Easy Christmas Sugar Cookies
Buttery cut-out Christmas sugar cookies with crisp edges, soft centers, and red and green sugar for holiday trays.
Updated: Oct 7, 2026
Why you'll like it
- Ready in about 1 hr 30 min.
- Serves 36 — easy to halve or double.
- Easy level — everyday equipment only.
- Storage, freezing and reheating covered below.
Ready in 1 hr 30 min, this easy Christmas Sugar Cookies serves 36. Christmas Sugar Cookies are a standard USA holiday cookie: a buttery vanilla dough rolled, cut into trees, stars, and stockings, and finished with colored sugar.
Helpful guides
Instructions
Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl until evenly combined. Spooning flour into the cup and leveling prevents packing, which is the main cause of dry, tough cookies. Set the dry mixture aside while you cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl.
Beat the softened butter with the granulated sugar on medium speed for 2 to 3 minutes until pale and fluffy. Proper creaming traps air that keeps centers soft while edges crisp. Add the egg, vanilla, and almond extract, then beat until smooth and fully combined.
Add the dry mixture in two additions on low speed, mixing just until no flour streaks remain. Overmixing develops gluten and makes cut-outs hard instead of tender. Divide the dough in half, flatten into disks, wrap tightly, and refrigerate for 1 hour until firm.
Heat the oven to 350 degrees F and line two baking sheets with parchment. Roll one disk on a lightly floured surface to 1/4 inch thickness, turning to prevent sticking. Cut shapes close together, transfer to sheets 1 inch apart, and press sanding sugar onto the tops before baking.
Bake one sheet at a time for 8 to 10 minutes until tops look set and edges turn just golden. Pale centers are correct and finish firming as they cool. Thinner cookies bake faster, so check early and rotate the sheet if your oven browns unevenly.
Cool cookies on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then move to a wire rack to cool fully. Warm cookies break easily and melt icing. Once cool, pipe simple icing lines if you like, let decorations set for 30 minutes, then layer between parchment for storage or gifting.
Troubleshooting — fixes, not repeats
- If shapes spread and blur, the dough was too warm. Chill cut shapes on the sheet for 10 minutes before baking and keep the oven fully preheated.
- If cookies turn hard, flour was packed or dough was overmixed. Spoon and level flour, and stop mixing as soon as streaks disappear.
- If tops brown too fast, sheets are too dark or the rack is too high. Use light sheets on the middle rack and check 2 minutes early.
- If sugar decoration falls off, it was added after baking. Press sanding sugar into raw dough, or use icing as glue on cooled cookies.
Make it your way
- Spicier version: Whole-wheat pastry flour can replace half the flour for slightly nutty flavor.
- Old Dhaka style: Keep the chill and 1/4-inch thickness the same so every version holds its shape.
- For variation, swap almond extract for lemon or orange extract and finish with matching citrus zest in the dough.
- Chocolate sugar cookies use 1/2 cup cocoa powder in place of 1/2 cup flour with the same method.
- For filled sandwich cookies, bake plain rounds and spread cooled centers with raspberry jam or vanilla buttercream.
Storage & reheating
Cool leftovers within 2 hours, then refrigerate in a covered container and use within 3 to 4 days. Reheat only the portion you will eat until steaming hot throughout — poultry and reheated rice should reach 165°F (74°C).
Freeze baked undecorated cookies up to 2 months in freezer bags; thaw at room temperature for 1 hour before icing.
Reheat is not needed; crisp softened cookies for 5 minutes in a 300 degrees F oven and cool before eating.
FAQ
Why did my cut-outs puff and lose their shape?
Warm dough and too much leavening cause spreading. Chill the dough 1 hour, chill cut shapes 10 minutes, measure baking powder exactly, and roll a full 1/4 inch thick. A fully preheated 350 degrees F oven sets edges fast.
Can I make the dough ahead?
Yes. Refrigerate wrapped disks up to 3 days or freeze up to 2 months. Thaw frozen dough overnight in the refrigerator, then let it sit 10 minutes so it rolls without cracking. Bake as directed.
How do I keep the cookies soft?
Cream butter and sugar fully, measure flour by spooning and leveling, and pull cookies when centers still look pale. Overbaking is the main cause of hardness. Store airtight with a slice of bread, replacing the bread when it dries.