The Ultimate Recipe for Super Soft Sugar Cookies with Irresistible Buttercream Frosting

Prepare to discover your new favorite dessert! These Super Soft Sugar Cookies are truly the best sugar cookies you’ll ever bake, boasting an unparalleled melt-in-your-mouth texture and a perfectly balanced sweetness. Crafted with classic ingredients and a few clever techniques, this sugar cookie recipe delivers consistently delicious results every time. Forget dry, crumbly cookies; these are remarkably tender, chewy, and absolutely irresistible. Paired with our heavenly homemade buttercream icing recipe, these cookies are a game-changer for any occasion, from simple snacking to festive celebrations.

Beyond being incredibly tasty, this recipe is designed to be straightforward and accessible, even for novice bakers. The simple combination of ingredients transforms into something truly magical. We’ve fine-tuned the ratios to ensure maximum softness and flavor, resulting in a cookie that is far superior to store-bought varieties. You’ll also find an updated collection of SOFT AND SWEET SUGAR COOKIES here, offering even more inspiration for your baking adventures. Get ready to bake a batch of these delightful cookies today!

Achieving the Softest Sugar Cookies EVER!

Through countless baking experiments, I can confidently say this is my absolute favorite sugar cookie recipe. Many recipes claim to be soft, but often they result in overly thick, floury, or dry cookies. This recipe is different. It relies on a classic ingredient base, but the precise balance of wet to dry ingredients is what truly sets it apart, guaranteeing an exceptionally soft, delicate crumb that practically dissolves in your mouth. If you’re a fan of Lofthouse-style sugar cookies, prepare to be amazed – these are significantly better, offering a richer flavor and a more refined texture without that “mouthful of flour” sensation. And let’s not forget the included buttercream frosting recipe; it’s the perfect sweet, creamy complement to these tender cookies, elevating them to pure dessert perfection.

Mastering Perfect Sugar Cookies Every Time: Pro Tips

Baking the perfect batch of sugar cookies isn’t just about the ingredients; it’s about technique. Follow these essential tips to ensure your cookies turn out beautifully soft, perfectly shaped, and utterly delicious every single time:

1. Chill Your Dough Thoroughly: Sugar cookie dough starts sticky, but chilling is non-negotiable for manageability and preventing spread. Resist the temptation to add extra flour before chilling. Adding too much flour throws off the delicate wet-to-dry ratio, leading to dry, crumbly cookies. Chilling allows the butter to firm up, making the dough easier to roll and cut, and it also helps the flavors meld together beautifully. Aim for at least 2 hours, or even overnight, for the best results.
2. Use Softened, Not Melted, Butter: This is a crucial distinction. Softened butter (room temperature) creams beautifully with sugar, incorporating air that gives your cookies their light, tender texture. Melted butter will completely change the dough’s consistency, making it greasy and causing the cookies to spread excessively and become flat. If your butter is too hard, cut it into smaller pieces and let it sit for about 30 minutes, or gently warm it in the microwave in very short bursts (5-10 seconds) until just pliable.
3. Cream Butter and Sugars Adequately: Don’t rush this step! Creaming butter and sugar together for 2-3 minutes with an electric mixer is key. This process incorporates air into the mixture, which is essential for achieving a light, fluffy dough and a soft, chewy cookie. You’ll notice the mixture becoming lighter in color and significantly more voluminous. This aeration is what gives the cookies their signature tender crumb.
4. Always Preheat Your Oven: A properly preheated oven ensures that your cookies start baking at the correct temperature immediately. This helps them rise evenly and prevents them from spreading too much before they set. An oven that hasn’t reached its target temperature can lead to inconsistent baking and less desirable cookie texture. Give your oven at least 15-20 minutes to fully preheat.
5. Utilize a Cookie Scoop for Uniformity: For perfectly uniform cookies in shape and size, a cookie scoop is your best friend. This ensures consistent baking times for all cookies and a professional, appealing appearance. While this recipe is for cut-out cookies, a scoop is invaluable for drop cookies and ensures even dough distribution before rolling.
6. Bake on Parchment Paper or a Silicone Baking Mat: These baking aids are game-changers! They prevent sticking, ensure even baking on the bottom of your cookies, and make cleanup incredibly easy. Your perfectly shaped cookies will slide right off the sheet, intact and beautiful, without any scraping or damage.
7. Avoid Overbaking at All Costs: This is perhaps the most important tip for achieving truly soft sugar cookies. Cookies can go from perfectly baked to dry and brittle in a matter of seconds. Keep a close eye on them! The edges should be lightly set, but the centers should still look slightly soft, even a little underdone on top. The moment the bottoms begin to show a hint of golden brown, it’s time to take them out. They will continue to cook slightly on the hot baking sheet before being transferred to a wire rack. This slight underbaking is the secret to their incredible tenderness.

Super Soft Sugar Cookie Ingredients: The Essentials

Each ingredient in this recipe plays a vital role in creating the ultimate soft sugar cookie. Here’s a closer look at what you’ll need and why it matters:

Sugar: You’ll need 1 cup of granulated sugar. Beyond sweetness, sugar contributes to the cookies’ tender texture by interfering with gluten development and helps them achieve those delightful slightly crisp edges and beautiful golden color.

Butter: Use ½ cup of softened butter. Butter provides richness and flavor, and when properly softened and creamed, it creates pockets of air that contribute to the cookie’s light and airy structure. Always use unsalted butter if you want full control over the salt content, though salted butter can also be used (see below).

Egg: One large egg acts as a binder, holding the dough together, and adds moisture, contributing to the incredible texture and richness of these cookies.

Vanilla extract: 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract is essential for enhancing all the other wonderful flavors in this cookie dough. A good quality vanilla makes a noticeable difference in the overall taste.

Sour cream: This is the secret ingredient for unparalleled softness! Adding ⅓ cup of sour cream introduces fat and acidity, which tenderizes the dough, keeping the cookies incredibly moist and creating that coveted soft, cake-like texture you’ve always dreamed of.

Salt: ½ teaspoon of salt is crucial for balancing the sweetness and enhancing the flavors of the other ingredients. It prevents the cookies from tasting overly sweet and brings out the buttery notes.

Baking soda: ½ teaspoon of baking soda is our leavening agent. When combined with the acidity of the sour cream, it produces carbon dioxide bubbles, which help the cookies rise slightly and contribute to their soft, fluffy crumb.

Flour: 2 cups of all-purpose flour form the structure of our cookie dough. The correct amount is vital; too much will make them dry, too little will cause them to spread too much.

For the Divine Buttercream Frosting

A truly soft sugar cookie deserves an equally delicious frosting. Our buttercream recipe is simple, smooth, and incredibly flavorful:

Butter: ½ cup of softened butter forms the rich, creamy base of our frosting, providing a smooth texture and delightful flavor.

Powdered sugar: 4 cups of powdered sugar (confectioners’ sugar) gives the frosting its sweetness and smooth, pipeable consistency. Sifting it can help prevent lumps.

Milk: ¼ cup of milk (or cream) helps achieve the perfect creamy consistency, making the frosting spreadable and silky. Adjust as needed.

Vanilla extract: 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract infuse the frosting with a warm, inviting flavor that complements the sugar cookies beautifully.

Step-by-Step Guide: Crafting the Softest Sugar Cookies

Creating the Dough

In a spacious mixing bowl, begin by creaming together the granulated sugar and the softened butter using an electric mixer. Beat them on medium-high speed for a full 2-3 minutes. This crucial step aerates the mixture, making it light, fluffy, and pale yellow, which is foundational for soft cookies. Next, add the egg, vanilla extract, and sour cream. Continue to mix until all these wet ingredients are thoroughly combined and smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed to ensure everything is incorporated.

In a separate, smaller bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and baking soda. This ensures the leavening agents and salt are evenly distributed throughout the dry ingredients. Gradually add these dry ingredients to your wet mixture, beating on low speed until just combined. Be careful not to overmix at this stage; overmixing can develop gluten, leading to tougher cookies. Stop as soon as no streaks of flour remain, and the dough comes together.

Cover the bowl snugly with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel. Transfer the dough to the refrigerator to chill for at least 2 hours. For the absolute best results, or if your kitchen is warm, chilling the dough for several hours or even overnight is highly recommended. This allows the butter to firm up, making the dough much easier to handle, and deepens the flavors, resulting in a more delicious cookie.

Baking Perfection

Once your dough is sufficiently chilled and you’re ready to bake, preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C). Prepare your baking sheets by lining them with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the chilled dough to a consistent thickness of about ¼ inch. Using your favorite shaped cookie cutters, cut out the cookies and carefully transfer them to the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 1 inch of space between each cookie.

Bake in the preheated oven for approximately 8-10 minutes. Remember, the key to soft sugar cookies is to avoid overbaking. The edges should appear lightly set, but the centers might still look slightly soft or puffy. Do not wait for them to turn golden brown all over, as this means they will be dry. Remove the baking sheets from the oven and allow the cookies to cool on the sheets for 3-4 minutes. This brief cooling period helps them firm up enough to be safely moved without breaking. Then, gently transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.

Whipping Up the Dreamy Frosting

While your cookies are cooling, prepare the buttercream frosting. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the softened butter until it is smooth and creamy. This typically takes about 1-2 minutes. Gradually add the powdered sugar, one cup at a time, beating well after each addition until smooth. Once all the sugar is incorporated, add the milk and vanilla extract. Beat the frosting on medium-high speed for another 2-3 minutes until it becomes light, fluffy, and well combined. If the frosting seems too thick, add a tiny bit more milk (half a teaspoon at a time) until you reach your desired consistency. If it’s too thin, add a tablespoon or two more powdered sugar.

Once the cookies have completely cooled to room temperature, it’s time for the fun part: decorating! Spread a generous amount of frosting onto each cookie using a spatula or knife, or pipe it on for a more elegant look. Get creative with sprinkles, edible glitter, or food coloring to match any theme or holiday. These cookies are a perfect canvas for your artistic flair! Serve them immediately and delight in their incredible softness and rich flavor.

Can You Use Salted Butter for Sugar Cookies?

Absolutely, you can use salted butter for sugar cookies! I personally tend to only buy salted butter, so it’s my go-to for almost all baking, including these soft sugar cookies. While some bakers prefer unsalted butter to have complete control over the salt content, I find that a good quality salted butter often enhances the flavor profile, providing a lovely counterpoint to the sweetness. If you’re using salted butter, you might consider slightly reducing the added salt in the recipe by about ¼ teaspoon, but I often follow the recipe as written and find the cookies perfectly balanced. The slight saltiness actually makes the sweet flavors pop even more, resulting in a richer, more satisfying cookie. So, feel free to use what you have in your pantry!

How to Keep Your Sugar Cookies Exceptionally Soft

One of the many reasons to adore this recipe is how long these cookies stay soft! The secret lies largely in the addition of sour cream to the dough. Sour cream adds extra fat and moisture, which tenderizes the gluten in the flour and keeps the cookies from drying out quickly. To maintain their superior softness for as long as possible, always store your cooled, frosted (or unfrosted) cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. This prevents air from drying them out. Additionally, paying attention to the thickness when rolling out the dough is important; aim for a consistent ¼ inch thickness. Cookies that are rolled too thin are more prone to becoming crispy or brittle during baking, even if not overbaked.

Freezing Decorated Sugar Cookies: A Baker’s Best Friend

Yes, you can absolutely freeze decorated sugar cookies! This is a fantastic time-saver for holiday baking or preparing ahead for special events. After you’ve applied the frosting, allow the cookies to sit at room temperature for about an hour. This allows the buttercream to firm up slightly, creating a protective layer. Then, arrange the frosted cookies in a single layer on a baking sheet and flash freeze them until they are completely solid, which usually takes 1-2 hours. Once frozen solid, transfer the cookies to an airtight freezer-safe container. I recommend placing sheets of parchment paper between layers of cookies to prevent them from sticking together. When you’re ready to enjoy them, simply remove them from the freezer and let them thaw at room temperature. They’ll taste just as fresh and delicious as the day you made them!

Optimal Cooling Times for Sugar Cookies

Properly cooling your cookies is just as important as baking them correctly. When sugar cookies first come out of the oven, they are incredibly soft and delicate, making them prone to breaking if handled too soon. It’s best to leave them on the hot baking sheet for 3-4 minutes after removing them from the oven. The residual heat from the pan continues to set the cookies, allowing them to firm up without overbaking. After this initial cooling period, carefully transfer them to a wire cooling rack. This allows air to circulate around all sides of the cookies, ensuring they cool evenly and completely. Typically, after a few minutes on the cooling rack, the cookies will be firm enough to handle and enjoy – and let’s be honest, warm, freshly baked cookies are truly the best!

Troubleshooting: Why Did My Cookies Spread?

If your cookies spread more than desired during baking, it’s most commonly due to the dough being too warm. Sugar cookie dough requires chilling because cold butter melts more slowly in the oven, allowing the cookie to set its shape before spreading too much. If your kitchen is particularly warm, or your butter was too soft to begin with, the dough can warm up quickly during handling. The good news is this issue is easily fixable! Simply pop your prepared cookie dough (or even the cut-out cookies on the baking sheet) into the freezer for about 30 minutes to an hour before baking. This rapid chilling will firm up the butter and prevent excessive spreading, helping your cookies maintain their beautiful shape.

Another common reason for spreading can be too much leavening agent or not enough flour. Always measure your ingredients precisely, especially flour, using the spoon-and-level method to avoid packing it too densely. Overbeating the butter and sugar can also sometimes incorporate too much air, which can cause cookies to spread more. Following the creaming time diligently helps mitigate this.

These super soft sugar cookies are incredibly versatile for decorating. I recently decorated some to be festive for Thanksgiving, and I couldn’t resist sharing the fun idea! You can easily adapt them for any holiday or special occasion.

Explore More of Our Favorite Sugar Cookie Recipes:

If you love these soft sugar cookies, you’re in for a treat! We have an extensive collection of diverse and equally delicious sugar cookie variations that are sure to inspire your next baking project. Whether you’re looking for unique flavor twists, different textures, or seasonal delights, you’ll find something wonderful here:

• Buttermilk Sugar Cookies
• Watermelon Sugar Cookies
• Frosted Lemon Sugar Cookies
• Under the Sea Cookies
• Frosted Strawberry Cookies
• Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies
• Jello Sugar Cookies
• Butter Sugar Cookies
• Christmas Sugar Cookies
• Fall Cut Out Sugar Cookies
• Popsicle Sugar Cookies

These truly amazing Soft Sugar Cookies will undoubtedly become a staple in your recipe collection. Their tender, melt-in-your-mouth texture is simply unparalleled, making them perfect for any occasion or just a sweet craving. Made with readily available pantry ingredients, this sugar cookie recipe is not only easy to follow but also consistently delivers cookies with incredible flavor and a delightful softness that everyone will rave about. Enjoy the joy of baking and sharing these delightful treats!