Rolled Sugar Cookies are one of my favorite childhood memories. My mom, sister and I would make a huge batch of sugar cookie dough and spend the day rolling, cutting and decorating. I generally had a stomach ache by the time we were through from stealing the dough.
The best sugar cookie dough recipe for Rolled Sugar Cookies out there! Won’t lose shape when baked, great flavor and easy to make and roll out!
My favorite combination of homemade sugar cookies was a thick and soft sugar cookie with frosting and cinnamon candies. They were delicious!
My dad prefers his rolled sugar cookies super thin and crispy with simple cinnamon and sugar topping. While my mom enjoyed a medium thickness with chocolate sprinkles… or Jimmies, if you call them that.
I guess it never occurred to me until my adult years that not every sugar cookie dough recipe was for sugar cookie cutouts. Nope, some are drop cookies, others claim to be cutout recipes, but puff up and lose shape when baked.
And even some sugar cookie cutout recipes don’t work as well as they should and get all weird and blobby. What a disappointment!
The secret to rolled sugar cookies keeping their shape is using shortening instead of butter and making sure your sugar cookie dough is the correct temperture, not too hot or too cold. Like the Goldilocks of cookie doughs.
Too warm and your dough will melt all over, too cold and it won’t cook properly. Make sure to keep extra dough in the fridge until you are ready to use it. Merely rolling it out will cause it to be just warm enough to make the perfect cutouts.
If you enjoy little bites of dough like I do, you might also like my Edible Sugar Cookie Dough. Cookie without eggs and safe for a very indulgent snack.
Tools for making Homemade Sugar Cookies:
Rolling Mat– For rolling out any dough or cookies or just protecting your counters and work space!
Insulated Cookie Sheet– Insulated cookie sheets allow hot air to circulate around the entire cookie, resulting in even baking.
Stand Mixer-
While this is an investment, I can guarantee you will use it more than you realize and will never regret the decision.
Cookie Cutters
– It is great to have a basic set around with a variety of shapes. You never know when you’ll need them for baking or other fun DIY projects and crafts!
Here are some other easy cookie ideas:
- Chocolate Bacon Jam Cookies
- Chocolate Caramel Pretzels
- Hot Chocolate Cookies
- Classic No Bake Cookies
If you are looking for even more dessert recipes, snag a copy of my Easy Dessert Recipes Mini-Cookbook. Available here for only $0.99, these easy dessert recipes are ready with less than 30 minutes hands-on time and are sure to please all your family friends. From no-bake to make-ahead, you are sure to find something you love!
- 3/4 cup shortening
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 eggs , room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
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Cream together shortening and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla, blend well.
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Sift flour, baking powder and salt. Slowly blend dry mix into wet until a dough forms.
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Refrigerate for 30 minutes to 24 hours.
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Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
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On a lightly floured surface, roll out cookie dough. Cut out desired shapes. Transfer cut-outs to a cookie sheet. Continue until sheet is full.
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Bake for 6-7 minutes or until very lightly browned. remove from oven and transfer to a cooking rack. Repeat with the remaining dough.
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If you've tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it was!
