Make a batch of soft frosted Christmas cookies this holiday season. Thick, soft sugar cookies are topped with a layer of sweet homemade buttercream frosting. The perfect cookie for the holidays, and easy to customize for any time of year.
You're gonna want to save this soft frosted Christmas cookie recipe - it's perfect for any occasion.
These cookies are soft and extra thick, like irresistible little cookie pillows. A layer of sweet buttercream is the perfect complement to the lightly sweetened vanilla cookie base.
These cookie start with a soft sugar cookie base made with everyday baking ingredients like flour, butter, granulated sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Then, they're topped with a piped rosette of sweet buttercream frosting and festive sprinkles.
Use food coloring to match any holiday or event, like Christmas, Valentine's Day, or Halloween. They're the perfect addition to your next holiday cookie tray.
Cookie dough ingredients
As with most baking recipes, there are not many substitutions I would suggest. Since baking is an exact science, all of the ingredients included are necessary and should not be substituted or omitted.
- Unsalted butter - Can be substituted with salted butter (you'll want to omit the salt listed in the recipe). Your butter should be room temperature - not cold, not melted.
- Granulated sugar - Adds sweetness and moisture to your dough.
- Large eggs - Eggs should be room temperature. Set them on the counter 1 hour before baking, or place your whole eggs in a small bowl covered in warm tap water for 15 minutes.
- Vanilla extract - Can be substituted with another extract, like lemon, maple, or peppermint, for a different cookie flavor. I recommend cutting other extract flavors in half - vanilla has a mild flavor in comparison to other extracts, like peppermint.
- All-purpose flour - I have only tested this recipe with all-purpose flour. If you have a different flour on hand, I suggest searching for a recipe using your preferred type of flour. Many times it's not an easy 1:1 substitution, and a recipe written for a particular flour will turn out better.
- Baking powder - Cannot be substituted with baking soda - these are two different ingredients that will react differently with the other ingredients listed. Check the expiration date before beginning - expired baking powder will result in a flat, dense cookie.
- Salt - enhances the flavor of your cookie and balances the sweetness (does not make them "salty").
Frosting ingredients
- Unsalted butter - Can be substituted with salted butter (you'll want to omit the salt listed in the recipe). Your butter should be room temperature - not cold, not melted.
- Confectioner's sugar - Also called powdered sugar or icing sugar. The fine texture of confectioner's sugar allows it to blend seamlessly with the butter without adding a grainy texture. I do not recommend substituting with other sugars.
- Vanilla extract - Can be substituted with another extract, like lemon, maple, or peppermint, for a different frosting flavor. I recommend cutting other extract flavors in half - vanilla has a mild flavor in comparison to other extracts, like peppermint.
- Heavy cream - Thins your frosting slightly, while adding a creamy, whipped texture. Can be substituted with whole milk for as lightly thinner frosting.
- Salt - I recommend adding a pinch of salt to your frosting to help cut the sweetness.
- Food coloring - Optional, but makes it easy to customize your cookies for any holiday. Try pink for Valentine's Day, orange and purple for Halloween, or green for Christmas.
- Sprinkles - Nonpareils (tiny round sprinkles) or rainbow jimmies are great for decorating.
Tips and tricks
Room temperature ingredients - It's very important to use room temperature ingredients for a few reasons. Room temperature ingredients incorporate together seamlessly to create a smooth, even dough. An even dough (without flecks of butter or egg) helps create perfect cookies. Creaming together the butter and sugar helps create lift in your cookies when they bake.
To bring butter to room temperature quickly - Unwrap and slice butter into small pieces, leaving it on the counter and in the wrapper or a small bowl for up to 30 minutes. Small pieces warm up faster than a whole stick.
To bring eggs to room temperature quickly - Place whole eggs into a bowl and cover with very warm tap water. Eggs come to room temperature in about 10 minutes using this method.
Don't overmix the dough - Once the gluten (flour) has been added to the recipe, take care not to overmix the dough. Overworking the gluten can cause your cookies to turn out tough.
Frosting your cookies - I chose to frost these cookies with a buttercream rosette. Check out this quick video on how to make a simple rosette with frosting. You could also use a knife and spread your frosting onto each cookie. If you'd like more detailed instructions on how to make my buttercream frosting recipe, check out the full post here: American buttercream frosting
How to prevent dry cookies
The most common complaint I see in baking is that the reader followed the recipe "to a T" but their cookies/cake still turned out dry. Dry baked goods can happen for several reasons. Here are a few ways to help prevent dry cookies from happening in the first place.
- Properly measured flour - This is the #1 most common issue I see in baking. Adding too much flour to any baking recipe will make your dough dry. Cookie dough needs the proper ratio of dry and wet ingredients to work together. To properly measure flour, I highly recommend weighing your flour. This ensures you're adding the correct amount of flour every time. If you don't have a kitchen scale, use a spoon to gently add flour into your measuring cup, then level off with a knife. Do not scoop flour directly from a bin. This compacts the flour into the cup and adds up to an extra 25% flour to your recipe. Extra flour = dry, bland cookies.
- Do not substitute ingredients - This recipe requires few ingredients, which means each ingredient is very important to the recipe's success. Eggs, butter, and granulated sugar all add moisture to your dough. Substituting or reducing these ingredients will change the texture and moisture of your cookies.
- Watch your cookies in the oven, not the time - Yes, I do include a time frame in the recipe card. However, every oven can run hotter or colder than the next, so it's a good idea to keep an eye on your cookies as they bake. If they have brown edges, look puffy, and feel set on the top, it's time to take them out of the oven. If you bake them too long, they will become dry.
Frequently asked questions
The cookie base is less sweet on its own and is developed to be paired with a sweet buttercream frosting or icing. This way the finished cookie has a balanced flavor and doesn't taste overwhelmingly sweet from top to bottom.
If you plan to change the recipe and make these cookies without buttercream frosting, I highly suggest rolling your cookie dough in granulated sugar before baking (or dipping them in a thin icing). I actually enjoyed this alternative so much that I made a recipe for it! See my recipe for soft sugar cookies for detailed instructions.
If your cookies are dry and also bland, it sounds like too much flour was added. I highly recommend measuring flour by weight instead of using a measuring cup, which can add up to 25% extra flour to a recipe. See my section above on how to prevent dry cookies for more tips.
This recipe contains the proper ratios of wet to dry ingredients, including plenty of moisture-retaining ingredients, and will not turn out dry or bland if the proper measurements, ingredients, and baking recommendations are followed.
The dough may be coo told (maybe left in the refrigerator too long or frozen), or too much flour was added to the dough. Here are a few ways to deal with dough that won't spread:
- Leave your dough balls on the counter top to warm slightly before baking. Cold dough spreads less and warm dough spreads more.
- Use your hands or the bottom of a flour-dusted glass to press down on the dough balls before baking. This helps your dough balls spread more and creates a flatter top (this is also described in step six of the recipe card).
- If too much flour was added to your dough, you'll want to make sure your cookies aren't also overbaked - this combination results in a dry cookie.
This can happen when your dough is too warm or not enough flour was added to the dough to give it stability.
- Make sure not to skip the step of refrigerating your dough. This not only helps the flavors meld, but also makes the dough easier to roll into balls and helps it spread less in the oven.
- If your dough is still spreading in the oven, try refrigerating the dough balls (directly on the sheet pan if it will fit) for 10 minutes, then transfer directly into the oven.
- Use parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. I do not recommend using a greased cookie sheet. A layer of grease/cooking spray makes cookies (of any kind) spread more in the oven.
Store cookies in a tightly sealed container at room temperature. To help extend their shelf life, add a slice of bread to the container. The bread adds moisture to the container, drying out the bread instead of the cookies. Replace as needed with a fresh slice.
If possible, serve homemade cookies the same day of baking. Cookies are their softest on the day of baking and will slowly lose moisture over time.
Cookies drying out? Here's a trick. Wrap a few cookies in a damp paper towel and microwave for 5 to 10 seconds. Warm cookies are soft cookies, and wrapping in a damp paper towel helps add moisture.
Yes, the dough or baked cookies can be frozen for up to 3 months in a tightly sealed, freezer-safe container. To thaw baked cookies, place on the counter top and allow to thaw for about 1 hour.
Soft sugar cookies will keep for up to 5 days in a tightly sealed container at room temperature. To help keep your cookies soft, add a slice of bread to the container and replace it as it gets stale.
Recommended
📖 Recipe
Soft Frosted Christmas Cookies
Ingredients
Sugar cookies
- 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup (198 g) granulated sugar
- 2 large (2 large) eggs, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups (360 g) all-purpose flour, measured properly*
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ teaspoon salt
Buttercream frosting
- ¾ cup (170 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 2 ½ cups (284 g) confectioner's sugar
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 pinch salt
- food coloring & sprinkles, optional
Instructions
Sugar cookies
- In a large bowl, add room temperature butter and sugar. Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat until light and fluffy, about a minute. Add eggs and vanilla extract and beat until fully incorporated and fluffy, about a minute.
- In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually stir (or use a mixer on low speed) dry ingredients into butter mixture until just combined.
- Cover bowl and chill dough in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Refrigerating allows time for flavors to meld and also creates a firmer dough that's easy to roll into balls.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Remove dough from refrigerator. Scoop dough using a medium cookie scoop or shape by hand into 1.5 inch balls.
- Place cookie dough balls 2 inches apart onto prepared baking sheet. As is, dough balls bake into thick, rounded top cookies (as shown in photos). Optionally, flatten balls slightly using your hands or the bottom of a glass dusted with flour (to prevent sticking). This helps your cookies spread more and makes a flatter top for frosting.
- Bake for about 10-12 minutes, or until tops look set and edges barely begin to brown (times will vary based on your own oven and size of cookies). Allow to cool for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
Buttercream frosting
- In a medium bowl, add room temperature butter, confectioner's sugar, heavy cream, vanilla, and salt. Whip until frosting is smooth and spreadable. Add more heavy cream as needed to achieve desired consistency.
- Spread frosting with a knife onto completely cooled cookies (warm cookies will melt frosting). Or, use a piping bag with decorating tip. Cookies shown are piped with a rosette using a Wilton 2D tip.
Equipment Recommendations
Notes
- * I highly recommend using a kitchen scale to measure flour by weight (the gram measurements are in the parentheses in the recipe card). If you don't have a kitchen scale, use the spoon and level method. Stir the flour (especially if it's been packed down in a bag/container), then gently spoon into the measuring cup, leveling off the top with a knife. Scooping with a measuring cup compacts flour into the cup and adds up to 25% extra to the recipe, resulting in dry, bland cookies that don't spread properly.
- Cookie dough will keep in refrigerator for 2-3 days, or up to 3 months in the freezer.
- Cookies will keep for up to 5 days in a tightly sealed container at room temperature. Add a slice of bread to the cookie container to help keep cookies moist. Replace as needed (bread will dry out).
- If not frosting sugar cookies, I suggest rolling in granulated sugar before baking. Without frosting, cookies are not very sweet on their own.
- Be sure to check out my 10 tips for baking cookies, based on reader comments and questions!
I’m making these tomorrow. I’m so excited to try them. Will follow up
These are awesome!!! My new favorite sugar cookie recipe 🙂
Hi Cindy, so glad to hear you enjoyed the recipe!
Can I freeze or refrigerate only the dough? For how long? TIA
Cookie dough will keep in refrigerator for 2-3 days, or up to 3 months in the freezer.
I followed the recipe exactly as written, but the cookies didn't puff up or spread out at all. They just look like slightly-flattened (because I flattened them some with my hand before baking) dough balls. Maybe I should skip refrigerating the dough next time?
Hi Katie, I just added a section to this post about dough spreading issues. The dough may be coo told (maybe left in the refrigerator too long), or too much flour was added to the dough. Leaving your dough balls on the countertop to warm up slightly will help them spread more in the oven. If they're not puffing up at all, I'd also recommend checking the expiration date on your baking powder just in case. Hope this helps!
Thanks! Baking powder doesn't expire for a year, so I'm guessing I just didn't need the refrigerator step. Will try again another time!
Before refrigerating, the dough should feel slightly sticky and difficult to roll into balls. The refrigeration step is included in the recipe not only to allow the flavors to meld, but also to thicken the dough slightly and make it easier to roll into balls. If you're able to skip this step, it sounds like too many dry ingredients (or too few wet ingredients) were added to the dough, so they may taste floury when baked.
Can I roll the dough and make.cut out cookies?
This dough puffs up when baked, like a drop cookie, so it would be too sticky to roll out and wouldn't hold its shape when baked. Here's a great cutout cookie recipe I recommend: https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/christmas-sugar-cookies/
Will this frosting harden? I need to be able to place the cookies in a ziploc baggie as treats for my daughter's daycare teacher and don't want the icing to get ruined....
Hi Archana! This frosting will form a crust on the outside, like frosting on a cupcake, if left out to dry for several hours. However, the frosting stays soft in the middle so with a bit of force (several cookies stacked on top of each other, or pressing down with your finger) the frosting will get misshapen.
Thank you!
Looks amazing.Can't wait to try.
Thank you!