Rolling this cookie dough in my hands makes me so happy. I’m immediately thrust back to grade school, making cookies with my mom and my friends.
I love biting into the chewy cookie and having those vanilla notes hit my nose. It’s a little bite of nostalgic satisfaction that you can’t get anywhere else.
Sugar cookies come in all sorts and sizes, but my favorite is the kind that’s soft and chewy. This is the type of cookie that you roll into balls between your hands and then press flat before baking.
It’s one the most basic of cookies, with all the standard ingredients you’d expect: butter, sugar, flour, eggs and vanilla. Combined, they make the perfect sugar cookie.
Soft and Chewy Sugar Cookies Recipe
PrintLeave these cookies plain, frost them after cooling, or dress them up with colored sparkling sugars sprinkled over top before baking.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (225 g, or 2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated white sugar
- 1/4 cup (55 g) packed light brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 2 1/4 cups (315 g) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
To finish:
- 1/2 cup (100 g) granulated white sugar
Method
1 Preheat the oven: Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Line a baking sheet with a silicon baking mat or parchment paper.
2 Beat the butter and sugar: Place butter, both sugars and vanilla extract in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat the ingredients together until the butter is light, fluffy and clings to the side of the bowl.
3 Add the egg and beat to incorporate. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.
4 Add the flour, baking powder and salt. Mix on low speed until the dry ingredients are mostly absorbed, then increase the speed until fully incorporated.
5 Chill the dough: Chill in the fridge for at least one hour or overnight.
6 Shape the cookies: Pinch off a lump of dough. Roll it between the palms of your hands to form a ball roughly 1 1/2 inches in diameter, about the size of a pingpong ball. Roll the dough in the granulated white sugar and place on the baking sheet. Repeat, spacing the cookies about 2 inches apart.
7 Press the cookies into disks: Use the flat bottom of a glass to press down and form thick disks about 2 inches wide. Sprinkle some extra sugar on each disk
8 Bake the cookies: Bake at 375°F (190°C) 11 to 13 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies are starting to turn golden brown. Let cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet before moving cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days at room temperature.
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Irvin Lin is an IACP award-winning photographer, food writer and recipe developer, blue-ribbon baker, public speaker and occasional social media consultant. His blog is Eat the Loveand his first cookbook is Marbled, Swirled and Layered.
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do I need to chill the dough?
I made these but each time the dough ismore like batter than cookie dough. This is the only recipe giving me problems. The cookies come out dreamy good but go on sloppy and wet even with an added 1/2 cup of flour.
Hi, I’m trying to make a flat cookie. I am aware that these are fairly thin, but could I omit the baking powder? Thanks.
I’ve made these 3 times in 2 weeks. Everyone loves them. One slight variation: I add just a 1/2 t. or so of almond extract. Be sure and not overbake them. Great recipe… keep them coming!
Love the addition of a little brown sugar here. It’s curious to see baking powder used in the recipe, usually it’s baking soda, especially with an acidic ingredient like brown sugar it. Baking soda, I’ve read, makes for a crisper cookie, so maybe that’s the reason for the powder? Anyone?