Meet Your New Go-To Sugar Cookie Recipe (2024)

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Molly Yeh

Molly Yeh

Molly Yeh is the star of Food Network’s series Girl Meets Farm, which first appeared in June 2018 and is currently in its 10th season. Girl Meets Farm celebrates the very best of Molly’s food, with recipes inspired by her Jewish and Chinese heritage and a taste of the Midwest. In 2019, Molly was nominated for both a James Beard Foundation Media Award for “Outstanding Personality/Host” and a daytime Emmy Award for “Outstanding Culinary Host.” Molly is also the creator of the critically-acclaimed and highly popular food and lifestyle brand, mynameisyeh.com and has written three cookbooks: Molly On The Range: Recipes and Stories from an Unlikely Life on a Farm, Yogurt by Short Stack Editions, and Home Is Where The Eggs Are: Farmhouse Food for the People You Love Most.

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updated Jun 23, 2023

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Meet Your New Go-To Sugar Cookie Recipe (1)

The combination of almond and lemon makes these intensely thick and soft treats taste like nostalgic bliss, and some almond flour in the dough gives them a lovely dense texture.

Serves15Makes30 (2-inch) cookies

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Meet Your New Go-To Sugar Cookie Recipe (2)

This recipe is a part of Secret Family Cookies — a dozen recipes from our favorite bakers, inspired by the people who make them feel at home. Get all the amazing cookies here.

Welcome to our family’s sugar cookie recipe! What’s awesome about these cookies is that they’re super thick, really soft, and you don’t have to refrigerate the dough. The combination of almond and lemon makes them taste like the bakery cookies of my youth, and some almond flour in the dough gives them a pleasantly dense texture. The two tricks to achieving the best texture are to roll out the dough really thick and take them out of the oven when they are just starting to think about turning brown but haven’t yet.

This is our go-to Christmas cookie, Hanukkah cookie, Halloween cat cookie, Valentine’s Day heart cookie, the cookie I’ll make with Bernie to bring to school on her birthday, and passport-shaped cookie in the event I have to try and sweet talk someone at the passport office in order to get mine renewed the day before I’m supposed to fly to Korea for the Olympics. (It turns out government officials can’t accept cookie bribes. But they did renew my passport in time, and I did fly to Korea, and I did watch Mirai land that triple axel in real life!!!)

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The Original Family Sugar Cookie Recipe

The combination of almond and lemon makes these intensely thick and soft treats taste like nostalgic bliss, and some almond flour in the dough gives them a lovely dense texture.

Makes 30 (2-inch) cookies

Serves 15

Nutritional Info

Ingredients

For the cookies:

  • 3 1/3 cups

    (433 grams) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

  • 1 1/3 cups

    (149 grams) almond flour (*see note below)

  • 1 teaspoon

    kosher salt

  • 1 teaspoon

    baking powder

  • 1 cup

    (226 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature

  • 2/3 cup

    (133 grams) granulated sugar

  • 2/3 cup

    (80 grams) powdered sugar

  • Zest of half a lemon, optional

  • 2

    large eggs

  • 2 teaspoons

    pure vanilla extract (or 1 teaspoon vanilla and 1 teaspoon LorAnn Princess Emulsion, on the off chance you have it)

  • 3/4 teaspoon

    pure almond extract

For the frosting and decorating:

  • 1/2 cup

    (113 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature

  • 1 1/2 cups

    (180 grams) powdered sugar

  • Pinch of

    kosher salt

  • 1/2 teaspoon

    pure vanilla extract

  • 1/2 teaspoon

    pure almond extract

  • 3 tablespoons

    (45 grams) heavy cream or 2 tablespoons (30 grams) whole milk

  • Food coloring, optional

  • Sprinkles, encouraged

Instructions

  1. If you plan to bake the cookies immediately, arrange oven racks in the upper middle and lower middle positions and preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper and set aside. (Alternatively, you can make the dough up to 2 days in advance.)

  2. To make the cookies, in a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, almond flour, salt, and baking powder and set aside. In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, cream together the butter, sugars, and lemon zest (if using) on medium high until pale and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes, occasionally scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition, then add the extracts.

  3. Reduce the speed to low and add the flour mixture, mixing until just combined, occasionally scraping down the sides to help everything combine evenly. At this point you can pat the dough into a disk, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hour or up to 2 days, or you can make your cookies immediately.

  4. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to a scant 1/2-inch thickness (use your kitchen ruler!), dusting with a little more flour as needed to prevent sticking. Cut out your shapes as desired and transfer them to the prepared sheet pans, 1 inch apart. Reroll the scraps and cut out more shapes.

  5. Bake for 6 minutes, switch the racks and rotate the pans 180 degrees, and continue to bake until the cookies are just thinking about starting to turn brown. They should be set around the edges but still soft in the center; begin checking larger cookies for doneness at 6 minutes and smaller cookies at 4 minutes. If they need more time, check frequently so that they don’t overbake — every 30 seconds or so. Let cool on the sheet pans for 5 minutes, then carefully transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

  6. To make the frosting, combine the butter, sugar, and salt in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle and mix on low until you’re confident that sugar won’t fly everywhere, then increase the speed to medium and continue to mix until smooth. (It will seem like there’s too much sugar at first, but keep on mixing!) Add the extracts, heavy cream, and food coloring, if using; increase the speed to medium high, and continue to mix for a few more seconds, until combined and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl if necessary to ensure that everything combines evenly.

  7. Spread or pipe the frosting onto the cookies and decorate with sprinkles as desired and enjoy!

  8. Store in a cookie jar or airtight container at room temperature for 4 to 5 days. Frosted cookies can also be stored in an airtight container in the freezer for up to a few months; thaw at room temperature.

Recipe Notes

*Not a fan of almonds? Sub any ground nut! Hazelnuts are my other fave, especially with some orange zest.

From Home is Where the Eggs Are by Molly Yeh. Copyright © 2022 by Molly Rebecca Yeh. Reprinted by permission of William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

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Meet Your New Go-To Sugar Cookie Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How to make store bought sugar cookie dough taste homemade? ›

Here are some easy switches you can make to upgrade your cookie mix and give it a homemade taste.
  1. Butter Instead of Margarine. ...
  2. Substitute margarine or shortening for butter using a 1:1 ratio. ...
  3. Coconut Oil Instead Of Other Fats. ...
  4. Maple Syrup Instead Of Granulated Sugar. ...
  5. Vanilla Extract. ...
  6. Almond Extract. ...
  7. Rum and Ginger. ...
  8. Cheesecake.

What is the my tall cookie trick? ›

Use my favorite tall cookie trick to reduce excess spreading. Roll your dough balls to be taller rather than wider. This doesn't necessarily mean using more dough per cookie– we'll simply shape the cookie dough ball to be nice and tall, with a firm solid bottom to ensure the cookie doesn't topple over as it bakes.

How old is the sugar cookie? ›

History. Sugar cookies have a plain flavor and have been made for centuries. The popularity and availability of sugar cookies rose when sugar became widely available. The sugar cookie is believed to have originated in the mid-1700s in Nazareth, Pennsylvania.

Why are my sugar cookies not sweet? ›

Sugar sweetens the cookies and makes them an enticing golden brown. Adding too little sugar can affect the taste and texture of cookies. Adding too much can cause them to be brittle. Take your time creaming the sugar and butter together at the beginning.

How to make packaged sugar cookie mix taste homemade? ›

Use real butter in your dough

Store-bought sugar cookie mixes will give the option of adding in butter or margarine, but always choose butter! It'll give your cookies the best, closest-to-homemade flavor. Use unsalted butter to be sure your cookies don't taste too salty.

What are the ingredients in premade sugar cookie dough? ›

SUGAR, ENRICHED BLEACHED FLOUR (WHEAT FLOUR, NIACIN, IRON, THIAMIN MONONITRATE, RIBOFLAVIN, FOLIC ACID), CANOLA OIL, WHEAT STARCH, DEXTROSE, CORNSTARCH, BAKING SODA, SALT, CELLULOSE, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS.

What makes cookies fluffy and not flat? ›

Room temperature butter is just the right consistency to incorporate air when it's creamed with sugar. These trapped air pockets result in risen, fluffy cookies. If the butter is any warmer, it won't incorporate enough air and your cookies will have less rise.

Should I use baking soda or baking powder in cookies? ›

Baking soda is typically used for chewy cookies, while baking powder is generally used for light and airy cookies. Since baking powder is comprised of a number of ingredients (baking soda, cream of tartar, cornstarch, etc.), using it instead of pure baking soda will affect the taste of your cookies.

How do you make cookies thick and not flat? ›

A low proportion of sugar relative to flour reduces spread, keeping the cookies thick. A high proportion of mix-ins helps thicken the dough. Blending chocolate chip styles creates a more dynamic flavor. Overnight refrigeration hydrates the flour, again helping the cookies stay thick.

What is a sugar cookie slang? ›

Where one is to roll in the sand or dirt while PT-ing, then continue PT-ing to look like a sugar cookie themselves. There's also a sand hill named after this term in 29 Palms, for this same reason.

What country invented sugar cookies? ›

Let's have a hearty hip-hip-hooray for the German Protestants, who settled in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, and invented the early sugar cookie. Their crumbly cookie made with butter and shaped into round or keystone shapes were a sweet hit from their formation in the late 1700s.

What happens if you forget to put brown sugar in cookies? ›

What happens when you bake without brown sugar? To be succinct, the resulting baked good could be slightly drier or more crisp. Without the excess moisture from the molasses in the brown sugar, the final cookie won't be as chewy and the final bread might be drier.

How to jazz up sugar cookies? ›

Get a recipe, buy the ingredients (butter, sugar, eggs, flour and vanilla). Why buy ready-to-bake when it is really easy to make sugar cookies? You can add citrus zest, cinnamon, or almond extract to the dough. You could also ice them with a tasty frosting and add some nuts or toasted coconut.

How do you make store bought cookies taste fresh? ›

All you have to do is pop it in the oven for one minute at 300 degrees Fahrenheit, and your cookie should already taste better than when you bought it. Not only will it be warm and smell delicious, but any chocolate chips should be slightly melted, making for a gooier cookie.

How do you spice up store bought sugar cookies? ›

Yes, you can make your store-bought sugar cookies more indulgent by adding decadent ingredients. Try mixing in chunks of chocolate, white chocolate chips, or peanut butter chips for a rich and gooey texture. You can also swirl in caramel or dulce de leche for an extra burst of sweetness.

Is it better to chill sugar cookie dough before baking? ›

Popping your dough in the fridge allows the fats to cool. As a result, the cookies will expand more slowly, holding onto their texture. If you skip the chilling step, you're more likely to wind up with flat, sad disks instead of lovely, chewy cookies.

How do you use store bought sugar cookie dough for cutouts? ›

Roll dough to 1/4-inch thickness on work surface. Cut out desired shapes using floured 2- to 2 1/2-inch cookie cutter. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 8 to 11 minutes or until edges are light golden brown.

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