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Do you like the frosted cookies you get from a bakery? Then you’ll LOVE these Big Soft Sugar Cookies! Light and puffy sugar cookies are topped with a smooth layer of vanilla frosting and your favorite sprinkles. These will be your family’s new favorite cookie!
Want to see how easy it is to make these Big Soft Sugar Cookies? Check out the quick video down below!
I’m usually a chocolate cookie girl, but I always make an exception for the frosted sugar cookies from my local bakery. I’ll bet you know the type I mean: big, puffy cookies SLATHERED with a thick layer of frosting that’s slightly crunchy on top and studded with bright sprinkles. They never taste quite as good as I imagine they will, but I still give in and buy one more often than I would like to admit.
Since I’m perpetually a little disappointed in the slightly stale bakery version, and since we’re about to enter major holiday baking season, I thought it was finally time to put a SugarHero spin on these classic cookies. My family LOVED these Big Soft Sugar Cookies (in fact, my father-in-law said they were the best sugar cookies he’d ever had) and I think your family will love them too!
The secret ingredient in these cookies, which is more like a not-so-secret ingredient, is International Delight Frosted Sugar Cookie coffee creamer. You might call it cheating to use a sugar cookie-flavored ingredient to make sugar cookies…I personally call it genius! I used the Frosted Sugar Cookie flavor in both the cookie dough and the buttercream frosting that goes on top. It’s not overwhelming, but it does give the cookies an extra oomph of that vanilla-y, butter-y, can’t-put-your-finger-on-it-but-it-tastes-like-a-bakery-cookie flavor.
If you are not able to track down the Frosted Sugar Cookie variety, you can always substitute any other favorite International Delight flavor! And if you’re not able to find ANY International Delight flavors (because, ironically, I hear from my international readers that they can’t always source it) you can substitute milk or whipping cream instead in an equal amount. If you forgo the creamer, I would suggest boosting the amount of vanilla extract, and maybe consider adding a bit of almond or lemon extract as well, to compensate for the missing flavor.
Now don’t get me wrong–I love the flavor and texture of the sugar cookies, I really do. Those crispy, buttery edges? That light and fluffy center? Gimme! But we all know what’s really the best part of these cookies–THE FROSTING! So I didn’t skimp on the frosting, and smoothed on a thick layer of vanilla goodness (with a cute swirl in the middle, of course.) Since it IS almost December, I went seasonal with my sprinkles, but obviously these cookies are perfect for ANY time of year. Parties, showers, movie nights, teacher gifts…you name it, these cookies are up for it.
P.S. I would fail as a mom if I didn’t brag about the cute note and picture my 5-year old drew for this post! At the last minute, before school the other day, I asked if he would write a quick note for Santa so I could use it in the picture. He did me one better and also drew a Santa picture. If the cookie photos don’t win you over to this recipe, I hope the marker drawings will!
Big Soft Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
For the Cookies:
- 12.5 oz all-purpose flour (2 ¾ cups)
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 6 oz unsalted butter at room temperature
- 7 oz granulated sugar (1 cup)
- 1 egg at room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 oz sour cream at room temperature (1/4 cup)
- 2 fl oz International Delight Frosted Cookie Coffee Creamer (1/4 cup)
For the Frosting:
- 4 oz unsalted butter at room temperature
- 12 oz powdered sugar (3 cups)
- 3-4 TBSP International Delight Frosted Cookie Coffee Creamer
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
To Make the Cookies:
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk or sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside for now.
- In the bowl of a large stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the butter and sugar. Beat on medium speed for 1-2 minutes, until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg, vanilla, sour cream, and International Delight Frosted Cookie Coffee Creamer, and mix until well combined.
- Finally, turn the mixer off and add the flour mixture. Mix on low speed until almost combined and just a few streaks of flour remain. Stop the mixer and finish mixing by hand, being sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl well with a rubber spatula.
- Scoop the dough out into 3-4 TBSP scoops onto the baking sheets—you should get about 20 cookies from this recipe. Bake at 350 F for 16-18 minutes, until the cookies are puffed and just starting to take on color around the edges. The tops should still remain virtually colorless.
- Let the cookies cool completely before frosting.
To Make the Frosting and Decorate:
- Beat the butter with an electric mixer on medium speed for about 1 minute, until creamy and light in color. Add the powdered sugar, 3 TBSP of creamer, vanilla, and salt, and mix well, until light and fluffy. If the frosting is too stiff for your liking, slowly stream in the remaining spoonful of creamer, a bit at a time, until you get a texture you like.
- Put a generous dollop of frosting on top of each cookie, and spread it around evenly over the top. Finish with a big pinch of sprinkles or other decorations.
- For the best taste and texture, store in an airtight container, and enjoy within 2-3 days. The cookies and frosting can both be made in advance, and the cookies can be stored in the freezer for up to 2 months, while the frosting can be frozen for 2 months or refrigerated for 2 weeks. Make sure to store it with plastic pressed tightly to the top so it doesn’t form a crust. Allow it to come to room temperature and re-whip before using.
Video
Nutrition
I made these yesterday for my husband’s office and they were so yummy. However, mine didn’t flatten out at all to match your picture … they stayed really tall. Did I mess up somehow? They were fully baked and soft.
Yay, glad to hear it! There are a few reasons why cookies might not spread as much–if you baked from chilled dough they tend to spread less. Also, if the butter/sugar was creamed for a shorter amount of time, less air is incorporated, making them less likely to spread. And finally, the baking sheet can matter a lot! Thin sheets vs insulated, dark sheets vs shiny metal…they can all REALLY effect the way the cookies bake and look. I baked mine on heavy aluminum half sheet pans, and if your pans happened to be thinner or darker, the bottoms might have cooked quickly, preventing them from spreading as much. If you have a variety of pans, maybe try a different type next time and see if you get a different result. You can also just flatten them with the palm of your hand a bit before baking to encourage the spread! 🙂
Oh my sugar stars…these cookies themselves “encourage the spread”!…I’m off to search my closet for some looser jeans…Merry Christmas!
High altitude instructions?
Hi Stephanie! I’m at 5500 feet and didn’t make any adjustments to the recipe. Unless you’re super high up I think you should be good!
I love your recipes. The last one I made was your purple Halloween cake – beautiful and delicious! Can these cookies be rolled so I can use cookie cutters? Or is there a better recipe I should use?
Thank you so much for using my recipes! These cookies spread out to much to be rolled out and used with cookie cutters however, I recommend using this recipe, its one of my favorite for roll out cookies https://www.sugarhero.com/vintage-christmas-card-cakes/
Oh God, you’re so talented. I have shared this to my friends. We will have an amazing Christmas day. Thank you!
Oh God, you’re so talented. I have shared this to my friends. We will have an amazing Christmas day. Thank you!
Thank you so much for sharing my recipes! Hope you have a great Christmas and holiday season!
Can you use cookie cutters with these cookies
You can’t use cookie cutters with this recipe, the cookies will spread out too much. However here is a link to one of my favorite roll out sugar cookie recipes https://www.sugarhero.com/vintage-christmas-card-cakes/ Hope this is helpful!
Can anything be substituted for the creamer in the cookie and frosting recipes?
Yes, you can substitute an equal amount of milk or whipping cream!
These are very good. They didn’t flatten out for me on the first batch, so in the second I flattened them by hand a bit before baking. They came out perfect.
So glad to hear they worked out! Thanks for the flattening tip!
Does it really call for over a pound of butter ????? Seems like a lot for less than two dozen cookies
Hi Jeanette, It calls for 6 oz in the cookie dough, and 4 oz in the frosting, which is 10 oz total. Since a pound is 16 oz, the full batch of cookies uses about 2/3 lb butter, for 20 large cookies that are about 4 inches wide. Hope this helps, and let me know if you have any other questions!
I am making these tonight for my daughter’s Christmas party at school for the kids to decorate. I don’t want them to spread too much. I want them to be thicker and fluffier like the ones you get at Walmart. LOL Suggestions?
I think you’ll be really happy with this recipe! When I make them they don’t spread too much and they stay thick and fluffy! Cookie decorating for a Christmas party is a great idea, let me know it goes!
My first try to make these big sugar cookies ,they are divine they came out great light and fluffy I taste one before putting the frosting on it tasted great they will be divine when I put the frosting on ,thank you for this lucious recipe
I made these tonight for my kids for Christmas. They are DELISH!! Not only were they so good it was kind of fun to make because everyone got to help frost them and then they added their favorite colored sprinkles. You won’t regret making these. Thanks for the recipe.
These came out so good!! I’m making my second round of them today (I even made the first tray a little too small and they still came out perfect). I’m not usually an icing on cookies fan, but you’re right, that completely makes these cookies. Have an amazing holiday!
i just made these..i could not get my round…to sticky to roll in a roll, so mine was ok…taste good…thank u…
Just made a batch of these. I’m going to leave them plain because I have no icing sugar to make the frosting with. I’m surprised any of them made it to the oven…the batter was sooooo good! 😉
I made a few adjustments, only because I didn’t have everything on hand. I subbed the sour cream with vanilla Greek yogurt and cut the amount of vanilla down to 1 1/2 tsp, and I didn’t have any creamer so I used half and half (10% cream, usually used for coffee). The babies are baking now…the house smells incredible. I’m sure they’ll be delicious.
Elizabeth, thanks for being just a little bit awesome! 😀
Delicious. Amazing. Tasty, easy to make. Have shared with anyone who will listen.
Hi! I love your recipes, I used the Pull Apart Wreath Cake as my Christmas cake last year which went really well!
Because I live practically in the middle of nowhere, is the sour cream necessary or can it be substituted?
Thank you so much, Em! I love to hear that. You can definitely substitute the sour cream. My first choice would be thick green yogurt (plain or a neutral flavor like vanilla) but whipping or heavy cream would also work. I think the cream option might make the cookies a bit flatter, but there might be no change, and they’ll still taste wonderful. 🙂
I loved these cookies and my co-workers did too. I changed the way they were decorated to make Santa Bellies that I saw on Pinterest since the cookie kept this great puffed shape, I didn’t have to use the marshmallow to give the belly shape. Can’t wait to make them again this year. Though I need to use a different brand for red food coloring, the Wilton one I had didn’t give me the red I wanted and had to use almost the whole jar to get it as red as I did. Any suggestions on another company with better red food coloring would be appreciated.
Hey Mitzi, my preferred brand is Americolor the color you would want is super red. Also just to let you know colors deepen more over time in frosting so that is something to keep in mind. Thank you so much!
Elizabeth, Would you have a CHOCOLATE COOKIE version of this recipe ?
In Our Family, CHOCOLATE Is a Food Group.
Hey Joan, I don’t have one currently. However that sounds delicious and I am right there with you and your family! That is something I will want to work on and get out there! I will say though, these may not be sugar cookies but they are chocolate and stay soft a lot like sugar cookies do. They do have a gingerbread taste but they are delicious! https://www.sugarhero.com/soft-chocolate-gingerbread-cookies/ If you give them a try I would love to hear how it goes!
Loved the big soft sugar cookies. Flavor is amazing,but mine did not spread at all.. I am going to try again, maybe with less flour. Any reason as to what happened or what I did wrong?
Family still ate them all. Thanks for great recipes.
Cookies are really good. But I make golf ball size, which makes 33 cookies and bake for 10 minutes. They are perfect. I think, looking at your video, your cookie size is an ice cream scoop or tennis ball size..
Hey Nancy, glad you like the recipe! Sorry for the confusion, I guess golf ball could have been a bit misleading. I will have to change that so it is more clear. Thanks so much!!
can this recipe be doubled or tripled?????
Hey Debra, You betcha! On the top of the recipe card there is actually a servings section and you can change it to how ever many cookies you need. It will do the math for you and everything! I would love to hear how it goes once you give it a try! Thanks!
Was easy to make, taste was good but nut cookies did puff up very high and never leveled out but I will make them again
Hey Liz, I am so glad you enjoyed them! Thanks for the feedback, I would love to hear how it goes once you give it another try!
you lost me at adding International Delight Frosted Cookie Coffee Creamer into the mixture.
Hey Sheila, you can totally substitute the creamer for heavy whipping cream!
This is the best sugar cookie recipe I have ever made! They turned out perfect!!!!!
Hey Abby! I am so glad to hear it! They look fabulous, thank you so much for sharing!
I made this recipe after finding it on a different site. Is it your own original recipe? My family couldn’t stop eating these luscious cookies. I used French Vanilla coffee creamer because the flavor called for in the recipe was not available where we live. I’m sure this will be a new favorite when I make it for the kids at church, too.
Hey Norma, I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe! I love hearing that, this is my recipe yes! That isn’t to say there aren’t some like it. It is one of my go to recipes as well! Thank you so much for your feedback, about the creamer that is what I suggest! If you can’t find the one called for you can always swap it out for another or heavy whipping cream. Thanks!
What did I do wrong mine came out looking just like a drop biscuit.
Hi Kathy, I am sorry to hear that the cookies didn’t work out. I would love to help you troubleshoot, however it is hard to know what could have gone wrong without more details about the ingredients and procedure. It sounds like the cookies didn’t spread very well, I find the baking sheet has a big impact on how the cookies will spread. Did you by chance use a dark, light, or glass cookie sheet? Another thing that comes to mind is that the longer the ingredients are beaten for can get some air incorporated and that will help them to spread more while baking. My first thoughts are that it could have been a combinations of these two things. Feel free to send me an email, and I would love to troubleshoot further with you!
I made these last week and my co-workers gobbled them up so fast that I need to make more. Mine didn’t flatten out very much and kinda looked like a biscuit, however I just covered that up with the icing. I was wondering if it’s okay to chill the dough prior to? I was thinking of wrapping like a log and slice that way so they have a better shape. Thoughts?
Hi Stevie, I am glad they tasted good and enjoyed by so many! I am sorry to hear that they didn’t flatten out as expected. I would love to help you troubleshoot, however it is hard to know what could have gone wrong without having more details about the ingredients and procedure. I find the baking sheet has a big impact on how the cookies will spread. Did you by chance use a dark, light, or glass cookie sheet? Another thing that comes to mind is that the longer the ingredients are beaten for can get some air incorporated and that will help them to spread more while baking. My first thoughts are that it could have been a combinations of these two things. Feel free to send me an email, and I would love to troubleshoot further with you!
Mine taste good but they came out like a biscuit. Any suggestions or tips as to what I could have done wrong :/
Hi Kim, I am sorry to hear that the cookies didn’t work out. I would love to help you troubleshoot, however it is hard to know what could have gone wrong without more details about the ingredients and procedure. It sounds like the cookies didn’t spread very well, I find the baking sheet has a big impact on how the cookies will spread. Did you by chance use a dark, light, or glass cookie sheet? Another thing that comes to mind is that the longer the ingredients are beaten for can get some air incorporated and that will help them to spread more while baking. My first thoughts are that it could have been a combinations of these two things. Feel free to send me an email, and I would love to troubleshoot further with you!
I thought they were delicious, but how do you get them nice and flat? With doing the scoop and putting them on the baking sheet, they stayed puffy and almost biscuit like. Do you need to press them down? Any tips? Thanks!
Hi Becky, I am glad they tasted good however, I am sorry to hear that the cookies didn’t work out. I would love to help you troubleshoot, however it is hard to know what could have gone wrong without more details about the ingredients and procedure. I find the baking sheet has a big impact on how the cookies will spread. Did you by chance use a dark, light, or glass cookie sheet? Another thing that comes to mind is that the longer the ingredients are beaten for can get some air incorporated and that will help them to spread more while baking. My first thoughts are that it could have been a combinations of these two things. Feel free to send me an email, and I would love to troubleshoot further with you!
Baked them for 15 minutes and they came out HARD AS A ROCK!! This is the 4th recipe on your website that has failed. I have followed the recipe to the letter and it never works!!
Hey Bethany, I am really sorry to hear this recipe and others haven’t worked out for you. I would love to work through them and see if there is something we could remedy together. Feel free to email me, and I would love to troubleshoot and help how I can.