These Sugar Cookies are chewy, soft and full of flavor. And, the best part? No chilling of the dough required! Start to finish, these cookies are done in less than 30 minutes.
It doesn't get any better than that, now does it?!
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No chilling required for these Sugar Cookies
My kids love to bake, too (must be genetic!). I remember clearly this past Christmas, they wanted to bake sugar cookies.
So, I told them to search for some recipes online and figure out which one they wanted to make. Most of the recipes they came upon required the dough to be chilled for at least 4 hours in the refrigerator before it could be baked and eaten.
If you know anything about kids, you know that 4 hours seems like an eternity to them! They wanted their sugar cookies and they wanted them as quickly as possible.
That moment is when the idea for these no chilling required sugar cookies was born.
The Perfect Sugar Cookie
What makes the perfect sugar cookie? It's all about taste and texture with these babies.
Soft and chewy with just the right amount of vanilla are just the way we like them.
To achieve the soft and chewy texture, I substituted half the regular amount of all-purpose flour for cake flour in this recipe. Cake flour is finer than all-purpose and contains less protein, helping to produce a more delicate texture.
Substituting all the flour for cake flour would have resulted in a crumbly cookie, though, so I stuck with half and half here.
If you do not have cake flour in your pantry, see below for a tip on how to mix some up at home to achieve a similar result.
Two types of Sugar in these Sugar Cookies
Another important element of these sugar cookies is the incorporation of a small amount of brown sugar in addition to the traditional granulated sugar found in many sugar cookie recipes.
Brown sugar has more moisture in it than granulated sugar which helps to produce a chewier cookie in this recipe.
The brown sugar also helps give these cookies a subtle butterscotch note to them.
The molasses in born sugar is also acidic which reacts with the baking soda to help leaven the cookies. In other words, they're puffier than if only granulated sugar were in the dough.
Tips for Making This Recipe
- Be sure to measure your flours using the scoop and level method. Start out by fluffing the flour to loosen it a bit from inside of its storage container. Next, use a spoon to scoop flour into your measuring cup. Continue scooping in this way until your measuring cup is overflowing a bit with flour. Using the handle of the spoon, level off the flour in the measuring cup by carefully sliding the handle over the top of the measuring cup horizontally without pressing the flour down into the cup. This method will ensure the proper measurement of flour for your recipe which will enable you to achieve the soft and chewy texture we're after with these sugar cookies
- If you do not have cake flour in your pantry, you can easily whip some up by mixing together all-purpose flour and a little bit of cornstarch for similar results. Measure out 1 cup of all-purpose flour, remove 2 tablespoons of the flour and add in 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. Sift the two ingredients together to ensure they are thoroughly combined
- Bake these cookies just long enough that they're only starting to slightly brown. That's the perfect time to pull them out of the oven. These sugar cookies may be puffy when you first remove them from the oven. Once they start to cool, they'll deflate a little bit. This is normal and what we're after here
Ingredients Needed to Make Chewy Sugar Cookie
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ¼ cups cake flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup dark brown sugar packed
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ cup granulated sugar for rolling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F / 177ºC. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats . Set aside
- In a medium bowl, combine the flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a medium sized bowl. Set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add in the egg and vanilla and mix until well combined, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on low, mix in the dry ingredients just until the dough is well combined. Do not over mix. Scoop dough into 1 ½ tablespoon sized balls. Gently roll between your palms into a smooth ball and roll in sugar to coat. Set on prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart.
- Bake the cookies in preheated oven for 10-12 minutes or until they are just starting to turn golden brown on the edges. Do not overbake. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Store baked cookies in an airtight container for up to one week
- Baked cookies may be frozen for up to 3 months
Nutrition
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Comments
Lindsey
I was looking for a fun cookie recipe to make on a rainy day, and I definitely chose the right one when I found this sugar cookie recipe! The instructions were easy to follow, and the recipe called for almost all staple items, so I didn’t have to go buy any random ingredients to make the cookie. I will definitely be using this recipe again! 🙂
Kim
How wonderful Lindsey! Thanks for baking and sharing your thoughts!