The BEST Sugar Cookies – Nut Free
Everyone needs a good sugar cookie recipe. Scratch that. You don’t need a good sugar cookie recipe. You need the BEST sugar cookie recipe. And so that’s what I’m sharing today. Trust me, take one bite and you’ll agree that these are the BEST sugar cookies ever!
Why you’ll love them
There’s just something about sugar cookies that screams holiday. These simple to bake cookies can be all dolled up with royal icing, buttercream, and sprinkles to make a jaw-dropping cookie display. They take any cookie platter from ho-hum to A-MA-ZING! And while some bakers are true artists and spend hours (at least it seems to me they must) decorating their cookies, you don’t have to while away an entire afternoon for beautiful cookies. Trust me, for the last twenty years I’ve been baking with my kids.
But you don’t even have to decorate these if you don’t want to. These sugar cookies are delicious enough that they don’t need frosting. Simply sprinkle some colored sugar on the cookies before baking for a festive flair that’s super simple.
This sugar cookie recipe is easy to bake. The batter comes together with simple pantry ingredients: flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, and vanilla. Add some butter and an egg and you’re good to go. These are the kinds of things that most people have on hand, especially at the holidays.
This dough is also pretty easy to work with. If you let it chill for about an hour, it’s the perfect temperature to roll and cut. And you don’t need to roll this dough super thin. In fact, one of the things that makes these sugar cookies the best is that they are soft, chewy, and slightly thick in the center. That means they are perfect for frosting.
And once you master this recipe, you can use it all year long. No need to wait for the holidays. Sugar cookies are perfect for Valentine’s Day, Easter, Halloween, and just because. Just pick up some new cookie cutters and you’ll have an impressive dessert for every occasion. (I love stainless steel cookie cutters for cleanly cutting dough, and this set features a plastic top edge to make cutting a breeze.)
You can also customize this recipe by adding your favorite flavor. My recipe suggests the addition of butter extract. But you can use lemon, orange, maple, or peppermint, or your favorite
How to make the BEST sugar cookies
The first step in making sugar cookies is to whisk together 2 ¼ cups flour, ½ teaspoon baking powder, and ½ teaspoon salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
Then, in a large bowl, using a handheld or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat ¾ softened butter and ¾ cup sugar together on high speed until completely smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add 1 egg, 2 teaspoons vanilla, and ¼-½ teaspoon of butter extract (if using) and beat on high speed until combined, about 1 minute. Be sure to scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl and beat again for best results.
Now it’s time to add the dry sugar cookie ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix on low until combined. The dough will be a soft and firm up as it cools in the refrigerator. But if it seems too soft and/or sticky for rolling, add 1 more tablespoon of flour.
Divide the sugar cookie dough into 2 equal parts and flatten into a disc. Wrap each disc in parchment paper or plastic wrap, cover and refrigerate for 1-2 hours (or up to 2 days). If you refrigerate for longer than 2 hours, you will need to let the dough rest and come back to room temperature before rolling. Also, only remove one disc from the fridge at a time to keep the dough properly chilled.
Once the sugar cookie dough is chilled, preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2-3 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
Remove on disc of dough from fridge and on a lightly floured surface using a floured rolling pin, roll dough out to 1/4 inch thickness. It can be any shape. Using a cookie cutter dipped in flour, cut the dough into desired shapes. Try to place cookies close together to minimize scraps and get the most cookies per roll as possible.
Re-roll the remaining dough and continue cutting until all is used. Repeat with 2nd piece of dough. It doesn’t seem like a lot of dough when you start, but by gathering and re-rolling the scraps you can get a lot of cookies out of this recipe.
Arrange the cut cookies on parchment lined baking sheets about 3 inches apart. Cookies will puff up and spread slightly when baked.
Bake sugar cookies in a 350 degree preheated oven for 11-12 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges, rotating the baking sheet halfway through bake time.
After you remove the sugar cookies from the oven, allow them to cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating.
Decorate the cooled cookies with royal icing or easy buttercream icing. This is my favorite royal icing recipe. (It’s easier than it looks. And Sally has some great tips to make it as easy as possible.) I like to decorate right on the baking sheets. This minimizes the mess (the baking sheet is still covered in parchment) and allows me to pop the sheets in the fridge to quicken the setting time, if necessary.
Store plain or decorated sugar cookies at room temperature covered in a airtight container for about 5 days. You can also keep them in fridge for a longer shelf life. In northern PA I usually keep my cookie tins in my garage during the Christmas season. It’s about fridge temperature out there.
Enjoy!
You can enjoy the sugar cookies right away or wait until the icing sets to eat them. Either way is delicious.
Once the icing has set, these cookies are great for gifting or for mailing. Simply place a piece of parchment paper in between layers of cookies and they will hold up perfectly.
To make festive sugar cookies, use a gel food coloring to tint the icing a variety of colors. We usually do red, green, yellow, blue, white, and brown. But obviously, you can pick whatever colors work best with your cookies.
You can also freeze plain or decorated sugar cookies freeze for up to 3 months. Wait for the icing to set completely, then layer between sheets of parchment paper in a freezer-friendly container. Thaw in the refrigerator or at room temperature.
You can also freeze the cookie dough for up to 3 months before rolling it out. Prepare the dough through step 4 and place in a freezer safe bag. To thaw, thaw the disks in the refrigerator, then bring to room temperature for about 1 hour. Roll out the dough as directed in step 4, then chill rolled out dough in the refrigerator for 45 minutes – 1 hour before cutting into shapes and baking.
Sugar cookies look beautiful as part of a holiday cookie display. They also make wonderful gifts. Serve with coffee, tea, or milk.
More nut free cookie recipes
And don’t forget to grab your FREE Nut Free Cookie Guide.
This free guide includes 7 delicious cooke recipes:
- Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
- Oreo Brookie Bars
- Sunflower Butter Cookie Cups
- Chocolate Heath Bar Cookies
- Cookie Butter Cookies
- Lemon Bars
It’s perfect for holiday baking.
Download your FREE Nut Free Cookie guide today!
You might also love these maple shortbread cookies or these black and white cookies.
Off we go!
The BEST Sugar Cookies (Nut Free)
Equipment
- Mixing bowls
- Mixer
- Cookie Sheets
- Parchment paper
- Rolling Pin
- Cookie Cutters
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour plus more as needed for rolling and work surface
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¾ cup unsalted butter 1 1/2 sticks, softened to room temperature
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 large egg at room temperature
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- ¼ or ½ teaspoon butter extract optional, but makes the flavor amazing*
- Royal icing or Easy Buttercream frosting
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together 2 ¼ cups flour, ½ teaspoon baking powder, and ½ teaspoon salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, using a handheld or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat ¾ softened butter and ¾ cup sugar together on high speed until completely smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add 1 egg, 2 teaspoons vanilla, and ¼-½ teaspoon of butter extract (if using) and beat on high speed until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl and beat again to combine.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix on low until combined. The dough will be a soft, but if it seems too soft and/or sticky for rolling, add 1 more tablespoon of flour.
- Divide the sugar cookie dough into 2 equal parts and flatter into a disc. Wrap each disc in parchment paper or plastic wrap. Cover and refrigerate for 1-2 hours (or up to 2 days).
- Once the sugar cookie dough is chilled, preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2-3 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Remove on disc of dough from fridge and on a lightly floured surface using a floured rolling pin, roll dough out to 1/4 inch thickness. It can be any shape. Using a cookie cutter dipped in flour, cut the dough into shapes.
- Re-roll the remaining dough and continue cutting until all is used. Repeat with 2nd piece of dough.***
- Arrange cookies on baking sheets 3 inches apart.
- Bake in preheated oven for 11-12 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges, rotating the baking sheet halfway through bake time.
- Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating.
- Decorate the cooled cookies with royal icing or easy buttercream icing.
- Enjoy cookies right away or wait until the icing sets to serve them. Once the icing has set, these cookies are great for gifting or for sending. Plain or decorated cookies stay soft for about 5 days when covered tightly at room temperature. For longer storage, cover and refrigerate for up to 10 days.
Notes
***It doesn’t seem like a lot of dough, but you get a lot of cookies from the dough scraps you re-roll.
Feel free to tint icing with gel food coloring and sprinkles if desired.
You don’t have to cover the decorated cookies as you wait for the icing to set.
I like to decorate the cookies directly on a baking sheet. This cuts down on the mess and makes it easy to stick the entire baking sheet in the refrigerator to help speed up the icing setting.
Plain or decorated sugar cookies freeze well up to 3 months. Wait for the icing to set completely before layering between sheets of parchment paper in a freezer-friendly container. To thaw, thaw in the refrigerator or at room temperature.
You can also freeze the cookie dough for up to 3 months before rolling it out. Prepare the dough through step 3, divide in half, flatten both halves into a disk wrap each in plastic wrap, then freeze. To thaw, thaw the disks in the refrigerator, then bring to room temperature for about 1 hour. Roll out the dough as directed in step 4, then chill rolled out dough in the refrigerator for 45 minutes – 1 hour before cutting into shapes and baking.
