Crave-Worthy Sugar Cookies
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These are the best sugar cookies: rich and buttery in flavor with a crisp exterior and soft interior.
These sugar cookies are truly crave-worthy: buttery and rich in flavor with a crisp exterior and soft interior. I discovered this recipe years ago on the King Arthur Flour website, and it’s been my go-to sugar cookie recipe ever since. So, what makes these sugar cookies unique? First, they’re made with cream cheese in addition to butter, creating a perfect taste and tender texture without the need for vegetable shortening. Second, they’re made with a touch of almond extract, which lightly perfumes the cookies with the unmistakable scent of almond.
If you’re feeling festive and want to pull out your cookie cutters and frosting, check out my recipe for Christmas sugar cookies—perfect for shaping and decorating.
“Absolutely wonderful! The only thing stopping me from baking these cookies every week is that I wouldn’t be able to stop eating them!”
What You’ll Need To Make Crave-Worthy Sugar Cookies
- All-Purpose Flour: Provides structure and stability to the cookies. Measure by spooning it into the measuring cup and leveling it off to ensure accuracy.
- Baking Powder And Baking Soda: Help the cookies rise and become tender.
- Butter: Add a rich flavor to the cookies.
- Cream Cheese: Contributes to a soft, tender texture.
- Sugar: The majority of the sugar sweetens the dough; a small portion creates a sweet, subtly crunchy coating for the cookie’s exterior.
- Vanilla Extract: Enhances the flavor of the cookies with its warm aromatic richness.
- Almond Extract: Adds a subtle, nutty flavor.
- Egg: Binds the ingredients together and adds moisture.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-By-Step Instructions
Begin by whisking the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda together in a bowl. Set aside.
Next, cream the butter, cream cheese, and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or use a hand mixer with beaters).
Add the vanilla and almond extracts.
Beat to combine, then add the egg.
Add the flour mixture to the batter.
Mix on low until the dough forms a cohesive mass. It will be a little sticky.
Pinch off tablespoons of dough and roll in a bowl of sugar.
Place the balls on a cookie sheet, then press them flat with a flat-bottomed glass.
Bake for about ten minutes, until lightly golden on the bottom but still very pale on top. Cool the cookies for a few minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely. The cookies are best enjoyed fresh on the day they are made.
How To Freeze Sugar Cookies
If you don’t want to bake all the cookies at once, the dough can be frozen for up to 3 months. To freeze, roll the dough into balls, let set in a single layer on a baking sheet in the freezer, then place in a sealable bag and press out as much air as possible. When ready to bake, thaw them in the fridge until they are soft enough to flatten, and then bake.
To freeze after baking, let the cookies cool completely and store in an airtight container, separating layers with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Before serving, remove the cookies from the container and let them come to room temperature.
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Crave-Worthy Sugar Cookies
These are the best sugar cookies: rich and buttery in flavor with a crisp exterior and soft interior.
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off with back edge of knife
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 2 oz (¼ cup) cream cheese
- 1¼ cup sugar, plus ½ cup more for rolling cookies
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract
- 1 large egg
Instructions
- Set racks in middle of oven and preheat to 375°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy, a few minutes. Beat in the vanilla and almond extracts. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula and beat in the egg. Scrape down the bowl again, then add the flour mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough comes together into a cohesive mass. It will be a little sticky.
- Place the remaining ½ cup cup sugar in a shallow bowl. Moisten your hands so the dough doesn't stick to them. Pinch off the dough by tablespoonfuls, shape into rough balls (see note below), roll in the sugar to coat, and place 2-inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Using a flat-bottomed glass, flatten the cookies to ¼-inch thick. Bake for 10 minutes, rotating the pans from top to bottom and front to back midway through to ensure even cooking. The cookies will turn golden on the bottom but remain pale on top. Cool on the pan for a few minutes, then transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. (Cover the bowl with a damp dish towel to keep the dough moist between batches.)
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The Cookie Dough can be Frozen for up to 3 Months: Roll the dough into balls, let set on a baking sheet in the freezer, then place in a sealable bag and press out as much air as possible. When ready to bake, thaw them in the fridge until they are soft enough to flatten, and then bake. To Freeze After Baking: Let the cookies cool completely and store in an airtight container separating layers with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Before serving, remove the cookies from the container and let them come to room temperature.
Nutrition Information
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- Serving size: 2 cookies
- Calories: 193
- Fat: 9 g
- Saturated fat: 5 g
- Carbohydrates: 27 g
- Sugar: 15 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Sodium: 104 mg
- Cholesterol: 31 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Didn’t have cream cheese so I substituted plain goat cheese. Also added cranberries, candied ginger and white chocolate chips for a Fall twist. I’d give it 👍🏻👍🏻.😀
I substituted 1/2 tsp of ground cardamom for the almond extract- delicious! Thanks for another wonderful recipe.
These were so easy to make and I added a bit more vanilla than the recipe called for for personal preference. Always trust your recipes Jen! Much love!
Could I make these as cookie bars? I was thinking of adding your buttercream frosting to the top. Any suggestions for baking these as bars?
Hi Sarah, I suppose you could. I’d use the timing for these Blondies (but keep a close eye on them as I’m not certain the timing will be exactly the same). Please LMK how they turn out if you try it!
Did these turn out good as bars?
Tried these for the first time and I think they are awesome! I shall definitely be making more.
These sugar cookies are amazing! They are not overly sweet, even rolled in sugar, and the touch of almond puts them over the top. For my oven, rotating the pans as suggested was critical. Even then, one pan was done before the other. Thank you Jenn, for making my family happy, again.
I’m about to make these for a friend’s son who is allergic to tree nuts of which almond is one I think. Can I just leave it out or do I need to sub in that amount of vanilla? Thanks!
I would just use more vanilla. Hope the recipient enjoys! 🙂
Hi Jenn,
Just wanted you to know he loved them and ate the 5 dozen in less than a week. Lol. I just subbed in the extra vanilla instead of the almond extract.
Clearly he enjoyed them! So glad 🙂
Could you send me the nutritional value of these cookies. Thank you.
Hi Deborah, I just added the info to the recipe. Hope you enjoy the cookies!
Best Christmas cookies I’ve ever made and I accidentally put in 1 t of almond extract instead of 1/4. We cut them into Christmas shapes and added some sprinkles. Thank you Jenn!
I am sugar cookie connoisseur. These were the BEST sugar cookies I have ever made! There is a little shop in town where I live that sells sugar cookies everyone talks about. These were as good as those! I frosted them with a wonderful buttercream frosting. Thank you for sharing it!
🙂