My Absolute Favorite Soft Christmas Sugar Cookies!

In this post, I’m gonna show you how to make my absolute favorite soft sugar cookies with cream cheese frosting.

Now, if you don’t want to use cookie cutters with this recipe, that is absolutely fine. You can use a cookie scoop, or you could just roll out the dough and cut it into bars. However you want to do it!

Prep time: 35 minutes (includes chilling)
Cook time: 10 minutes
Yields: Approx. 24-30 cookies (depending on cutter size)

Ingredients

The Cookies

• Butter: ¾ cup unsalted butter, softened.
• Sugar: ¾ cup granulated sugar.
• Egg: 1 large egg, room temperature.
• Extracts: 2 teaspoons vanilla extract AND ½ teaspoon almond extract.
• Flour: 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour.
• Leavening: ½ teaspoon baking powder.
• Salt: ¼ teaspoon salt.

The Cream Cheese Frosting

• Butter: ½ cup butter, softened.
• Cream Cheese: 8 oz cream cheese, softened.
• Vanilla: 1 teaspoon vanilla extract.
• Sugar: 3 to 4 cups powdered sugar (adjust for consistency).
• Optional: Food coloring, sprinkles, and edible glitter spray.

Instructions

1. Cream the Butter and Sugar: In a large bowl or stand mixer, beat the ¾ cup softened butter and ¾ cup granulated sugar on medium speed for about 2 minutes until light and fluffy.
2. Add Wet Ingredients: Add the egg, 2 teaspoons vanilla, and ½ teaspoon almond extract. Beat for 1 minute until well combined.
3. Mix Dry Ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
4. Combine: Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients, mixing on low/medium speed just until a soft dough forms. Note: The dough will be sticky and soft; this is normal.
5. Roll and Chill (Crucial Step): Divide the dough in half. Place a silicone baking mat (or parchment paper) directly onto a baking sheet. Lightly flour the mat, place half the dough on top, and roll it out to your desired thickness (about ¼ inch).
6. Firm Up: Place the baking sheet with the rolled-out dough into the freezer for 10 minutes (or fridge for 20 minutes). This makes cutting easier and prevents spreading.
7. Cut and Bake: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Remove dough from freezer. Cut shapes directly on the mat/tray. Peel away the excess dough scraps (save them to re-roll). Bake for 10 minutes.
8. Cool: Let cookies cool on the pan for a few minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool completely.
9. Make Frosting: Beat the ½ cup softened butter and 8 oz cream cheese until fluffy. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla and food coloring (if using). Gradually mix in powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, until you reach your desired piping or spreading consistency (usually 3-4 cups).
10. Decorate: Pipe or spread frosting onto cooled cookies. Top with sprinkles or edible glitter spray.

The Secret to Perfect Shapes (Don’t Skip This!)

Here is the trick to making sure your cookies don’t get distorted: Roll, then chill.

Because this dough is so soft, I like to put my silicone baking mat right on my cookie sheet, dust it with a little flour, put the dough on it, and roll it out right there. Then, take the whole tray and stick it in the freezer for about 10 minutes (or the fridge for 20).

We want the dough to firm up enough to cut. It is just a lot easier if you cut your cookies directly on the baking sheet so you don’t have to use a spatula to lift them up and move them. That moving part is what distorts the shape! Plus, chilling the dough stops them from spreading as much in the oven.

Check other Xmas Recipes:

• Classic Holiday Baking: Gingerbread Cookies Recipe
• Simple Mocktails That Look Fancy But Use Juice
• Peppermint Bark Candy (No-Bake)

Frosting Fun

While the cookies cool, we throw together a simple cream cheese frosting. It’s just softened butter, cream cheese, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Add the tiniest little bit of green food coloring if didn’t want it dark, just very light because we are going to jazz it up with sprinkles.

You can pipe the frosting on, or just spread it with a spoon. If you really want to make them fancy, grab some edible glitter spray. It gives it a little extra something, something.

If you like this recipe Explore more recipes

Soft Cut-Out Sugar Cookies & Cream Cheese Frosting

Recipe by Sana ReiCourse: DessertCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy

Servings

24

servings

Prep time

15

minutes

Cooking time

10

minutes

Calories

180

kcal

Chill Time

20

minutes

Total time

45

minutes

These cookies are soft, tender, and hold their shape perfectly if you follow the "roll then chill" method. The almond extract is the secret weapon for that bakery-style flavor!

Ingredients

• For the Cookies:

• ¾ cup (170g) Unsalted butter, softened

• ¾ cup (150g) Granulated sugar

• 1 Large egg, room temperature

• 2 tsp Vanilla extract

• ½ tsp Almond extract

• 2 ¼ cups (281g) All-purpose flour

• ½ tsp Baking powder

• ¼ tsp Salt

• For the Frosting:

• ½ cup (113g) Unsalted butter, softened

• 8 oz (226g) Cream cheese, softened

• 1 tsp Vanilla extract

• 3–4 cups (360g–480g) Powdered sugar

• Food coloring (optional)

• Sprinkles (optional)

Directions

• Cream Butter & Sugar: In a stand mixer or large bowl, beat ¾ cup softened butter and ¾ cup granulated sugar on medium speed for 2 minutes until light and fluffy.
• Add Wet Ingredients: Add the egg, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, and ½ teaspoon almond extract. Beat on medium speed for 1 minute.
• Add Dry Ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually add this to the wet mixture, mixing on medium speed until a soft dough forms.
• Roll Out: Place a silicone baking mat or parchment paper onto a baking sheet. Dust lightly with flour. Take half of the dough, place it on the mat, and roll it out to about ¼-inch thickness.
• Chill: Place the baking sheet with the rolled dough into the freezer for 10 minutes (or refrigerator for 20 minutes) to firm up.
• Preheat: While dough chills, preheat oven to 350°F (177°C).
• Cut Shapes: Remove tray from freezer. Use cookie cutters to cut shapes directly on the tray. Peel away the excess scrap dough (re-roll scraps for the next batch). Leave the cookie shapes on the tray spaced about 1 inch apart.
• Bake: Bake for roughly 10 minutes. The edges should be set but not dark brown.
• Cool: Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Make Frosting: In a clean mixer bowl, beat ½ cup softened butter and 8 oz cream cheese until smooth and fluffy. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla and food coloring (if using).
• Finish Frosting: Gradually add powdered sugar (3 to 4 cups) while mixing until you reach your desired consistency.
• Decorate: Pipe onto cooled cookies and top with sprinkles or edible glitter spray.

Notes

• Almond Extract: You can leave this out, but it gives the cookies a depth of flavor that is much better than plain vanilla.
• Texture Warning: This dough is sticky and soft, not firm like traditional dough. This ensures a soft cookie!
• Chilling Strategy: Cutting the cookies directly on the baking sheet after chilling prevents you from having to lift soft dough with a spatula, which can distort the shapes.
• No Cutters? No problem. This dough makes great drop cookies. Use a cookie scoop, drop them on the pan, flatten slightly, and bake.
• Storage: Store frosted cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days (due to the cream cheese frosting).