Kentucky butter cake cookies are soft-baked, buttery cookies topped with butter-sugar glaze that taste just like delicious bites of cake! They have all the traditional flavors you love, baked into an easy cookie recipe.
These chewy butter cookies are a fun and easy spin on my super popular Kentucky butter cake recipe. Like my Texas sheet cake cookies, you asked for a cookie version, and these deliver! Now you can have your cake and eat cookies, too.
Today’s melt-in-your-mouth Kentucky butter cake cookies (literally) take the cake. And put it into a cookie. And I have all of you to thank for it! By popular demand, these are moist, fluffy sugar cookies glazed with buttery sugar syrup that melts into the tops and forms a sweet, sugary crust, just like my original Kentucky butter cake recipe. Even Crumbl bakeries have their own version of Kentucky butter cake cookies, but I think these are better. I’ll show you how easy they are to make with ingredients you likely already have in the kitchen.
- Authentic old-fashioned flavor. The cookie dough is really simple. I knew I wanted a soft-baked cookie that replicated the texture of the cake, and I think I nailed it. These butter cake cookies are dense and soft, and the butter flavor is pretty spot on.
- Quicker than cake. The original cake recipe is an easy one, but requires cooling time (as all cakes do). These cookies solve that problem. They’re ready in 30 minutes and glazed warm from the oven!
- No chilling the dough. This drop cookie recipe uses a no-chill cookie dough, saving even more time. The cookies go from the mixing bowl to the oven in minutes.
What Do These Cookies Taste Like?
Just like Kentucky butter cake! Or at least, pretty darn close. These are deliciously thick, gooey, glazed cookies dusted with powdered sugar for the perfect little bite.
When there isn’t the time to bake a whole cake, or when I’m craving just a taste, I’ll whip together a batch of cookies instead. If you really want to stay on theme, pair these butter cake cookies with my browned butter bourbon chocolate chip cookies. They’re inspired by Derby pie!
These are a variation of my classic sugar cookies recipe, which also uses pantry staples like baking powder, granulated sugar, and room-temperature butter. You’ll find the full ingredients list and recipe directions in the printable recipe card after the post. Here’s a step-by-step overview on how to make homemade Kentucky butter cake cookies:
- Cream the butter and sugar. Start by beating softened butter with sugar until it’s smooth and fluffy.
- Mix in the wet ingredients. Then, you’ll add eggs and vanilla, mixing until they’re well combined.
- Add the dry ingredients. Stir in baking powder, salt, and then flour. Be careful not to overmix as the dough comes together, and remember to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Portion and bake. Scoop the cookie dough onto a lined baking sheet, about 2 tablespoons of dough per cookie. For a thicker cookie, you can roll the dough into balls. Otherwise, use a medium-sized cookie scoop to drop the cookies right onto the baking sheet.
- Bake. Bake these cookies at 350ºF for 9-11 minutes, until they’re golden at the edges (see below for details on how to tell when your cookies are done). Take the cookies out and leave them to rest on the baking sheet for a few minutes, and move them to a wire rack before you glaze them.
Add the Butter Cake Glaze
The stovetop glaze is truly the pièce de résistance of a Kentucky butter cake, and these cookies. You’d glaze the cake while it’s still warm, so the same applies here.
- Heat the ingredients. While your cookies bake, combine the glaze ingredients (butter, sugar, vanilla, and a little water) in a saucepan. Warm the ingredients over medium-low heat while stirring until the sugar dissolves. Don’t let the glaze come to a boil.
- Cool and thicken. Now, take the glaze off the heat and let it sit for 5 minutes to cool down and thicken.
- Glaze the cookies. Spoon the glaze over your freshly baked cookies while they’re warm from the oven. About 1 teaspoon of glaze per cookie is perfect. Leave it to set, then dust with powdered sugar for serving.
I give a range for the baking time for these cookies. This is because all ovens bake differently, and the key to soft-baked cookies is not to overbake. These sugar cookies are done when they’re just golden at the edges, and still a bit gooey (but not wet) in the centers. They’ll continue to set up on the baking sheet. Check the cookies after 9 minutes, and go from there.
Recipe Notes
- Use room temperature ingredients. You can make these cookies with salted or unsalted butter. Whichever you choose, take the butter out of the fridge 30 minutes ahead of time. Room temperature ingredients combine more smoothly into the cookie dough, and the cookies are less likely to spread as they bake.
- Use a cookie scoop. It’s the best way to ensure your cookies turn out the same size so that they bake evenly.
- Don’t let them over-bake. You want these cookies to be just done or maybe even a little underdone when they come out of the oven. If they’re fully baked, they’re overbaked!
- Dissolve the sugar. The butter glaze uses granulated sugar, not powdered sugar, so make sure to heat it long enough and stir constantly so the sugar completely dissolves. It helps thicken the glaze, and it also won’t be grainy.
- Fix thickened glaze: If the butter glaze becomes thick while you’re spooning it over your cookies, place it back on the stove over low heat to warm it up again.
- Use a box of cake mix. You can absolutely adapt my cake mix cookies recipe into Kentucky butter cookies! Choose a white cake mix, and replace the vegetable oil in the recipe with melted butter.
- Turn them into cookie bars. Press your cookie dough into a 9×13-inch baking pan and bake following the instructions for my sugar cookie bars. Afterward, pour on the glaze and spread it over the bars.
- At room temperature. Keep the glazed cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- Freeze. Freeze the cookies in a freezer bag or freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Whenever a sweet craving strikes, thaw them at room temperature.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 11 minutes
- Total Time: 31 minutes
- Yield: 24 cookies
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Description
Kentucky butter cake cookies are soft-baked, buttery sugar cookies topped with butter-sugar glaze. They have all the traditional flavors you love, in cookie form!
Ingredients
For the Cookies
- 1 cup butter, room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
For the Glaze
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- Powdered sugar for dusting (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F/175°C.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone mat. Set aside.
- In the bowl of the stand mixer, beat butter and sugar together for 1 minute until mixed. Add in eggs and vanilla and mix until incorporated, scraping sides as necessary.
- Add in baking powder and salt, continuing to mix, and finally, the flour. Mix until the dough just comes together.
- Using a medium (2 tablespoon) cookie scoop, drop the dough onto the lined baking sheet. Alternately, you can roll the dough into balls if you want a thicker cookie.
- Bake for 9-11 minutes until the edges are slightly golden. Don’t over-bake.
- Glaze: While the cookies are baking, combine the glaze ingredients in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir continuously until the butter is melted and the sugar is dissolved. Do not bring to a boil.
- Allow the glaze to cool slightly (about 5 minutes) to thicken.
- When the cookies are done, spoon one teaspoon of the glaze onto each cookie while they’re warm. If the glaze gets too thick, just heat it up a bit more.
- Dust with powdered sugar after the glaze has set if desired.
This is such a wonderfully versatile recipe that turns out perfectly every time! I have made it as written, but I’ve also made a gluten free and vegan version, and I’ve made it with almond instead of vanilla, and with lemon flavoring, juice, and zest. All variations were delicious, and I get asked for the recipe every time I make them!
We do a fun bake-off at work during the holidays. I was looking for something a little different, my sister suggested KY butter cake so I decided to look for cookies and found these. I’m making them this weekend as a tester and OMG they were so good and gave them to a friend to try and she loved them. I think I’ll double the glaze for the bake-off, it was so good., it made the cookies, eat with a spoon good.