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Chewy Sugar Cookies

By FionaPublished Dec 11, 2025

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Total Time 35 minutes mins

Servings 36 cookies

These chewy sugar cookies are buttery, soft, and perfectly tender. It’s a drop-style cookie – instead of rolling out the dough and cutting it into shapes, the dough is formed into balls and rolled in sugar. There’s no chilling involved, and you end up with delicious sugar cookies that are chewy and flavorful. 

**This post was updated December 11, 2025 with new photos and recipe tips. The beloved recipe remains the same**

A Note from Fiona

Why You’ll Love these Sugar Cookies!

If you’re looking for sugar cookies that are easy to make, where there’s no chilling involved, and have a delicious buttery, vanilla flavor – then these chewy sugar cookies are for you. You can easily add a thick layer of creamy frosting if you’re so inclined, but they taste just as delicious rolled in sugar. If you’re looking for a cut-out sugar cookie recipe, then try these sugar cookies instead.

What’s a Drop Cookie?

This recipe is for drop sugar cookies. A drop cookie is any recipe where the dough is spooned into balls and placed on a cookie sheet. As the cookies bake, the mounds of dough flatten. A drop cookie would be any recipe that isn’t cut into shapes (like gingerbread men or cut-out sugar cookies), goes through a cookie press (like spritz cookies), or is formed into a log and baked (like icebox cookies). Compared to using cookie cutters to make sugar cookies, this drop-style recipe saves so much time and is way less fussy.

Ingredients Needed

• 2 3/4 cup all-purpose flour. Measure correctly – otherwise the cookies can turn out dry, too puffy and flavorless. Whisk first, then spoon into dry measuring cups and level off the top. Alternatively, using a kitchen scale will give you the most accurate results.
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch (AKA cornflour in the UK). Cornstarch makes for a more tender cookie.
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda.
• 1/4 teaspoon salt. You can omit if using salted butter, but make sure to include the salt.
• 1 cup unsalted butter. Do not try to make sugar cookies with shortening – it doesn’t have the flavor necessary.
• 1 1/3 cup granulated sugar.
• 1 large egg.
• 1 large egg yolk. This is in addition to the other egg. Do not use 2 entire eggs or the cookies will spread too thin.
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract.
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract. The almond extract really takes the flavor to the next level. You can find it in the baking aisle of your grocery store, near the vanilla.
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar. This is in addition to the 1 1/3 cup used in the dough.

Method – with Photos

1. Prep. Preheat the oven to 350F (180C) and line your cookie sheets. Lining the cookie sheets is important so that the bottoms of your cookies don’t get too dark.
2. Whisk the Dry Ingredients. Flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt.
3. Cream the Butter and Sugar. The mixture should look fluffy and have begun to lighten in color. It should take about 2-4 minutes.
4. Beat in the Egg, Additional Egg Yolk, and Extracts into the Butter Mixture. The egg and egg yolk should be at room temperature so that they mix well together. The mixture should look creamy without lumps.
5. Mix the Dry Ingredients into the Dough. Start with the mixer on a low speed so that the dry ingredients don’t fly everywhere. The dough will be thick.
6. Pour the Sugar onto a Plate. This is the additional 1/3 cup. You can use a shallow bowl too.
7. Form the Dough into Balls & Roll in Sugar. I make each dough ball with about 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons of dough – each weigh about 1 ounce (28 grams). Roll each dough ball in sugar. Place the dough balls about 2 inches apart on the lined cookie sheets.
8. Bake. Bake 1 sheet at a time in the middle of the preheated oven. The cookies will take about 9-12 minutes, or until the tops look set.

The Secrets to Chewy Sugar Cookies

• The butter should be softened, but not the least bit melty for this recipe. If the butter is too soft or verging on melting, the edges of the cookies will get crispy.
• Measure the flour carefully. Too much flour and the cookies will become dry and flavorless. Whisk first, then spoon into dry measuring cups and level off the top. Weighing with a scale will give the most accurate results.
• A little cornstarch gives the cookies that melt-in-your-mouth texture.
• The extra egg yolk adds tenderness.
• You do not need to flatten the dough balls – they will flatten out as they bake.
• Rolling the dough balls in sugar gives them a delicious crunch on the outside that goes so well with the soft, chewy middle. Don’t skip this – it’s what gives these cookies they’re sugar cookie name.

Freezing Instructions

Because I love making sugar cookies over the holidays – freezing the dough or the cookies is always a good idea for holiday prep.

• You can make the dough, then cover the bowl and refrigerate for up to 48 hours. Then when you’re ready, form the dough into balls and bake according to the recipe below.
• You can also:
  • Make the dough according to the recipe (up to step 6)
  • Form the dough into balls, place on a tray, and refrigerate for 30 minutes for the balls to firm up.
  • Place the dough balls in a freezer bag, remove the air, then freeze for up to 3 months.
  • When ready to bake, roll each ball in the sugar. Then place the dough balls on lined cookie sheets, and bake from frozen for 1-2 minutes longer than the recipe calls for. (ie – baking for 9-11 minutes).

You can find even more details about freezing cookies here too.

More Sugar Cookies to Love:

• Sugar Cookie Bars – these are soft and tender with a thick layer of frosting
• Chocolate Sugar Cookies – for another rolled cookie option
• Sour Cream Sugar Cookies – these are a cut out version, similar to Lofthouse cookies
• Brown Sugar Cookies – a rolled sugar cookie, but made with brown sugar

4.94 from 15 votes

Chewy Sugar Cookies

By: Fiona Dowling

These chewy sugar cookies are buttery, soft, and perfectly tender. It's a drop-style cookie – so instead of rolling out the dough and cutting it into shapes, the dough is formed into balls and rolled in sugar. There's no chilling involved, and you end up with delicious sugar cookies that are chewy and oh so flavorful. 

Prep: 15 minutes mins

Cook: 10 minutes mins

Total: 35 minutes mins

Servings: 36 cookies

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Equipment

• Cookie Sheets

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 3/4 cup all-purpose flour (344 grams)
• ▢ 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 1 cup unsalted butter (226 grams), softened but not starting to melt
• ▢ 1 1/3 cup granulated sugar (267 grams), for the dough
• ▢ 1 large egg, room temperature
• ▢ 1 large egg yolk, just the yolk, do not use the entire egg
• ▢ 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon almond extract, optional
• ▢ 1/3 cup granulated sugar (67 grams), for rolling the cookies in

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions 

• Preheat the oven to 350℉ (180℃) degrees and line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper or baking mats.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
• In a separate large bowl, beat together the butter and 1⅓ cup sugar until fluffy. The mixture will have started to lighten in color.
• Beat in the egg, egg yolk, vanilla extract and almond extract into the butter mixture.
• With the mixer on low speed, beat the flour mixture into the butter mixture. I typically do about ½ at a time. The dough will be thick.
• Pour the ⅓ cup sugar (for rolling the cookies) onto a plate.
• Form the dough into balls about 1 tablespoon in size – I make mine weigh about 1 ounce (28 grams). Then roll each ball in the sugar on the plate and place 2 inches apart on the lined cookie sheet.
• Bake the cookies 1 sheet at a time on the middle rack of the oven for 9-11 minutes, or until the tops look set.
• Cool the cookies on the lined sheet for at least 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to continue cooling

Notes

1. Storage: Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. 
2. Make-Ahead Tips & Freezing:
   1. Freezing Baked Cookies: After cookies are baked and fully cooled, store in an airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge, then bring to room temperature before enjoying.
   2. Making Cookie Dough in Advance: Cookie dough can be made in advance (up to step 5). Then cover the bowl and store in the fridge for up to 48 hours. Preheat the oven and bake as directed. 
   3. Freezing Cookie Dough: Make the dough, form into balls and roll in sugar. Place balls on a tray, and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Then place balls in a freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Then bake (from frozen) as directed. They’ll need 1-2 extra minutes. 
3. Nutrition: Details provided are an estimate only and based on 1 cookie, assuming the recipe yields 36 uniform cookies. 

Nutrition

Calories: 120kcal, Carbohydrates: 17g, Protein: 1g, Fat: 5g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 1g, Trans Fat: 0.2g, Cholesterol: 24mg, Sodium: 35mg, Potassium: 15mg, Fiber: 0.3g, Sugar: 9g, Vitamin A: 172IU, Calcium: 4mg, Iron: 0.5mg

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