Cutout Sugar Cookie Recipe - Easiest to Make! - All Things Mamma (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret to cut-out cookies? ›

The dough can hang out in the freezer for weeks; when you're ready to bake your cookies, remove as many sheets of dough from the freezer as you'd like, let the dough stand at room temperature for five minutes, then use your favorite cutters to stamp out cookies; they'll be easy to cut, will hold their shape, and won't ...

I can't wait to read through all of the great ideas posted there! To help cookies keep their shape, freeze them! I freeze each batch of cut-out cookies for 5 to 10 minutes before baking.

Different fats will affect the shape of your cookies, as will the temperature of the dough when it goes into the oven. Softer fat like shortening and margarine will spread more than butter, and cookies with butter in them, if refrigerated before baking, will hold their shape, even when quite thick.

But when you're baking, butter triumphs over margarine every time. For cakes, cookies, and pastries, butter (unsalted, that is) provides richer flavor. (It begins as cream, after all, and margarine is made from vegetable oil.) Butter's high fat content is also what gives baked goods their texture.

Refrigerating the dough allows the flour to fully hydrate and helps to make the cookie dough firmer. Firm dough prevents the cookies from spreading too much, which is why chilling the dough is a crucial step for cut-out and rolled cookies.

Chill rolled out cookie dough.

Without chilling, these cookie cutter sugar cookies won't hold their shape. Chill the rolled out cookie dough for at least 1-2 hours and up to 2 days.

To ensure the wonderfully soft sugar cookies of your dreams, you want to roll the dough about ¼-inch thick. This may seem too thick when you are rolling and cutting, but it's absolutely vital.

The ideal thickness to roll out your sugar cookie dough is about 1/4"--that way, they'll be tough enough to be handled and decorated, but thin enough to stay a little crunchy.

“Out-of-date baking powder or baking soda will cause your cookies to spread so much that they all bake together,” explains Dawn. Because nothing is helping the cookies puff up, there's nowhere for them to go but out!

Why are my cut out sugar cookies hard? ›

This isn't the case with sugar cookies, though. Once the edges develop a golden hue, you've gone too far. While overcooked sugar cookies are certainly still palatable, they'll be hard and crunchy, instead of soft and chewy.

Q: Why are my cookies so puffy and cakey? Whipping too much air into the dough. That fluffy texture you want in a cake results from beating a lot of air into the room temperature butter and sugar, and it does the same for cookies. So don't overdo it when you're creaming together the butter and sugar.

Butter is an emulsifier and it makes cookies tender. It also adds in the crispy-around-the-edges element. Adding too much butter can cause the cookies to be flat and greasy. Adding too little butter can cause the cookies to be tough and crumbly.

Yes! Country Crock^® is great for cooking and baking. Certain Country Crock^® products can be swapped 1:1 for butter in cooking and baking recipes: Country Crock^® Baking Sticks and Country Crock^® Plant Butter sticks and tubs.

Chilling cookie dough helps prevent spreading. The colder the dough, the less the cookies will over-spread into greasy puddles. You'll have thicker, sturdier, and more solid cookies. Whenever I make cookies, I plan ahead and chill the cookie dough overnight.

Mixing Butter & Sugar

If your butter is under mixed, it won't have the air pockets to hold it's shape. If it's over-mixed, the air pockets decrease in size and are unable to hold their shape in the oven—causing your cookies to spread. It's best to cream butter and sugar on medium speed for 2 to 3 minutes.

Roll out the dough as evenly as possible to the recipe's recommended thickness (here's how to roll out cookie dough like a pro!). Most recipes suggest rolling the dough to ¼-inch thick because it's easy to work with (less breakage) and achieves a soft, tender cookie.