Soft Earl Grey Sugar Cookies

5 from 19 votes

Incredibly soft, melt-in-your-mouth Earl Grey sugar cookies! The cookie dough is made in less than 10 minutes and is full of fresh Earl Grey flavor.

Prep Time10

Cook Time9

Chill time30

Total Time49

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: cookies

Calories: 218kcal

Get Recipe Ingredients

Add ½ cup unsalted butter and 2 tablespoons earl grey tea leaves into a saucepan and heat until melted. Alternatively, melt in a microwave-safe bowl in 15-second intervals. Let fully cool.
In a large bowl, use silicone spatula to mix melted earl grey-infused butter, ½ cup granulated sugar, and ¼ cup light or dark brown sugar until combined.
Mix in 1 egg and 1 tablespoon vanilla until smooth.
Add in all of the dry ingredients: 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, and ½ teaspoon table salt. Mix until no dry spots remain.
Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30-60 minutes, or up to 2 days.
Tip: When I do longer chill times, I like to pre-scoop cookie dough into balls, closely line them on a parchment tray, and chill them. When it's time to bake, I break off the dough balls, roll them in sugar, and bake. Pre-scooping is easier on my hands and wrists than working with chilled, firmer dough.

Preheat oven to 325°F/163°C and line two baking trays with parchment paper.
In a small bowl or plate, add 4 tablespoons granulated sugar for rolling the dough.
Use cookie dough scoop to gather dough (2-3 tablespoons). Roll into granulated sugar and place on lined baking tray, spacing cookies about 3-4 inches apart.
Bake for 9-11 minutes, or until edges are slightly golden brown and set. Cool cookies on pan for 5 minutes, then transfer cookies to wire rack to cool completely. Enjoy!
TIP: For rounder cookies, place a large circular cutter or mug on top of a freshly baked, warm cookie. Move it around in a circular motion until your cookie is perfectly round! This step is totally optional and purely for plating purposes! :)

Baking tip:

Weigh your ingredients! One of my favorite kitchen tools is a kitchen scale because it’s more accurate than measuring by volume. If you use cups, spoon the flour in gently, then level it with a knife or spatula.

Storage instructions:

Room temperature: Store cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Freezing instructions: Store cooled cookies in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. You can also freeze cookie dough balls for up to 3 months and bake from frozen, adding 2-3 minutes to the bake time.
Reheating instructions: Allow frozen (already baked) cookies to thaw at room temperature for about 10 minutes. Or, reheat in the microwave at 10-second intervals.