Soft and Chewy Sugar Cookies (Drop-Style)
These easy drop-style sugar cookies require NO chill time and bake up soft and chewy. Roll them in granulated sugar before baking for a sugary crust, or bake them plain, frost them, add sprinkles… it’s the best and most versatile sugar cookie recipe you’ll find!
These cookies are flat-out fantastic. It is not often that I eat a plain sugar cookie without any type of icing, and these were delicious in every way a sugar cookie should be.
Soft, chewy, buttery, and sweet, these are the essence of what every sugar cookie aspires to become. Rolling them in sugar prior to baking allows them to create a nice sugary crust in the oven, that gives way to buttery softness when you bite into them.
How to make drop sugar cookies
I love having a go-to drop sugar cookie recipe because sometimes when the mood strikes for a good sugar cookie, you realllllllly might not want to go through the hassle of rolling out dough, cutting it, etc.
Are you ready to hear how easy these cookies are to make? This is what we do:
- Preheat the oven.
- Prep the pan (see below).
- Whisk together dry ingredients.
- Cream butter and sugars.
- Add egg and vanilla.
- Mix in dry ingredients.
- Roll dough into balls.
- Roll in sugar.
- Bake!
In case you missed it, the best part is… NO CHILL TIME!
That’s right, they are TRUE drop cookies. Mix together the dough and then bake right away.
Now, let’s talk about those pans!
My baking pans of choice are these rimmed half sheet pans; I have a ton and I use them for everything! And they are perfect for cookies.
I highly, highly recommend using parchment paper to line your baking pans when baking cookies. Greasing cookie sheets will allow excess fat to leach into your cookies, causing them to spread too much and potentially burn on the bottom.
For a brief time, I experimented with silicone baking mats, but over time found that they developed a greasy film that I couldn’t get rid of no matter how many times I washed in soapy water or ran through the dishwasher. It was causing the same issues as greasing the pan would, so I stopped using them and went back to parchment paper.
Sugar cookies vs snickerdoodles
Some think of snickerdoodles as simply drop sugar cookies that have been rolled in cinnamon-sugar, but this oversimplification is far from accurate.
While both cookies have the same basic list of ingredients (butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla, flour, and baking powder/soda), there is one key ingredient in snickerdoodles that turns them into something altogether different:
Cream of Tartar
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This magical little ingredient is an acid, so its presence gives the cookies that ever-so-slight tangy flavor to make snickerdoodles, well… snickerdoodles.
Keep them soft!
I’m a firm believer that all sugar cookies should be super soft; if you want a hard or crunchy sugar cookie, shortbread cookies are your answer.
A couple of keys to keep those cookies nice and soft:
- Brown Sugar – Just a small amount gives the cookies a little extra softness and gives them a chewier texture.
- Don’t Overmix – When you add the dry ingredients, only mix until just combined. You can always finish mixing in bits of flour with a rubber spatula.
- Don’t Press Down Too Far – When you press the cookies down, make sure they are still ¾-inch thick to keep them from getting too flat (and crunchy!).
- Don’t Overbake – Quite possibly the most important tip of all! Keep an eye on the cookies since some ovens can run hot and pull them out when the edges are light brown and the centers look just barely set and still pale.
Customize!
Even though these are drop cookies, you can still dress them up a bit if you’d like. Some ideas:
- Frost them – Instead of rolling the cookies in sugar, skip that step and then slather on your favorite vanilla frosting or cream cheese frosting – tint it different colors if you’d like!
- Add sprinkles – Who doesn’t love sprinkles?! Fold in ½ cup of colored sprinkles with a rubber spatula after mixing in the dry ingredients.
Make-ahead, storage, and freezing tips
- Make-Ahead - You can prepare the dough and store it, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 3 days before scooping and baking.
- Storage - Store the cookies in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- Freezing the Dough - You can roll the dough balls and freeze them for up to 2 months. Bake for an extra minute or so.
- Freezing the Cookies – You can freeze the baked cookies for up to 3 months in an airtight container. Thaw at room temperature then enjoy!
If you like these cookies, you’ll love these other recipes:
Watch the Recipe Video:
If you make these sugar cookies and love them, I would so appreciate it if you would take a moment to leave a rating below. Thank you so much! ❤️️
Soft and Chewy Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 2⅓ cups (280 g) all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) baking powder
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) salt
- 1 cup (227 g) unsalted butter, softened but still cool
- 1 cup (198 g) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 1½ teaspoons (1.5 teaspoons) vanilla extract
For Rolling
- ½ cup (99 g) granulated sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add the egg and vanilla; beat at medium speed until combined, about 30 seconds. Add the dry ingredients and beat at low speed until just combined, about 30 seconds, scraping down the bowl as needed.
- Place the ½ cup sugar for rolling in a shallow bowl. Fill a medium bowl halfway with cold tap water. Dip your hands in the water and shake off any excess (this will prevent the dough from sticking to your hands and ensure that the sugar sticks to the dough). Roll a heaping tablespoon of dough into a 1½-inch ball between moistened palms, roll the ball in the sugar, and then place it on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough, moistening your hands as necessary, and spacing the balls about 2 inches apart. Butter the bottom of a drinking glass and then dip the bottom of the glass in the remaining sugar. Flatten the dough balls with the bottom of the glass until they are about ¾ inch thick, dipping the glass in sugar as necessary to prevent sticking (after every 2 or 3 cookies).
- Bake until the cookies are light brown around the edges and their centers are just set and very lightly colored, 10 to 13 minutes. Cool the cookies on the baking sheets about 3 minutes; using a wide metal spatula, transfer the cookies to a wire rack and cool to room temperature. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Pans: I recommend half sheet pans and lining with parchment paper.
- Frost them – Slather on your favorite vanilla frosting or cream cheese frosting – tint it different colors if you’d like!
- Add sprinkles – Fold in ½ cup of colored sprinkles with a rubber spatula after mixing in the dry ingredients.
- Make-Ahead - You can prepare the dough and store it, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 3 days before scooping and baking.
- Storage - Store the cookies in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
- Freezing the Dough - You can roll the dough balls and freeze them for up to 2 months. Bake for an extra minute or so.
- Freezing the Cookies – You can freeze the baked cookies for up to 3 months in an airtight container. Thaw at room temperature then enjoy!
- Recipe from Baking Illustrated
Did you make this recipe?
Leave a review below, then snap a picture and tag @thebrowneyedbaker on Instagram so I can see it!
[Photography by Dee of One Sarcastic Baker]
Heey, this recipe looks amazing but i dont understan this part
“Butter the bottom of a drinking glass and then dip the bottom of the glass in the remaining sugar. Flatten the dough balls with the bottom of the glass until they are about ¾ inch thick, dipping the glass in sugar as necessary to prevent sticking (after every 2 or 3 cookies)”
Ps. I can speak english but i’m not good enough for this. I put it into a traductor but i dont understand :/
It means: make the balls of cookie dough flat by pressing with the bottom of a drinking glass. Just make the balls flat :)
Immediately wanted to try this recipe when I saw it, and I did. I used the roll in a ball form yiu mentioned in the instructions,but they spread out a lot. After reading the comments I think it could be because I didn’t cool the dough before placing it on the cookie sheets, so ill try that next time. What I really can’t seem to figure out is that they didn’t really brown around the edges :( I left them in there even longer too just to see if that would help but it didn’t seem to. They’re cooling now so ill see how they turn out, but any advice would be great!
Nevermind! It was just–as I expected–a mishap with my oven. Turned it off for a bit,put them in again and they turned out great!
after they are baked how long will they stay fresh for? how do i store them? I’m planning on making a big batch and want to make them in advance.
They should be store in an airtight container at room temperature; they can stay fresh for about 3 days like that; if you wrap them individually with plastic wrap, then store them, you’ll get about 5 to 7 days of freshness.
ok
Thnx:)
Before you bake it, can you put sprinkles on while they bake?
The kind of sprinkles that look like colored sugar?
I’ve never done it but I don’t see why not. Have fun baking! :)
I am bowing down to you right now. I too have been on the search for the perfect chocolate chip cookie. Thanks to you, I found it! AMAZING!
Well, I switched pages without knowing. This was supposed to be for the Thick and Chewy Chocolate Chip cookies! But these look good too! :)
“Soft and chewy” are magical words for me, too. As much as I love cookies, a burnt or overcooked one can turn me off. I will be sure to give these sugar cookies a try and see for myself just how amazingly soft and chewy they are.
I made these today in the roll-in-a-ball form. They spread quite a bit. I will try sticking them in the fridge for a while before baking next time. Also, they were starting to brown around the edges at about 12 minutes. I have an oven thermometer so I know the temperature was correct. Maybe I’ll try to leave them a little thicker too?
They are cooling now and smell delicious, even if they aren’t “perfect”!
I used this recipe to make heart shaped cookies, then decorated them with a version of royal icing. This was one of the easiest sugar cookie doughs to work with, it was so easy to roll out. There were no cracks and the dough was nice and soft. The shapes maintained fairly well too. Two days later, they are still soft and chewy, just the way we like them. I only eyeballed my dough for thickness and I’m pretty sure I only ended up with maybe 1/8″ thick, but I made sure not to overbake them and they turned out just fine. Thanks for the recipe Michelle.
These cookie came out fantastic! I made them for Valentine’s Day with red sugar and they were a hit!
Hi Michelle – I am making these for the first time – bought a shirt cookie cutter to make the Steelers jersey cookies. I never measured flour by the oz before and found that each cup was only 4 7/8 oz so now I don’t know if I should add the extra .25 oz, which measured almost half a cup on my digital scale. I don’t want them to spread too much but I don’t want them to not roll out. I am using my old stand by sugar cookie recipe for footballs and helmets but thought I would try this for the shirts.
Hi Diane, If I weigh, I just weigh – I don’t put it into cups and try to compare. For me, that’s the whole point of weighing – it’s consistent every time where when you scoop into measuring cups it can vary each time. I would recommend just weighing and using that amount.
I was wondering if there was a tip to make perfectly uniform cookies when rolling them out. I’m not into making sugar cookies because I don’t like to roll them out, probably due to the fact that I am very anal about being the right thickness. Is there some sort of kitchen gadget to press/roll cookie dough into to make them all uniform? Thank you in advance for your time in answering my question.
Cathe Kitchen Gadget (as my husband refers to me)
Hi Cathe, You can actually buy these little rubber bands to slide on the ends of your rolling pin so that you can roll the dough to a specific thickness. You can get them at Bed Bath & Beyond.
Very chewy, but they spread out a little too much. I tried to roll them out for use with cookie cutters but the cookies spread too much, leaving the shapes big blobs. I think maybe this recipe is best for round cookies appearance wise. Taste wise they’re great!
i made these and they are great, chewy, soft and buttery.
BEST sugar cookies I have ever had. Thank you so much for this recipe! I will always and forever keep this!
I just discovered your blog 2 nights ago. EVERY one of my Christmas cookies are made from YOUR recipes!! They have all come out divine! Thanks for such a fun and delicous blog to follow. Can’t wait to make some more goodies after the holidays :)
Amazing cookie recipe! I made these tonight and my family LOVED them! Thanks!
Michelle…you KNOW I’m a huge fan of yours (also the Red Sox, Celts & Pats!) and I followed your instructions about making these for cutouts but they did NOT work for me! They were tasty but once the dough softened (which was quickly), I had to use a lot more flour and then I did the refrigeration for 15 mins so they would set but they still spread way too much…so much that some didn’t look like the cutter I used. I’m so disappointed! I’m due to go to my brother’s with lots of cookies for the kids to decorate on Saturday and tomorrow night, I’ll have to make more cookies. I admit that my cutters are kind of large so I only got about 1 1/2 doz per batch. My son wanted to use a small cutter that he got as a present and surprisingly, the tiny ones kept their shape but I don’t want all pigs from Toy Story! LOL I had done 4 batches and then froze them for baking tonight so I guess for the remaining 2, I’ll just roll them at a later date in sugar and just make regular cookies. Should I try your other recipe? I’m now desperate!
Hi Lisa, I’m so sorry you didn’t have luck with these. I do have two other sugar cookies on the site, but I have found that this recipe specifically held shapes infinitely better than either of the other two. It’s my go-to recipe for decorated sugar cookies (which I make tons and tons of). The only thing I can think of is that maybe the dough wasn’t rolled out quite thin enough? If it’s too thick sometimes it can spread more. Just a thought. In any case, so sorry these didn’t work out for you! :(
Mine didn’t turn out well for cut out either, the dough went really soft really fast. like in 10 mins. i couldn’t roll it out properly. Any suggestions? I need these on Saturday.
Thanks!
I would recommend chilling the dough if you are having trouble, and making sure your surface is well-floured. If the dough is ridiculously soft, the butter may be too warm, in which case the refrigerator will help.
i made these this morning, and have some tips. the best results were on a light pan lined with parchment paper. the dark pan lined with parchment made the edges a bit too brown and crunchy, and the dark pan with spray instead of parchment made them spread out way too much, and the edges got REALLY brown and crunchy. i am going to ice and decorate them and send them to school for my sons b-day party cookies to have in class. :) he is very excited!
Hi Patti, thanks for your tips! I’m definitely a big advocate of parchment paper, it’s awesome! Happy birthday to your son! :)
So, is this now your go-to Sugar Cookie recipe? I see you have more than one listed on your site (including one by Dorie Greenspan). With Christmas coming soon, my thoughts are turning to frosted sugar cookies and I still haven’t found the recipe that I’m happy with. Since I’m a fan of the folks at Cook’s Illustrated, I’ll have to give this recipe a try – I have Baking Illustrated, but I never thought to try this recipe. Just curious, have you ever tried rolling these in cinnamon-sugar to make Snickerdoodles? I’m still on the lookout for the perfect Snickerdoodle too, and I wonder if this might be an option.
Hi Erik, Yes, this is now my go-to sugar cookie recipe. I really need to make note of that on the other recipes! I haven’t tried making these into snickerdoodles, but I do have an absolute favorite snickerdoodle recipe:
https://www.browneyedbaker.com/2009/07/08/snickerdoodles/
If you try snickerdoodles with this recipe, let me know how you like them!
I have made this recipe a few times and tonight I made 4 batches of it. Some of the cookies spread and lost their shape. The dough had been refrigerated and each baking sheet had been cooled. What could I have done wrong? I have used recipe before with no problems and gotten a lot compliments. Please help!! :-)
Hi Kristi, Sometimes I find if I roll out the scraps a few too many times, those batches can tend to spread a bit. Perhaps that could have happened?
Sugar cookies are my husband”s favorite but I could never outdo grocery store bakery cookies – until now! He loooooved them! He said he never had better. I am trying the Chocolate chip recipe next :)
Yay so happy your hubby loved them! You will love those chocolate chip cookies!
I’m planning to make a large batch of these cookies (about 200!) and would really like to make the dough in advance. How long can I freeze it?
Hi Joelle, You can freeze it up to a month in advance. Have fun with the cookies!
I just finished making a batch of these cookies and they are simply divine. I just love your website…it’s my new best friend!
Yay for BFF’s! So happy to hear you love these Tykisha!
I’ve made these several times, and they are just the best-tasting sugar cookie, ever.
However, mine don’t look like yours and I’m wondering why. Mine come out wrinkly and a little sunken on the tops, not “smooth” and uniform. They look fine when they are baking, and when they come out of the oven, but seem to “deflate” after they cool. Any thoughts on what I may be doing wrong?
Hi Julie, Hmm deflating sugar cookies…Sometimes when the dough isn’t completely chilled before being baked it can spread a little. Try refrigerating the baking sheet (with the cookies on it) for about 20 minutes before baking and see if that helps. So glad you’ve been enjoying them anyway though!
Hello
I just made these and they are wonderful. Thanks for sharing this great recipe.
I have to tell you that these are by far the BEST sugar cookies I have ever had! I have made them for my family, my boyfriends family (whose mother is an avid baker), and my friends birthday party and all I have heard is how much everyone loves these cookies.
Hi Samantha,
Woo! So happy to hear that so many of your family and friends have enjoyed these cookies! They are certainly a winner.
Hey thanks for sharing! I was really wanting to love these as they look awesome. Unfortunately, this cookie dough didn’t work out too well for me. I had trouble rolling it, cutting it, and even baking it (kept coming out too overdone or too underdone). Would require a lot of trial & error on my part, which I don’t have time for. I have been using your “All Occasion Sugar Cookies” for awhile now, and have always loved them and had great results! I think I will stick with those for now! Love your blog!
I’m not really a baker but you’re site has inspired me and this is my first recipe from your site. They turned out sooo yum! Will be trying out more recipes from here, you have been bookmarked :) now maybe my son|(17 months) will grown up thinking ‘mom’ is a good baker lol.
I’m going to have to try these. My problem with baking is the wait time because I don’t make cookies until I want to eat them and then I never let them chill so they always melt in the oven, lol.
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