No Chill No Spread Cut Out Cookies are delicious, soft, chewy sugar cookies that hold their shape perfectly when baked, and look beautiful decorated with glossy sugar cookie icing or fluffy stackable buttercream. This cut-out cookie recipe is perfect for Christmas cookies or any special occasion.
🍪No Chill Cut Out Cookies That Don't Spread
This is the only cut-out sugar cookie recipe I use for decorated cutout cookies. The cookies are thick, soft, flavorful, and delicious plain (dunked in coffee) or with a glaze of icing.
It's an easy sugar cookie recipe with simple ingredients I always have on hand, and the cookies hold their shape beautifully, no matter which cookie cutter I use.
For more no chill Christmas cookie recipes, try Cut Out Gingerbread Cookies, Chocolate Cut Out Cookies, Red Velvet Cut Out Cookies, and Chocolate Chip Cut Out Cookies.
❤️You're Going to Love These
- Foolproof no spread no chill sugar cookie recipe for your Christmas cookie tray
- Perfect homemade sugar cookies to decorate for holidays and special occasions
- Cut out cookies hold their shape when baked -- no chill time!
🧈Ingredients
See recipe card at the bottom of the post for the full list of ingredients and exact amounts.
- Unsalted butter, room temperature. If the butter is too warm, it can make the dough sticky and difficult to roll out. Room temperature butter is about 65-67 degrees and cool to the touch. Pressing it with your finger should leave an indent-it should not go all the way through it. You can also use salted butter, just omit the salt.
- Egg, room temperature. A room-temperature egg will mix more quickly and easily into the cookie dough.
- Almond extract, optional. A little almond extract adds wonderful flavor to cookies that could otherwise be a bit flat. You can leave it out or substitute different flavors like maple, orange, or lemon extract.
- Baking powder. Leavening agents are necessary to give cookies rise and create a lighter texture, but baking soda can cause cookies to spread. Baking powder adds the lift and texture we want without the spread.
- Powdered sugar or flour, as needed. If the dough sticks when rolling, dust the parchment with a little powdered sugar or flour. Note that powdered sugar can give the tops of the cookies a slight crackle appearance.
🥣How to Make No Chill Cut Out Sugar Cookies
Step 1: Cream the butter and sugar with a hand or stand mixer at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Beat in the egg, then the vanilla and almond extract.
Step 2: Sift in the dry ingredients (or whisk flour mixture in a separate bowl). Mix on low speed just until the dough comes together. Do not overmix.
Step 3: Form the dough into two portions and roll dough with a rolling pin to ¼" thickness between two sheets of parchment paper.
Step 4: Cut dough with your favorite cookie cutters, re-rolling and cutting the scraps. Place cookies 2 inches apart on baking sheet lined with parchment paper or silicone mat.
Step 5: Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes until the bottom edges start to turn light golden brown. Cool on the cookie sheet for 2 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.
Step 6: Enjoy plain or frost the cooled cookies with buttercream frosting, glossy sugar cookie frosting (pictured), or royal icing and decorate with colored sugars and sprinkles.
👉Top Tip: Room temperature butter is cool to the touch and leaves an indent when pressed with your finger. Butter that is too soft may make the dough sticky.
☑️Tips
- Using parchment paper to roll out the dough keeps the dough from sticking without adding extra flour. If it sticks, dust the surface with a little flour or powdered sugar. Note that powdered sugar can cause a slight crackle effect on the tops of the cookies.
- If the dough is too soft to easily work with, chill it until it firms up.
🎁Storage & Make Ahead Instructions
- Store plain cut-out sugar cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 5 days or in the refrigerator for 10 days. If frosted with buttercream, store at room temperature for one day or up to 5 days in the refrigerator.
- Store leftover cookie dough wrapped in plastic wrap or ziptop bag in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Bring to room temperature so it's easy to roll out. If it dries out, knead in a little bit of water.
- Freeze sugar cookie dough in a freezer bag for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator.
- Freeze frosted or unfrosted cookies for up to 3 months. Before freezing frosted cookies, let the icing set until hardened, then place the cookies in a single layer between parchment paper or wax paper. Thaw at room temperature or in the refrigerator.
❓FAQs
No. This is the best sugar cookie recipe for when you want to bake your cookies right away. This no chill recipe is designed to mix, roll, cut, and bake immediately, while still holding its shape with clean edges.
The perfect combination of butter that's truly room temperature (cool and pliable, not greasy) and the proper ratio of flour keeps the cookies from spreading out as they bake.
Yes. Even though it's no-chill, the dough can be wrapped well and refrigerated up to 3 days ahead, then rolled and baked when you're ready.
In an airtight container, they stay soft 4-5 days at room temperature. Let icing fully dry before stacking decorated cookies.
Yes. Freeze dough up to 3 months. Freeze cooled baked cookies (plain or frosted after icing is set) up to 3 months.
A crusting buttercream or a sugar cookie icing that sets firm is best for clean decorating and easy stacking.
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📖 Recipe
No Chill No Spread Cut Out Cookies
Equipment
- Rolling pin guides I use dowels, but you can buy them, too
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature (see notes)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg, room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract, optional
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- powdered sugar or flour, for rolling, optional
Sugar Cookie Icing Options
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix butter and sugar at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Beat in the egg, then the vanilla and almond extract until well combined.
- Sift in the flour, baking powder, and salt. (You can also whisk dry ingredients together in a separate bowl before adding them to the wet ingredients). Mix on low speed just until the dough comes together in large clumps.
- Use your hands to form the dough into two portions. Roll each portion to ¼" thickness between two sheets of parchment paper or on a surface lightly dusted with flour or powdered sugar.
- Cut the dough with cookie cutters, re-rolling and cutting the scraps. Place cookies 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake cookies for 8-10 minutes or until the bottoms just start to turn light brown. Cool the cookies on the pan for 2 minutes then transfer to a wire baking rack to cool the rest of the way.
Notes
- Room-temperature butter is cool to the touch and leaves an indent when pressed with your finger. Butter that is too soft may make the dough sticky.
- Roll the dough between sheets of parchment or on a surface lightly dusted with flour or powdered sugar. Powdered sugar may give the cookies a crackly appearance.
Judy Mitchell says
I’m 77 years old having made thousands of cut out sugar cookies, this dough is the easiest I have ever worked with. Cookies hold their shape, scraps can be reworked until you have no dough left. They taste delicious too.
Cara says
Hi, Judy, thank you so much for your nice note -- you made my day :). I'm so glad you enjoyed them! Cara
Christel says
What is 0.5 tsp first time ever seeing a 0.5 and I bake all the time. Any help is appreciated .
Cara says
Are you referring to the salt? If so, it is 1/2 teaspoon. Hope that helps. Enjoy!
KM says
If your dough comes out too dry, I recommend adding 2 tbsp milk.
Cara says
Thanks for the tip! Happy baking :).
Kimber Nash says
I did have to use 2 tbsp milk, mine was very dry. (I am 6k' elevation). Maybe even 2-3 drops more milk.
Emily says
Hi Cara.
I am wondering if I can roll the cookie dough a bit thicker?
Cara says
Hi, Emily, you can, however, I found the shapes don't stay quite as sharp -- they don't spread, per se, but it's more like they distort so it's not a straight up-and-down edge. What I've done for thicker cookies is to freeze the cutouts for about 15 minutes before baking, which really helped keep those sharp edges.
Renee says
Can you use margarine
Cara says
Hi, Renee, I haven't made this exact recipe with margarine, so I can't say for sure how they would turn out, but I would be concerned that the higher water content would cause them to spread. For best results, you could try it with stick margarine (not tub), and even consider using 1/2 margarine and 1/2 butter flavored shortening. If the first batch (or a test cookie) spreads, you could also try freezing the cutouts for about 15 minutes before baking to help them hold their shape. Hope this helps!
Buse A. says
Hello, I'm writing from Turkey. Last year I made Christmas cookies for my colleagues at work using your recipe and they loved them. I loved them too. Even though it was a rather large portion (about 150 cookies :)), I made and baked them quite easily. I'm here again this year and I'll be making them again next week.
Thank you for the recipe!
Cara says
Hello, I'm so happy to have you here all the way from Turkey! Thank you for trying my recipe and for choosing it again this year, that really means a lot to me. By the way, your work colleagues are so lucky to have you baking for them :). Merry Christmas and happy baking! Cara