This is my all-time favorite cutout cookie recipe! Adapted from the recipe my mom & grandma used for years. Perfectly soft, lightly spiced with cinnamon & flavored with maple, and they hold their shapes while baking! Decorate by dipping them in white chocolate & adding sprinkles for an easy festive look!
Course Cookies
Cuisine Dessert
Keyword Easy Cutout Cookies, Christmas Cookies Recipe, Best Cutout Cookies Recipe
Prep Time 45 minutesminutes
Cook Time 8 minutesminutes
Dough Chilling 1 hourhour
Servings 4dozen
Author Stephanie Simmons
Ingredients
4 and 1/2cupsall-purpose flour
1tspbaking soda
1/2tspsalt
1tspcinnamon
1/4tspginger
1/4tspnutmeg
1/2tspmaceYou can find this with the other baking spices
2stickssalted butter, softened
1cupgranulated or cane sugar
1cupbrown sugar, packed
2eggs
2tspvanilla extract
2 and 1/2tspmaple extract
2TBSPreal maple syrup
For Decorating:
white chocolate
sprinkles
Instructions
Make the Cookie Dough: Whisk together dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl, cream the softened butter with electric mixer until creamy. Add the sugars and mix until well combined and creamed - it should be fluffy looking. Add the eggs, vanilla, maple extract, and maple syrup and mix until just combined. Add the dry ingredients in 2 additions, mixing between each, and scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Mix until the dry ingredients are just incorporated - stop when no bits of flour remain. If the dough is a bit dry, add 1-2 TBSP milk (See photos in blog post above for what you want the dough to look like).
Chill the Dough: Divide the dough in half and flatten each into a disc about 1 inch thick. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for 1 hour or overnight. Dough can also be frozen for up to 2 months - thaw in the fridge overnight before using.
Cut Out the Cookies: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Once chilled, roll out the dough on a lightly floured counter, until it is between 1/4" and 3/8" thick. (I prefer mine a bit on the thicker side, but the ones pictured here are closer to 1/4".)Cut out cookies with cookie cutters, and re-roll scraps. Place cookies on prepared sheet, leaving some space between the cookies (see photo in blog post above). Chill in the freezer for 8 minutes before baking to help the cookies hold their shape in the oven.
Bake: Bake chilled cookies for 9-11 minutes (mine usually need the full 11 minutes, especially at the 3/8" thickness). Let cookies cool on baking sheet about 5-8 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely before decorating. Decorate with white chocolate, royal icing, or your favorite frosting.Let the chocolate or frosting set on the cookies before storing.
Serve + Store: Once the chocolate is set, enjoy the cookies! Store leftovers tightly covered, at room temp, for up to a week. Store them in an airtight container in layers, with wax or parchment paper between each layer.
Make Ahead Tips: The cookie dough can be made 1 day ahead and chilled in the fridge. It can also be frozen for up to 2 months - wrap in plastic wrap and place in a ziploc bag to ensure it's well sealed and won't dry out - thaw in the fridge overnight before using. Cookies can be baked and stored in an airtight container at room temp for 1-2 days before decorating, if desired. The cut out cookie shapes can also be frozen, and baked from frozen. Bake for the same time as directed above - no other changes are needed.
Notes
NOTE: Yield can be a bit higher or lower depending on the size of cookie cutters used. You can cut the recipe in half if you want fewer cookies.