These Soft Amish Sugar Cookies are hands-down my new favorite sugar cookies recipe. They’re so simple and melt-in-your-mouth delicious, you have to stop what you’re doing right now and make these!
I’ve developed quite the sugar cookie collection over the years. Looking for a foolproof Cut Out Sugar Cookie recipe? Covered! Or Easy Soft Sugar Cookies WIth Frosting? I gotcha. And if you’re looking for the BEST soft, no fuss sugar cookie recipe, allow me to introduce you to my new favorite: Amish Sugar Cookies!
This easy sugar cookie recipe is all kinds of old-fashioned and nostalgic, and I love it. The texture of these cookies quite literally melts in your mouth. It’s unreal! They’re thick and soft without being cakey, perfectly buttery and sweet – everything you want a sugar cookie recipe to be!
Rumor has it that versions of these sugar cookies have been circulating since the 1700s, when they originated with the Pennsylvania Dutch. This old-timey cookie recipe includes vegetable oil and powdered sugar in addition to butter and granulated sugar.
Healthy? Maybe not. However, this unusual combination is what makes Amish sugar cookies uniquely melt-in-your-mouth and oh-so-amazing!
Recipe Ingredients
- Butter: Salted or unsalted, at room temperature.
- Vegetable Oil: Or another neutral oil, such as canola.
- Sugar: Both granulated sugar as well as powdered sugar is what gives these cookies a particularly tender texture.
- Vanilla: Pure vanilla extract, and not the imitation kind.
- Cream of Tartar: Almost every Amish cookie recipe features cream of tartar, which reacts with baking soda to provide the leavening. This gives these cookies a light and fluffy rise.
- Baking Soda
- Eggs
- Flour
- Salt
Make the Dough: Cream together the butter, oil, and sugars. Next beat in the eggs and vanilla, followed by the baking soda, cream of tartar and salt. Slowly add in the flour, continuing to mix the dough until just combined.
Scoop the Dough: Use a cookie scoop to scoop dough balls out onto a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Bake: Bake the cookies in a preheated 350°F oven, until the edges are just golden. Let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to finish cooling.
- Use a Cookie Scoop: I used my large cookie scoop to make these the perfect size and height. If you don’t have a cookie scoop, here’s the link to my favorite!
- Don’t Over-Bake the Cookies: These cookies will only be slightly golden when they leave the oven. They may even appear under-baked – and that’s fine! Whatever you do, make sure to not over-bake these sugar cookies. You can bake out the magic. It’s a fact. Besides, they’ll continue to bake as they rest on the sheet!
How to Store Extras
Store these Amish sugar cookies airtight at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Can I Freeze These?
You can freeze both the unbaked cookie dough as well as the baked cookies for up to 3 months.
To Freeze Cookie Dough: Scoop the dough balls out onto a baking sheet, and then place the whole sheet into the freezer to flash-freeze. Once solid, transfer the dough to an airtight, freezer-safe bag or container to store them. Bake the cookie dough directly from frozen, adding an extra couple of minutes to the baking time.
To Freeze Baked Cookies: Store the baked cookies airtight once they’re completely cooled. Use pieces of parchment paper to separate the layers as needed. Freeze the cookies, and let them thaw at room temperature when you’re ready to serve them.
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- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 24 large cookies 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Amish
Description
These Soft Amish Sugar Cookies are hands-down my new favorite sugar cookies recipe. They’re so simple and melt-in-your-mouth delicious, you have to stop what you’re doing right now and make these!
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter, room temperature
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp cream of tartar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 4 1/2 cups flour
- *optional sprinkles to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In your mixing bowl cream together butter, oil and both sugars until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla.
- Add in baking soda, cream of tartar and salt and mix in.
- Turn mixer to low and add in flour, mixing until combined.
- Using a large cookie scoop (3 tablespoons) dough onto lined baking sheet. Add sprinkles now if desired. Bake for 10-12 minutes until edges just start to golden.
- Allow to cool for 3 minutes on baking sheet and transfer to wire rack to finish cooling.
Notes
recipe adapted from Taste of Home Magazine
store airtight for up to 3 days
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 249
- Sugar: 12.5 g
- Sodium: 158.7 mg
- Fat: 12.9 g
- Carbohydrates: 30.5 g
- Protein: 3 g
- Cholesterol: 40.5 mg
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**NOTE** When I first posted this recipe I left out the eggs on the printable recipe as an oversight. The recipe is corrected now. Thank you so much for the emails letting me know!!**
Actually I live in a Amish community, they buy their soap at the store and they are as addicted to angry birds as you and me when they get a chance. They also state that the Amish shows are fake specially Amish Mafia and they are not rue Amish on that show which I hope you knew that.
why did you post this? of course they wouldn’t admit to having a mafia.. which they do.
I tend to be a fairly healthy eater (I cannot survive a day without having AT LEAST 5 giant servings of healthy veggies), but I have a sweet-tooth, too, which plagues me terribly. So I’m always trying to balance between being healthy and letting myself live a little. I am NOT a fan of those so-called “healthy cookies” that have the texture of a roofing shingle. I want a true, indulgent cookie that is soft and delicious and tasty, and not particularly nutritious, but also not over-the-top ridiculous either. Over my many years of conducting this balancing act, I have read that you can eliminate as much as 33% of the oil in virtually any recipe and still get the same results, and I’ve also read (somewhere else) that you can replace as much as half of the oil with unsweetened applesauce. I have actually modified several recipes in my files using BOTH of those rules-of-thumb; and with great results. In fact, my amazing carrot cake recipe (which originally calls for 1-1/2 cups of oil) is actually noticeably better with 1/2 cup of oil and 1/2 cup of applesauce instead (I first eliminated 33% of the oil, taking it down to 1 cup, and then replaced 50% of that amount with applesauce). I have also started replacing half of the butter in my favorite chocolate chip cookie with applesauce, and I seriously think they are better (and considering that I’ve had at least 20 people recently tell me that my cookies are the best they’ve ever had and that they wish I’d start a bakery, I will assume that I’m not the only one who feels that way.) So, the point of this rambling is…I’m wondering if perhaps some of the oil or some of the butter in this recipe could be eliminated and/or replaced with applesauce.
Is there a way to make this without the oil? I don’t like the oil in my baking recipes. I wanted to try these but I can’t since there’s oil.
not this recipe specifically, sorry 🙁
OH YUMMM!!!! I wonder if they could be made with coconut oil instead of veg oil??
I bet that would work great!
Thank you for beautifully presenting these recipes. The photography is lovely. Can’t wait to make these cookies for son’s grad party 🙂
These look like just the right treat to fill our sad empty cookie jar. I have one question, though, could I replace the veg oil with equal amount of shortening? I’m just not feeling like going to the store. Thanks!
Could these be rolled out and cut with cookie cutter?
You could but you wouldn’t have super sharp edges as they will spread a bit!
I make these a lot. They are so delicious and addictive. I just roll them in my hands and then roll them in sugar or sugar and cinnamon. then smash them with a glass dipped in sugar. They turn out perfectly round.
These look amazing! I think these would be the perfect treat for my son to bring to school on his birthday this week! I can’t wait..Yum!
Hi….am very new to cooking and new to ur page too…i was very happy to get such a wonderful recipe.am planning to bake this during this weekend.can i ask a doubt?it may be childish. veg oil means sunflower oil and oliv oil??can i use sunflower oil??i would appreciate if u could clarify 🙂
Thank u
Yes, sunflower oil would work!