These Cream Cheese Cut Out Sugar Cookies are my favorite cut out sugar cookie recipe. The cream cheese gives these classic cookies a great flavor and helps keep them soft!
Cut Out Sugar Cookies are my kid’s favorites, I am sure this isn’t exclusive to my house. Sure they like to eat them, but the decoration part is what they love the best…that is until they have iced and sprinkled 3 cookies each and then they’re over it, leaving me with a good 30 cookies to decorate on my own. Yeah, every year.
This year I’m switching up the usual cookie game we play. First I’m making this cream cheese cut out sugar cookies recipe. PLUS I’m making fluffy frosting to spread on the cookies. No piping bags this year, no little metal balls on the cookie that crack out fillings…nope, none of it. Plus, we all know fluffy frosting > royal icing. It’s a no brainer.
This is such a fantastic cut out sugar cookie recipe because it includes the addition of cream cheese. The cream cheese adds delicious flavor to the cookie, and also helps keep them soft. But they totally hold shape when cutting them out with cutters. It might be the perfect recipe!
Besides the cream cheese, another secret to this recipe is the use of just egg yolks…this adds to the richness of the batter!
Once you make the dough and chill it, you can go ahead and roll it out. I like thick cookies, so I roll it to about a 1/2 inch thick.
You can use simple circle cutters…
Or get fancy for the holidays!
Just bake them up until they are lightly golden at the edges and let them cool before icing.
Again, I topped mine with a fluffy and creamy Cream Cheese Frosting, but if you want to get detailed here is the recipe for my royal icing!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 36 large cookies 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
These Cream Cheese Cut Out Sugar Cookies are my favorite cut out sugar cookie recipe. The cream cheese gives these classic cookies a great flavor and helps keep them soft!
Ingredients
- 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
- 2 cups butter, room temperature
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 egg yolks
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 5 1/4 cups flour
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
- 4 ounces butter, room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar
Instructions
- In bowl of stand mixer beat cream cheese and butter until creamy, about 2 minutes, scraping sides as necessary.
- Add sugar and beat for an additional 3 minutes. Mixture should be fluffy and pale in color. Turn mixer to medium-low and add in egg yolks, vanilla and salt and mix until combined.
- Finally turn mixer to low and slowly add in flour. Mix just until all flour is incorporated.
- Chill dough for at least 2 hours.
- When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350° and line baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Remove dough from fridge and in portions, roll dough to 1/2 inch thick on a floured surface. Using cookie cutters cut dough and place onto prepared baking sheet. Cookies won’t spread too much.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes, depending on how large the cookies you are baking are.
- Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before icing.
Frosting
- Cream together butter and cream cheese until smooth. Slowly add in powdered sugar and turn the mixer up to medium high and beat until smooth and creamy.
- Color with food coloring if desired.
Notes
Store cookies airtight at room temperature for up to a week. Or freeze for up to a month.
Store frosting refrigerated in an airtight container for up to a week.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 293
- Sugar: 19.7 g
- Sodium: 68.4 mg
- Fat: 16.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 33.9 g
- Protein: 2.9 g
- Cholesterol: 53.8 mg
Could I use a whole egg instead of 2 yolks? Thanks!
Salted or unsalted butter?
I always use salted, but if you prefer unsalted, go for it!
the smoothest nicest dough I’ve ever made. love the flavour and texture the cream cheese adds. will definitely make again and again.
Awesome!! Thanks for the feedback!
Can you freeze these cookies with the frosting on them or just unfrosted? I want to have them decorated and ready to go but want to freeze them and take them out a few days before they are needed.
You could freeze them frosted as well!
Can you freeze the cookie with the frosting on already?
Thanks!!
You can freeze them frosted as well!
Hi! I will be trying these cookies tomorrow. Is it possible to turn this icing into “royal icing”? Meaning making it more liquidity for filling in details and more stiff for outlining details?
Sure, You can add more milk to the frosting until it’s more of a syrup consistency!
Self rising or all purpose flour?
all purpose!
These cookies look so soft! What a fun activity to do with your kids!
Thank you! Made these this evening and they are so good. Didn’t ice them yet. But the cookie alone is very good. Easy to roll out as long as you Keep the dough chilled.
How long can I leave the dough in the fridge before baking it? I know you say your chocolate chip dough can be in for a long time – will this be okay for a day or two if I can’t get around to baking them?
Absolutely this will be ok! You could leave it in the fridge for up to a week!