Craving the sweet, buttery goodness of soft sugar cookies but find yourself without vanilla extract? Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered with this family recipe (three generations old!)! Using tried and true simple ingredients, you can whip up your favorite sugar cookies without vanilla extract. My family has loved and used this recipe for years. I’ve got some tips for decorating sugar cookies, too.

Soft Chewy Sugar Cookies without Vanilla

The original recipe for these homemade cookies comes from my aunt who has been making them for over 50 years. She made these every year for Christmas Eve dinner along with her legendary clam chowder. My father’s side of the family would gather at her house and we’d celebrate together. Now as an adult, I make them year around, and I love reminiscing over family memories while I make my own with my family.

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What Do I Need for Sugar Cookies?

You need just seven ingredients. The original recipe DOES use vanilla, but I modified it one day because I didn’t have any and I like my updated version better. You will need butter, sugar, eggs, milk, vanilla, flour, and baking powder. This recipe doesn’t have baking soda or salt like some others.

Frosting and decorating your sugar cookies is optional, but I think it’s part of the fun. I LOVE doing it with the kids because it reminds me of my childhood and those Christmas Eve dinners at my aunt’s. I know you are going to love this recipe too build your own traditions and fun memories with your own family and friends.

What’s the Secret to Soft Cookies?

I love sugar cookies with a crispy exterior but a fluffy and soft interior. If you like them this way, too, there are two tips you should know. Let your unsalted butter come to room temperature and then cream together the butter, sugar, and eggs before adding anything else. When you cream together the ingredients, you add air into the batter/dough that gives it a lightness. I recommend creaming together the wet ingredients for a good 2-3 minutes. When you add your dry ingredients to the wet mixture, mix just until combined. Over-stirring at this stage decreases the chewy texture.

The second secret for soft homemade sugar cookies is to bake them JUST until they are done. There should be a hint of light brown around the edge. I usually bake the cookies for 5-7 minutes to get the perfect doneness.

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Make Sugar Cookies Without Vanilla – Secret Revealed

The original recipe for these uses vanilla extract, but years ago I was making these and didn’t have any vanilla, so I added an equal part of milk instead. I actually liked it much better. If you don’t have any vanilla or you just don’t like the flavor, you can substitute the vanilla with either milk or almond extract.

I think this is the best sugar cookie recipe either way. The secret to making sugar cookies without vanilla is to just substitute the same amount of liquid in the dough.

How to Make Homemade Sugar Cookies Without Vanilla

In a large bowl, cream the butter, granulated sugar, eggs, milk, and vanilla substitute (milk or almond extract). I like to beat the mixture for 2-3 minutes for a lighter, chewy texture.
In a separate bowl, combine all purpose flour and baking powder.
With the mixer running in wet ingredients, gradually mix in the flour mixture/dry ingredients.
Scrape out the sugar cookie dough onto a large piece of beeswax food wrap or plastic wrap.
Flatten into a disk, wrap tightly, and chill for at least 1 hour to overnight. (Alternatively, you can leave the dough rolled into a log shape, refrigerate overnight, and then slice off dough balls from the log. This saves time by eliminating the need to cut out the cookies.)
When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 400˚F.
Once dough is chilled, remove from the refrigerator.
Cut dough in half and return half back to the refrigerator to keep it cold.
Lightly flour a flat surface and roll out your dough to 1/4” thickness.
Using a cookie cutter, cut out cookies with a cookie cutter and immediately transfer to a silicone mat lined baking/cookie sheet.
Place in a preheated oven and bake for 5-7 minutes, just until you see the slightest bit of browning on the edges. Remove immediately and transfer to a cooling rack.
Repeat with remaining dough.
After the baked cookies have cooled completely (at least 30 minutes), select one of the two sugar cookie icing recipes below (royal icing and buttercream) and decorate as desired.

Icing Recipes for Sugar Cookies

When it comes to decorating sugar cookies, the icing plays a crucial role in both flavor and appearance. There are two main icing recipes that take your sugar cookies to the next level. Royal icing has a smooth and glossy finish. It’s a classic choice for intricate designs and details that dries into a hard shell consistency. Buttercream icing, on the other hand, offers a creamy and smooth consistency that melts in your mouth. It’s easy to pipe onto the cookies.

How to Make Royal Icing Without Meringue Powder

2 cups powdered sugar
3 egg whites
1 teaspoon lemon juice

In an electric mixer bowl, add powdered sugar, egg whites, and lemon juice. Using the paddle attachment, mix on low speed just until sugar is mixed in. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat for 5 minutes. Icing will have stiff peaks. Once icing is the correct stiffness, transfer to bowls and add gel paste food coloring, if using. Cover with plastic wrap when not using to prevent it from crusting/hardening.

Decorating Sugar Cookies with Royal Icing

There are a few ways to ice cookies with royal icing. I am often in a hurry, so I prefer to use a spatula. I put icing on the spatula and gently spread it over the top of the cookie trying to get as smooth a surface as possible. If the icing is too thick, you can water it down just slightly for the right consistency. Add edible embellishments or allow the icing to harden completely and then use a stencil or edible color pens to create a design. Store in an airtight container for up to 7 days.

In these pictures, I used Kopykake Coloring Pens and Spring Garden Decorating Cookie Stencils from Designer Stencils available at Baked Deco to create the floral designs. It was super easy! I just held the plastic stencil on top of each cookie and traced it with the thin side of the pencil. Then I removed the stencil and filled in the color. On some, I tried dusting with a combination of cocoa powder and powdered sugar. For the script, I freehanded the words with the coloring pens. Once the icing was dry, it was really simple to do.

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How to Make Buttercream Icing for Sugar Cookies

2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon butter
3 tablespoons milk

In an electric mixer bowl, add powdered sugar, butter and milk. Using the paddle attachment, mix on low speed until well combined. Transfer to bowls and add gel paste food coloring, if using.

Tips for Decorating Homemade Cookies with Buttercream Frosting

Once cookies have cooked completely, spread a generous layer of buttercream frosting using a spatula or pipe frosting using a decorator bag and decorative tip.

Homemade Sugar Cookies Without Vanilla

easy, super soft, chewy, and just melt in your mouth. These really are one of the easiest cookie recipes, we make at our house. Best of all they can be dressed up with royal icing and creative designs for holidays, birthdays, and special occasions and parties.

Ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks), room temperature
1 cup cane sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon milk
3 cups all purpose flour
3 teaspoon baking powder

Instructions

In a stand mixer or large bowl using a hand mixer, cream the butter, sugar, eggs, milk, and vanilla.
In a separate bowl, combine all purpose flour and baking powder.
With mixer paddle running in the wet ingredients, gradually mix in the flour mixture/dry ingredients.
Scrape out the sugar cookie dough onto a large piece of beeswax food wrap or plastic wrap.
Flatten into a disk, wrap tightly, and chill for at least 1 hour to overnight.
When ready to bake, preheat oven to 400˚F.
Remove cookie dough from refrigerator, and cut dough in half. Return half back to the refrigerator to keep it cold.
Lightly flour a flat surface and roll out your dough to 1/4” thickness.
Using a cookie cutter, cut out cookies with a cookie cutter and immediately transfer to a silicone mat lined baking/cookie sheet.
Place in preheated oven and bake for 5-7 minutes, just until you see the slightest bit of browning on the edges.
Remove immediately and transfer to a cooling rack.
Repeat with remaining dough.
After the baked cookies have cooled completely, you can ice them with buttercream or royal icing and decorate as desired.

Notes

This recipe substitutes 1 teaspoon vanilla extract with 1 teaspoon of milk. You can also substitute with 1 teaspoon of almond extract.

What You Need to Make the Best Sugar Cookies

Stand Mixer or Hand Mixer & Bowl – A stand mixer with a paddle attachment makes easy work of mixing both these cookies and the icing. If you don’t have one, you can use a hand mixer with a medium bowl. Just know that it will take a little more time and elbow grease (work). (Note: I have a Kitchenaide that I have used for over a decade.)

Rolling Pin – Any rolling pin will do. I use my grandmother’s wooden rolling pin.

Cookie Cutter – I find that simple shapes or cookie cutters with rounded edges work best for this sugar cookie recipe without vanilla extract. The one I use in these pictures is the Ann Clark Fanciful Plaque Cookie Cutter I got from BakeDeco. It gives my cutout sugar cookies nice wavy edges. (I also like this cookie cutter for hand pies and homemade breakfast tarts with premade pie crust.)

Lined Baking Sheet – I line my cookie sheets with either parchment paper or a silicone mat. The cookies bake more evenly, never stick, and are easier to lift off the tray when transferring to the wire rack to cool. Note: I use Nordic Ware pans and a silicone mat)

Best Tools for Decorating Sugar Cookies

Edible Coloring Pens – Edible ink markets that can be used for freehand drawing, stenciling, stamping, and outlining designs.

Decorative Stencils – Flexible plastic stencils allow you to easily create decorative patterns on cookies, cakes, bread, chocolates, and more. Most will work with powdered sugar, edible airbrush, coloring pens, and more.

Sprinkles and Edible Decorations – From sprinkles to edible glitter and candy balls, there is no limit to the decorations you can add a top to your frosting. I really like BadeDeco’s assortment of sprinkle mixes for different holidays, occasions, and color themes.

Save on Baking Supplies

The items I mentioned above can be found at BakeDeco.com, a baking supply company that has every you can imagine when it comes to baking. They have a great selection and when you shop them, use my exclusive affiliate discount code LFA5 to save $5 off.

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Sweet and Simple: Soft Sugar Cookies Without Vanilla