Jacque's Buttery Sugar Cookies
Homemade buttery sugar cookies with sweet buttercream frosting. The perfect frosted sugar cookie recipe!
Are you a Valentine's Day fan or not so much? It's 3 days away and I am sharing a butter sugar cookie recipe that I have been making since I was a little girl. Every Valentine's Day, my Mom would make frosted sugar cookies for the family and this is the recipe she used. It reminds me so much of home!
We had a neighbor across the street named Jacque and she had the biggest heart of gold. She made everyone feel so loved and wouldn't leave without telling you all of the reasons she loved you. When she would come to our door, she would always hug me and tell me she loved me. She shared this recipe with us when I was a young girl and it was the only sugar cookie recipe we ever used in our family. She was an incredible cook and we were lucky she shared her top-secret sugar cookie recipe with us!
One of my Mom's favorite holidays has always been Valentine's Day and she always made it a big deal for us kids. If you want to find out ideas on how to make it extra special for your kids or grandkids, click HERE.
This Buttery Sugar Cookie Recipe is a little different because of the butter to flour ratio. It definitely has a good amount of butter which creates those perfect crispy edges with a chewy center. It doesn't have a crazy amount of sugar either so you really taste the sweet cream butter coming through in these cookies.
These Buttery Sugar Cookies can be slightly underbaked for very soft, chewy cookies or can be baked until the edges start to turn a golden color which creates buttery, crispy edges.
The sweet buttercream frosting is super simple to make and is way better than canned frosting. It calls for only simple ingredients -- butter, powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla or almond extract. If you want to add extra creaminess which cuts some of the sweetness, add a small amount of cream cheese.
How to make Butter Sugar Cookies:
- Cream butter and sugar for at least 4 minutes, or until light and fluffy. This is an important step as it helps to create a smooth texture.
- Add egg and vanilla extract. You can add more vanilla extract if you want extra vanilla flavor in the cookies.
- Stir in flour, baking powder, and salt. The dough may be slightly crumbly. Roll into a ball and place in plastic wrap and let chill for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator.
- Bake on light-colored baking sheets. Watch carefully. If you want a chewier cookie, bake for less time. If you want crispier edges, watch for the edges to start to turn a light golden color.
- To make frosting, whip together softened butter, powdered sugar, milk or cream, and vanilla or almond extract until light and fluffy. Add food coloring if so desired. Spread on cooled cookies.
Jacque's Buttery Sugar Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup Unsalted Butter (softened)
- 1 cup Sugar
- 1 large Egg
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
- 2 ¼ cups Flour
- ½ teaspoon Baking Powder
- ½ teaspoon Salt
Vanilla Buttercream Frosting:
- ½ cup Salted Butter (softened)
- 2 cups Powdered Sugar
- 1 Tablespoon Cream or Milk
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract (or ¼ teaspoon almond extract)
- 2 ounces Cream Cheese, softened (optional)
- Food Coloring (optional)
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar for 4 minutes, or until light and fluffy, scraping the sides of the bowl often.
- Add egg and vanilla and mix for 1 minute longer.
- Stir in flour, baking powder, and salt. The cookie dough may be crumbly. Using your hands, press into a ball and place in plastic wrap. Chill for 30 minutes in the refrigerator.
- Once the dough is chilled, preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Roll out cookie dough onto a floured surface. Press cookie cutter and make desired shapes. Place on parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Bake for 9-13 minutes, depending on preference. Watch carefully. If you want the cookies to be softer and chewier, bake for less time. If you want crispy, buttery edges, watch for the edges of the cookies to start turning a light golden brown color. Remove from oven and let cool.
Buttercream Frosting:
- In a large mixing bowl, cream butter, powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla extract until light and fluffy. Spread on the top of cooled cookies.
Romy
Hello! Those cookies look so pretty and yummy! I'm so excited to try this recipe. Thanks for sharing. On the other hand, Is there a way you could (pretty please!!!) indicate the measurements of the ingredients in grams? I would really appreciate it. Thanks in advance and have a lovely day!
Lily
I love how buttery these cookies are! SO SO GOOD!
J
Did anyone else find that it takes longer than 30 minutes to chill? I pulled my dough out of the fridge after 30 and it was still soft and squishy. Not sure if it's supposed to be this way, but I found it hard to work with/roll out, and I know dough is supposed to be firm when rolling out after chilling.
J
Hello! I just made these cookies and I'm about to put the frosting on! Just wondering, how do you recommend storing them?
Sophia
Hi! If you're still wondering, I like to store my cookies on a large plate in the microwave so I'm hoping that would work for you too!
J
Thank you!
Mary W
This one I will try - so many simple ingredients will for sure make a delightful cookie.
Modern Honey
Hi Mary! I hope you love them -- they are so simple to make!
Lauren C
Hey Melissa! I love love your soft and chewy sugar cookie recipe. Are these a lot different then those?
Modern Honey
Hi Lauren! That is such a great question! Before I shared this recipe on Modern Honey, I wanted to analyze how this recipe was different than my Soft and Chewy Sugar Cookie recipe. The difference is the ratio of butter and flour. There is less flour used in this recipe than the soft and chewy so it is a more buttery cookie. The chewy sugar cookie has the addition of cream cheese which gives it a creamier and chewier texture. These Buttery Sugar Cookies can have buttery, crisp edges if baked long enough. They are similar but I would say the other one is slightly chewier and this one is slightly crispier and more buttery. Both amazing!