The softest sugar cookie recipe you’ll ever find. These super soft sugar cookies are worth all the effort of mixing, rolling, cutting, baking, and frosting!
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Super Soft Sugar Cookies
My family had a tradition every year, baking my grandma’s soft sugar cookies recipe together.
It was without fail my entire childhood and even into my boys childhood memories.
This past Christmas we moved across the country and we knew it just wouldn’t quite be Christmas without our favorite Christmas cookies and those treasured memories we share!
It’s all the mixing and flour.
The rolling and snitching some dough to snack on.
The cutting and the frosting.
And of course, the reward at the end. The best soft sugar cookies ever!
The are thick, and soft, and so, so, good!
My grandma’s secret recipe always included a special ingredient I’ve never seen in another sugar cookie recipe, that is the key to this recipe’s yummy taste!
Just a dash, a tiny hint, of lemon!
It may sound weird, but trust me when I say it makes both the dough and the cookies so incredible!
Then, don’t forget to lather them in our super easy 4-Ingredient Powdered Sugar Frosting!
More Favorite Cookie Recipes!
You can browse all of our easy cookie recipes here in our landing page specifically for cookies and bar recipes!
- Try this mini skillet cookie recipe for a desert that feels like you’re dining out, but it’s cheap, easy, and can be made in minutes!
- These no bake cookie dough bars not only LOOK amazing, they taste fantastic, too! Frost them with a color for the season or occasion you’re celebrating!
- These cheesecake sprinkle cookies are a go-to for me when I need a cookie in a pinch! It’s easy to keep the ingredients on hand.
Super Soft Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 eggs
- 2/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 tsp lemon extract
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3-4 cups flour
- Powdered Sugar Frosting (click over for the recipe)
Instructions
- Cream together the butter and sugar until well combined. Beat eggs into the mixture.
- Add milk, baking soda, vanilla, lemon extract, and salt. Blend until well combined.
- Add 3 cups of flour, mixing in one cup at a time until blended.
- Slowly add one additional cup of flour, only if needed.. You'll want your dough to be slightly sticky but form a solid dough.
- Transfer dough to the fridge and allow to chill for an hour and a half or overnight.
- Lightly flour your surface and roll out the dough to 1/8" thick (not too thick, not too thin).
- Cut our shapes with cookie cutters and placed cut dough onto a baking sheet.
- Bake 8-10 minutes at 350*F. Watch for the cookies to just start to turn golden. If you cook them too long, they will not be soft.
- Frost with our Powdered Sugar Frosting recipe and store in an air-tight container.
I originally shared my Grandma’s recipe here first: Best Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe
Kristi says
I love soft sugar cookies. When my Mom used to make them it seemed like half the time they were hard. Will pin this and give me a try. I bet it’s the secret ingredient that makes em soft!
Jennifer says
Those cookies look so good! Frosted sugar cookies are my all time favorite, so I can’t wait to make these.
Becky says
I love sugar cookies. I can’t wait to try out your recipe! Your cookies look really yummy!
Audrey McClelland says
I love sugar cookies. They are my absolute favorite cookie in the world, and they’re even better with frosting! Om nom nom.
Scott says
Sugar cookies are one thing I let everyone else make. Mine never turn out right and this way I can spend more time eating them than making them!
Mary says
Tried this recipe used 3 cups of flour. Omitted lemon extract. Added 1/4 teaspoon baking powder. Rolled and cut them out in powdered sugar. Yummy. They turned out great.
Tracy says
Do they have a lemon taste?
Janel says
Just a small hint of lemon! So good!
Julie says
Which is better for soft cookies…butter or margarine?
Janel says
I usually use butter, but either will work.
Dawn says
You didn’t say how to make the frosting
Janel says
The recipe to the frosting is linked in the post! 🙂
https://simplesweetrecipes.com/4-ingredient-powdered-sugar-frosting/
Edna Brown says
Please send the frosting recipe
cindi says
I have never seen sugar with baking soda…just checking that it isn’t a typo…thank you
Janel says
That’s what we use!
Linda says
Can you substitute the same amount of almond extract for the lemon?
Janel says
I’m sure you could and they’d taste great! I’ve never tried it, so let me know how they turn out!
Cindy Smith says
will they ship good like over to Iraq,
Susan says
How many cookies does this make?
sabrina says
i almost want to add a little more lemon extract. it gave them a really nice flavor! super soft cookies and yummy. i even forgot the eggs til the end and they still turned out great. next time i will make the frosting but i bought some instead.
Carol says
Can these be made as drop cookies?