American
Sugar Cookies
Rolled sugar cookies bake until the edges are set and the centers look matte. The dough is for baking only, because it contains raw flour and egg.
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 22 min
- Total
- 47 min
- Servings
- 24
- Difficulty
- Medium
Why you’ll love it
- A short chill firms the butter so the cookies hold a shape.
- The dough is baked before anyone eats it. Raw flour and raw egg are not a snack.
- Centers that look set and matte, not wet and shiny, are done.
- They finish setting on the pan, so do not move them while they are still soft.
Ingredients
Ingredient amounts scale. Oven temperature and cook time do not. Salt, spices, and leaveners are a starting point after you scale. Taste and adjust.
Check the ingredients you still need, then add them. If nothing is checked, the full list is added. Saved on this device.
Instructions
- 1
Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt.
- 2
Beat the butter and 1 cup sugar until creamy. Beat in the egg, milk, and vanilla.
- 3
Stir in the flour mixture until a soft dough forms. Do not eat the raw dough. It has raw flour and raw egg.
- 4
Divide the dough in half, flatten into disks, wrap, and chill 30 minutes.
- 5
Heat the oven to 350°F. Line two sheet pans with parchment.
- 6
Roll the dough to about 1/4 inch thick on a floured counter. Cut rounds and set them 1 inch apart. Sprinkle with the remaining sugar.
- 7
Bake one pan at a time, 9 to 11 minutes, until the edges are set and the centers look matte, not wet or shiny.
- 8
Cool on the pan 5 minutes, then move to a rack. Repeat with the second pan.
Pro tips
- If the dough cracks while rolling, let it sit 2 minutes. If it sticks, dust the counter, not a pile of extra flour in the dough.
- Pale centers that still look greasy and raw need another minute.
- Skip the chill only if you are making drop cookies. Rolled cookies spread without it.
Easy substitutions
- whole milk
- cream
- vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp almond extract plus 1/2 tsp vanilla
- granulated sugar, for sprinkling
- colored sanding sugar
Storage and reheating
Storage
Keep in an airtight container at room temperature up to 5 days.
Reheating
They do not need reheating. If you want them warm, use a 300°F oven for 3 minutes.
Nutrition
Estimates per serving, using standard ingredient averages and rounded to the nearest gram. This is not a lab analysis, and it shifts if you change brands or add sides.
- Calories
- 134
- Protein
- 2 g
- Carbs
- 18 g
- Fat
- 6 g
- Fiber
- 0 g
Budget friendly · Oven
You might also like
Chocolate Chip Cookies
This batch makes 24 cookies, and the nutrition and servings are written for 12 servings of 2 cookies each. Butter, both sugars, and chocolate chips bake at 350°F until the edges are set and the centers still look soft.
32 min · Easy
View recipe
Ginger Molasses Cookies
Chewy cookies spiced with ginger, cinnamon, and cloves get their deep color from molasses. A roll in sugar before baking gives a crackled top.
27 min · Easy
View recipe
Apple Crisp
Sliced apples, lemon, cinnamon, and sugar bake under an oat, flour, and butter topping. The fruit should be tender and the edges bubbling before the pan comes out.
1 hr · Easy
View recipe
Banana Bread
Ripe bananas, butter, sugar, egg, and baking soda bake into one loaf. It is done when a toothpick in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs, not wet batter.
1 hr 15 min · Easy
View recipeStill hungry?
More in the same lane, not a random mix.
Banana Cream Pie
A baked graham crust holds sliced bananas and a cooked vanilla custard. The yolks and cornstarch are boiled until thick, then the pie is chilled.
55 min · Medium
View recipe
Berry Crumble Bars
Fresh berries sit between an oat crumble made with butter, flour, and sugar. The bars need to cool in the pan so the fruit layer sets before you cut them.
1 hr · Easy
View recipe
Brookies
A chocolate chip cookie layer and a brownie layer bake in one pan until both are set. The middle is fudgy, not a pool of raw batter.
57 min · Medium
View recipe
Brownie Bites
These brownie bites stay fudgy because the batter uses less flour than a cake and comes out of the oven before the centers dry out. A toothpick should show moist crumbs, not wet batter and not a clean stick.
29 min · Easy
View recipeFind something else
From the kitchen
Kitchen tools we love
Practical tools these recipes actually use. This is not a review roundup, and these are not paid placements. If affiliate links are added later, they will be labeled and disclosed.
A heavy 12-inch skillet
Most of the chicken and steak recipes are written for one pan that holds heat. Stainless or cast iron both work.
An air fryer with a real basket
The air-fryer recipes expect a single layer. A crowded basket steams instead of browning.
A half-sheet pan
Drumsticks, potatoes, sausage, and carrots all use one. A dark pan browns faster than a very shiny one.
A sharp chef’s knife
These recipes do not need a specialty blade. A sharp 8-inch knife is faster and safer than a dull one.
A large cutting board
Big enough that the onion and the raw chicken are not sharing the same puddle.
Dry cups and a liquid cup
Desserts in particular expect level dry measures and a separate cup for milk.
An instant-read thermometer
Use it for poultry, pork chops, and meatloaf. Color is a weak guide.
Read the affiliate disclosure.