This is the simplest recipe for chewy No Roll Sugar Cookies with delicious flavours of vanilla and butter. You can decorate these cookies with royal icing or roll in coloured sanding sugar to make them look festive and pretty!
Sugar cookies are a classic at Christmastime. But, are they actually good? They are typically boring, flavourless, and cardboard-like, apart from the fun icing and sprinkles they are decorated with. I set out a few years ago to make an easy recipe for sugar cookies that has an amazing vanilla flavour and chewy, soft texture. These cookies are all that!
Alongside my ginger molasses cookies, these cookies are on my Christmas baking list every year! I love making platters with a variety of cookies to bring to events during the Holidays. Ginger cookies, chocolate chip shortbread, sugar cookies, a few butter tarts, and of course my very popular apricot jam thumbprints are just a few that are usually included!
These cookies do have a chilling time required, but that is just an opportunity to make another recipe in the waiting time - like this addicting Hot Chocolate Nougat! Or time to watch Christmas movies with your family or attend to that wrapping that you have been procrastinating to the bitter end.
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⭐️ Why You Need to Make This Recipe
- Not fussy. No frustrating process of rolling out cookie dough into the perfect thickness only for the cookies to spread out of shape while baking. Simply shape into balls and bake!
- Chewy and buttery. Unlike most sugar cookies, these ones are actually yummy and flavourful with a pleasant texture! No more cardboard-flavourless cookies.
- A blank canvas for decorations. While these cookies aren't fun shapes, you can still make them fun by rolling them in coloured sugar or topping them with royal icing and sprinkles.
🧈 Ingredients
Here are the ingredients needed to make these easy drop sugar cookies.
- Salted Butter - Salt helps flavours pop and is a huge component in making a yummy cookie.
- White Sugar - For texture and flavour, white sugar is commonly used in sugar cookie dough.
- Egg & Egg Yolk - One egg plus one egg yolk for an extra rich, chewy texture.
- Vanilla - The subtle flavour of vanilla really shines in these simple cookies.
- Flour - All-purpose flour.
- Cornstarch - Just a little cornstarch aids in creating that amazing chewy texture.
- Baking Soda & Cream of Tartar - Baking soda makes the cookies spread out just the right amount and cream of tartar also helps make the cookies chewy.
See the recipe card for measurements.
📃 Instructions
Step 1: Cream together the butter and sugar. Add the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract.
Step 2: Mix for 30 seconds or until fluffy and lighter in colour.
Step 3: Add the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and cream of tartar.
Step 4: Mix until the flour is fully incorporated. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
Step 5: Roll into balls between your hands and coat each ball in white sugar.
Step 6: Arrange on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, leaving 2 inches between each cookie for spreading room.
Step 7: Bake for 8-12 minutes or until the cookies begin to crinkle just a little.
Hint: If you like a more underbaked cookie, bake for around 8-9 minutes for a more well-done cookie, bake for closer to 11-12 minutes.
📝 Substitutions and Variations
Here are some possible substitutions for making these simple drop-style sugar cookies.
- Salted Butter - Use unsalted butter with ½ teaspoon of salt added to the recipe instead.
- Vanilla Extract - You could use vanilla bean paste for vanilla bean sugar cookies or some people like almond extract in sugar cookies.
❄️ Storage
Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
These cookies can also be frozen in an airtight container for up to 6 weeks.
💡 Top tip
If you want cookies with a soft and chewy interior, bake them for less time. Every oven is different so start at 8 minutes and test out what is best for your oven and your taste.
❓ FAQ
Cream of tartar makes cookies chewy!
I have not tested it, but I think you could replace the all-purpose flour with a trusted gluten-free all-purpose flour.
🍪 More Cookie Recipes
Looking for other cookie recipes like this? Try these next:
If you tried these No Roll Sugar Cookies or any other recipe on my website, please leave a ⭐️ star rating and write a little note telling me how it went in the comments below. Thank you!!
📖 Recipe
No Roll Sugar Cookies
Equipment
- baking sheet(s)
- parchment paper or silicone baking mat(s)
- mixing bowls
- electric handheld mixer
- measuring cups & spoons
Ingredients
- ¾ cup salted butter* softened
- 1 ¼ cups white sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract*
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- ¼ cup white sugar or coloured sanding sugar (to roll the cookies in before baking)
Instructions
- In a large bowl, using an electric handheld mixer, beat the softened butter and sugar for 30 seconds, starting on low speed and increasing to high speed as the mixture comes together. Add the egg, egg yolk and vanilla and beat on high speed until fluffy.
- Add the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and cream of tartar and mix on low speed just until combined. Cover the bowl of cookie dough and refrigerate for 1 hour.
- A few minutes before the dough is done chilling, preheat the oven to 350℉ and line baking sheet(s) with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator and roll it into balls about 1 inch in diameter. Roll each ball in the extra white sugar or coloured sanding sugar to coat. Place 8 cookie dough balls on each pan, leaving about 2 inches of room between each cookie for spreading during baking.
- Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 8-11 minutes (I found 11 minutes was perfect in my oven, but every oven is different!) or until puffy and no longer wet-looking on top. Let cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheets before transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling. Bake the remaining cookies. Enjoy!
Notes
- Use unsalted butter with ½ teaspoon of salt added to the recipe instead
- You could use vanilla bean paste for vanilla bean sugar cookies or some people like almond extract in sugar cookies.
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