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Soft and tender Christmas sugar cookies are the perfect holiday treat to make and eat as a family. They look as magical as they taste!
For more festive Christmas treats try Gingerbread Cookies, Christmas Brownies and Christmas Cookies.
We Love Holiday Cookies!
There is something so magical about decorating cookies as a family. It is one of my kids’ favorite things to do together during the holidays!
We also love our classic sugar cookie recipe and decided to use that for these Christmas sugar cookies.
They are the best for so many reasons:
- Fun + Festive! These Christmas sugar cookies are insanely fun to decorate and great for parties and get togethers.
- Simple. They come together in no time, with no chilling required!
- Tasty. Soft and delicious and so addicting – everyone loves this cookie.
Save this recipe in your folder of must-dos during the Christmas season!
Ingredients
- butter – Unsalted butter is what we use but salted works. Just make sure it’s softened.
- cream cheese – softened cream cheese helps the dough come together and makes for a soft cookie
- sugar
- powdered sugar
- egg
- almond extract – if you are not a fan of almond, you can swap out for vanilla extract.
- all-purpose flour
- baking powder
- salt
- milk
- vanilla extract
- food coloring
- Christmas sprinkles & colored decorating gel
How to Make Christmas Sugar Cookies
- PREP. Preheat oven to 375°F and grease a cookie sheet to be used later.
- DOUGH. In a large bowl mix together butter, cream cheese, sugars, egg, and almond until creamy. Use a Kitchen-Aid or hand mixer. In a separate bowl sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture. Combine together until soft dough forms.
- ROLL & CUT. On a lightly floured surface use a rolling pin and roll the sugar cookie dough to about ⅜ inches. (For a crispier cookie roll the dough thinner.) Once the dough has been rolled cut with holiday cookie cutters.
- BAKE. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the bottom of the cookie has just barely browned. Let cool on the baking sheet before transferring them to a wire rack.
For the Frosting
- CREAM. Add the butter, powdered sugar, milk, vanilla, and almond extract to a mixing bowl. Use an electric mixer to combine.
- DIVIDE & COLOR. You can make all the frosting one color or divide it into separate bowls and mix it with different food coloring.
- DECORATE. Frost the cookies. Use colored decorating gel to add embellishments. Add any holiday sprinkles you wish.
Tips for Perfect Cookies
Using these tips and tricks will ensure you have soft sugar cookies!
- Texture.
- If your dough is too dry when you’re trying to roll it out simply sprinkle a bit of water on the dough and knead it a few times. Be sure not to add too much.
- If the dough is too sticky, sprinkle a bit of flour and knead.
- Variations.
- Some classic cookie cutouts include bells, stockings, gingerbread, snowmen, and stars.
- Use gel food coloring and sprinkles to match the shapes.
- For a smooth finish, use Royal Icing to decorate the cookies.
Storing Tips
Store these Christmas sugar cookies frosted or unfrosted. If storing frosted cookies, first let the frosting set.
- STORE cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 4-5 days. Separate layers with parchment paper or wax paper. In the refrigerator, they last for 6-7 days.
- FREEZE. Wrap them individually with plastic wrap or stack them, separating the layers with wax paper. Keep in a freezer-safe airtight container for up to 3 months.
For More Christmas Cookies:
More Collections: Christmas Desserts
Christmas Sugar Cookie Recipe
Our favorite best-loved Christmas sugar cookie recipe uses an easy no-chill dough and looks as magical as it tastes!
Equipment
- Christmas Cookie Cutters
Ingredients
Sugar Cookies
- ¾ cup butter, softened
- 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup sugar
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 2¾ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Frosting & Toppings
- ⅓ cup butter, softened
- 4½ cups powdered sugar
- ¼ cup milk
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- food coloring
- Christmas sprinkles, colored decorating gel
Instructions
Sugar Cookies
- Preheat oven to 375°F and grease a cookie sheet.
- In a large bowl mix butter, cream cheese, sugars, egg, and almond until creamy. Use a Kitchen-Aid or hand mixer.
- In a separate bowl sift the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture. Combine until soft dough forms. If the dough is too sticky, mix in a bit more flour.
- Lightly flour the counter and roll out the dough to about ⅜ inches. (For a crispier cookie roll the dough thinner.) Once the dough has been rolled cut with holiday cookie cutters.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes. Let cool before decorating.
Frosting
- Add the butter, powdered sugar, milk, vanilla, and almond extract to a mixing bowl. Use an electric mixer to combine.
- Make all the frosting one color or divide it into separate bowls and mix it with different food coloring.
- Frost the cookies. Use colored decorating gel to add embellishments. Add any holiday sprinkles you wish.
Video
Notes
Icing. For a smooth finish, use Royal Icing to decorate the cookies.
Store cookie dough. Wrap the dough with plastic and refrigerate for 1-2 days or freeze for 2-3 months. See How to Freeze Cookie Dough for tips.
Store baked cookies. Allow the frosting to set and store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 4-5 days, in the refrigerator for 6-7 days, or in a freezer-safe container and freeze for 3 months. If needed, separate layers with parchment paper or wax paper.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cookie, Calories: 293kcal, Carbohydrates: 45g, Protein: 2g, Fat: 12g, Saturated Fat: 7g, Cholesterol: 39mg, Sodium: 157mg, Potassium: 46mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 33g, Vitamin A: 397IU, Calcium: 22mg, Iron: 1mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
These are so yummy! The almond extract gives the perfect flavor, and they come out so tasty.
This Sugar Cookie recipe is the best! Great flavor and a soft cookie. Easy to make! Yummy!
Wanted to try something different from the traditional Betty Crocker cutouts, that dough is difficult to work with. Turns out this dough is somewhat difficult to work with as well, keeps sticking although I had to add flour and added an abundance of flour to roll out. But they are tasty and the frosting is amazing! Kid says they taste like pop tarts!
Thanks for the feedback!! Glad the kiddos enjoyed and thanks for giving this recipe a try!
These look so yummy!!
So cute and festive and easy to make. The cream cheese sends this recipe over the top. I could eat a dozen at one sitting. Lol
I’m not sure but I think that it’s the cream cheese in these that make them stand out above the rest but these cookies are absolutely amazing