These sugar cookies are the absolute best cookies for holiday decorating! They keep their shape after baking so they’re perfect for icing, and they have that classic, warm sugar cookie flavor we all know and love.

I don’t know about you, but when I think of Christmas cookies, the first flavor that comes to mind is sugar cookies. They’re a true classic – arguably the easiest to make, and the most fun to decorate in the spirit of the season! These sugar cookies look EXACTLY the same as your original cutouts after baking. They don’t even brown, so they keep their crisp, light color and their cookie-cutter sharp edges, all while being a perfect mix of firm and soft with each bite. They’re perfect for royal icing decorations, melted chocolate, sprinkles, you name it! Get the family together and spend the day baking these yummy treats, decorating to your heart’s desire and listening to Christmas music the whole time.

Here are some more cookie recipes you’ll love: Hot Cocoa Cookies, Peanut Butter Cup Cookies, and White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies.

Ingredients & Equipment

You’ll need the following ingredients and equipment to make these sugar cookies:

Rolling pin
Cookie cutters
Unsalted butter
Flour
Granulated sugar
Vanilla extract
Egg
Baking powder
Salt

Customize This Recipe!

There are a few different ways you can customize this recipe:

Decorate based on holiday. You don’t have to make these cookies only on Christmas – find fun cookie cutters for different holidays like Easter, Valentine’s Day, or Thanksgiving and have fun decorating them with different colors and themes!
Make cookie ornaments. If you poke holes into the tops of your cookies before baking, you can hang them on your Christmas tree once they’re decorated and firmed up!

Kitchen Tips:

Utilize mise en place! Make sure you have all of your ingredients prepped and ready before you begin making this recipe – it will help save you time and keep you organized.
No chill time! You can still chill your cookie dough if you want (or if you made it ahead of time), but chill time isn’t required with this dough, so you can get to cutting and baking right away!

Did you make this recipe? Leave a star rating and/or review below to let me know how it turned out! To keep up with all my latest recipes, subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Instagram. 🙂

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Print Recipe

The Best Holiday Sugar Cookies

Prep Time20

Cook Time8

Total Time28

Servings: 36 cookies

Author: Abigail Bingham

Ingredients

1 cup butter
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
3 cups flour

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350ºF and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a standard mixer, cream butter and sugar until smooth and fluffy.
Mix in the egg and vanilla extract until combined.
In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking powder, and salt.
Add your dry mixture to the wet mixture, beating with a paddle attachment until the dough comes together.
Flour your counter or work surface and knead the dough by hand until it's smooth and doesn't crumble. you can add a bit of water or just wet your hands to help this process.
If you plan to chill your dough before using, you can do so now. chilling isn't required, however, so you can start rolling and cutting now as well.
Divide the dough into sections and roll out to about 1/8 inch for a standard thickness. You can roll them a bit thicker for a sturdier cookie!
Cut out your cookies and bake for 8 minutes.
Let them cool fully before decorating – otherwise, enjoy them warm!