the paper and is easier to transfer to your lined baking tray.Peel off top parchment paper, then lightly stick it back on. Flip the entire parchment-cookie dough-parchment stack over so you can completely peel off the bottom parchment paper.
- Use cookie cutters to cut out desired shapes. Transfer cookies to baking sheets, about 2-3 inches apart. The cookies will not spread much while baking.Tip: Lightly flour your cookie cutter to minimize any sticking. When transferring cut-out cookies to your lined baking sheet, you can slide an offset spatula underneath the cookie to easily pick it up. If the dough is getting too soft, pop it back in the fridge or even the freezer for a few minutes.
- Knead together any dough scraps, roll out, and cut out more cookies.
- Bake for 11-13 minutes, or until edges are set and very lightly golden. Let cool on pan for about 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to fully cool.
- Decorate using royal icing or melted chocolates, and enjoy!
Video
Notes
Storage:
- Room temperature: Store cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- Freezing instructions:
- If you’d like to freeze the raw dough, you can actually freeze the entire parchment stack on a baking tray for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to bake, pull the parchment stack from the freezer, cut out shapes, and bake as usual. You may need to add 2-3 minutes to the baking time. This is a method I used to do as a pastry cook when I made batches of cut-out cookie dough at a time.
- If you'd like to freeze raw cut-out cookies, arrange them in a single layer on a lined baking sheet and freeze or 30 minutes to 1 hour. Once frozen, place them in an airtight container or Ziploc bag. Bake from frozen, adding 2-3 minutes to the baking time.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 cookie | Calories: 106kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 20mg | Sodium: 83mg | Potassium: 17mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 154IU | Calcium: 16mg | Iron: 1mg
