Soft Drop Style Christmas Sprinkle Sugar Cookies
These delightful Christmas sugar cookies, packed with sprinkles and boasting a soft, chewy texture, are baked using just a few simple ingredients. No need for a rolling pin or cookie cutters with this drop-style recipe!
Our favorite holiday tradition involves inviting our granddaughters for a festive sleepover with Christmas movies, hot chocolate, and baking cookies. It’s a tradition that always brings everyone into the joyful holiday spirit while ensuring a lot of laughter and fun.
Among the various holiday cookies we usually make, the soft sugar cookies topped with festive holiday sprinkles are particularly cherished by the girls—they’re their absolute favorites. Consequently, these cookies took center stage during today’s baking session.
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We made a quick trip to the baking store to prepare for our Christmas baking extravaganza. There, we picked up an assortment of sprinkles, including rainbow sprinkles, Christmas sprinkles, and an array of assorted jimmies. These colorful decorations will add a delightful touch to our holiday baking.
So let’s get to it and bake up some soft Christmas sprinkle sugar cookies.
Simple Ingredients
- 1 cup salted butter, softened to cool room temperature
- 1 ⅓ cups granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Assorted type of sprinkles
Directions to Make Soft Christmas Sugar Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper and lightly oil with cooking spray.
- In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine butter and sugar and mix on medium speed until light and fluffy using a hand mixer or standing electric mixer. You may need to stop occasionally and scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Add in the vanilla, almond extract, and egg. Mix for approximately 2 minutes until the batter becomes lighter in color.
- In a separate bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients. Flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients on low speed, a bit at a time, until the dough forms.
- Scoop the cookie dough into rounded balls with your hands, or use a cookie scoop (about two tablespoons); roll the dough balls in festive sprinkles and place on a cookie sheet a couple of inches apart (about 12 cookies per baking sheet).
- Bake for 11-14 minutes until they crackle on the top. If you want a soft cookie, be sure they do not have much brown color around the edges or on the bottom of the cookie.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for several minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Soft Drop Style Christmas Sprinkle Sugar Cookies
Discover the joy of baking Christmas Sprinkle Sugar Cookies with a delightful recipe for chewy, festive treats with delightful sprinkles.
Ingredients
- 1 cup salted butter, softened to cool room temperature
- 1 ⅓ cups granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Assorted type of sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F
- Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper and lightly spray with cooking spray.
- In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine butter and sugar and mix on medium speed until light and fluffy using a hand mixer or standing electric mixer. You may need to stop occasionally and scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Add in the vanilla, almond extract, and egg. Mix for approximately 2 minutes until the batter becomes lighter in color.
- In a separate bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients. Flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients on low speed, a bit at a time, until the dough forms.
- Scoop the cookie dough into rounded balls with your hands, or use a cookie scoop (about two tablespoons); roll the dough balls in festive sprinkles and place on a cookie sheet a couple of inches apart (about 12 cookies per baking sheet).
- Bake for 11-14 minutes until they crackle on the top. If you want a soft cookie, be sure they do not have much color around the edges or on the bottom of the cookie.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for several minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
What is The Trick to Making Soft Cookies?
- Avoid over-mixing the dough, which can lead to tougher cookies.
- Be cautious not to over bake your cookies. Take them out of the oven when they look slightly underdone in the center. They will continue to cook and firm up as they cool on the baking sheet.
- Remember, achieving the perfect chewy cookie can involve experimentation to find the balance that suits your preferences. Adjusting ingredients and baking techniques can make a significant difference in the final texture of your cookies.
Why You’ll Love This Christmas Sugar Cookie Recipe
Besides being delicious, one of the best parts about this recipe is that the rolling pin, cookie cutters, or chilling of this dough are not needed. Mix the dough, drop or roll the cookies, and that is it!
These cookies’ soft and chewy texture is incredibly satisfying, and they go down so easily with a nice cold glass of milk.
In addition, they can be customized easily using different sprinkle types or colors. This allows for various decorations, making them perfect for different occasions or seasons.
The kids will have so much fun with the choices of colorful sprinkles on the cookies, making them visually appealing. They add a fun and vibrant look, making the cookies more enjoyable.
How To Store Sugar Cookies
You can store your cookies in an airtight container if you will serve them in the next day or two.
If you want to freeze them, put them into a freezer bag, and you can save them in the freezer for up to three months.
Tips for Baking Drop-style Christmas Sugar Cookies
- Do you put sprinkles on before or after baking sugar cookies?– The answer is before. You can roll the dough balls in the sprinkles like we did or mix them into your dough before forming them.
- Do sprinkles soften in the oven?– It depends on what type of sprinkle you are using. If you are using Jimmies, yes, the heat will soften the shell of the sprinkles, and they will soften a bit in the oven. However, other types of sprinkles will not soften. Nonpareils are one type of sprinkle that typically doesn’t soften or melt when baked in the oven. These tiny round sprinkles are made of sugar and food coloring and have a hard, smooth texture. Due to their small size and hard shell, nonpareils are generally heat-resistant and maintain their shape and color when baked.
- How do you keep decorated sugar cookies soft? Plain or decorated cookies stay soft for about five days when covered tightly at room temperature.
I hope you enjoy this easy and yummy recipe. And if you love soft, gooey desserts, try this Mastro’s butter cake; it is mouth-watering.
As the year 2023 draws to a close, I extend my heartfelt gratitude to each and every one of you for your unwavering support throughout this incredible journey. This year has been truly remarkable for the blog, filled with learning opportunities and immense growth. I want to express that none of this would have been possible without your invaluable support and encouragement.
I am going to take off next week to enjoy my family, so I will see you in 2024.
Blessings,
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