Drop-Style No Chill Sugar Cookies
Soft and tender drop-style no chill sugar cookies. Ready to eat in less than 30 minutes and perfect for last-minute baking.
Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 12 minutes | Total Time: 27 minutes
Yield: 18 cookies
This drop-style no chill sugar cookie recipe might be one of my favorites… They use pantry staples, come together in less than 30 minutes, and are perfect for last-minute baking or when you unexpectedly need a cookie recipe pronto. Plus, they are a super tender and soft sugar cookie with just the slightest crispy edges thanks to thoroughly creaming the butter and sugar.
Simple, easy, fast, and no need to chill the dough. Sign me up! They’re perfect for the holidays (I’m looking at you, Christmas and Valentine’s Day) or a simple yet delicious addition to a cookie box.
Plus, because they’re drop-style, there’s no need to roll out any dough or deal with cookie cutters.
What You’ll Find in This Post
- What You’ll Need (Ingredients & Equipment)
- How to Make No-Chill Sugar Cookies
- Can You Use This Recipe for Cut-Out Cookies
- Do You Need to Chill The Dough
What You Need to Make Drop-Style No Chill Sugar Cookies
Ingredients for No Chill Sugar Cookies
- Unsalted Butter: while there are some recipes that use shortening in place of butter, unsalted butter is essential for this recipe to get delicious buttery sugar cookies. I opt for unsalted butter in order to control how salty the outcome is.
- Granulated Sugar: only granulated sugar is needed for these cookies, no brown sugar necessary! Only using granulated sugar ensures we get that signature light color of a sugar cookie.
- Large Egg: eggs add structure to the cookie dough and help hold things together. Large eggs are typically used for baking recipes and using a different size will affect the hydration of the dough and the outcome.
- Vanilla Extract: for that signature sugar cookie flavor. Almond extract is also a common choice, but I like to stick to vanilla extract for this recipe.
- All-Purpose Flour: my go-to flour choice is King Arthur’s Unbleached All-Purpose Flour (not sponsored) as most grocery stores will have it and I prefer to use unbleached flour if a recipe allows for it.
- Cornstarch: this is the key ingredient to get soft and tender sugar cookies! It lowers the protein content of the dough, which guarantees a perfectly soft sugar cookie.
- Kosher Salt: salt helps heighten the other flavors of the cookie and balances the sweetness.
- Baking Powder: this ingredient makes the cookies puff up as they bake and gives them that slight crack on top as they bake. We don’t use baking soda in this recipe because there isn’t any acid in the dough for it to react with.
Equipment to Make No Chill Sugar Cookies
You don’t need much to make these no chill sugar cookies. You’ll need a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, a spatula to scrape down the bowl as you go, a small mixing bowl and whisk for your dry ingredients, a small cookie scoop, and a baking tray lined with parchment paper. If you prefer it, you could use a silicone baking mat instead of parchment paper, the cookies just might spread more than they otherwise would.
Because they’re drop-style, you don’t need a rolling pin!
How to Make Drop-Style No Chill Sugar Cookies
This recipe uses the creaming method, which allows for air to be worked into the butter and sugar so that you get a perfectly light no chill sugar cookie. It follows the following basic steps:
- Beat the butter and sugar together in a stand mixer until the color has lightened to a very light yellow, nearly white.
- Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat again until it’s nearly doubled in size.
- Add the whisked dry ingredients to the bowl and mix until just combined.
- Bake and enjoy!
The article “Cookie Science: Why Cream Butter and Sugar” by Serious Eats goes more in-depth if you’re interested!
Can I Use This Recipe for Cut-Out Sugar Cookies?
Unfortunately, this no chill sugar cookie recipe can not be used for roll-out cut-out sugar cookies. It’s exclusively for drop-style sugar cookies, which means they are shaped using a cookie scoop and then placed on a lined baking sheet.
Do I Need to Chill The Dough?
Nope! No refrigeration is necessary for these no chill sugar cookies. They’re perfect going straight from the bowl to the oven. Which is good because, if you’re anything like me, finding enough fridge space to chill cookie dough can be a challenge.
If you like these drop-style no chill sugar cookies, you’ll love my chocolate sugar cookies! They use the same method and similar ingredients.
PrintDrop-Style No Chill Sugar Cookies
Soft and tender drop-style no-chill sugar cookies. Ready to eat in less than 30 minutes and perfect for last-minute baking.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Total Time: 27 minutes
- Yield: 12 cookies 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
8 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter – softened to room temperature
3/4 cup Granulated Sugar
1 Egg – Large
2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
1 and 3/4 cups All-Purpose Flour – spooned and leveled, see note*
2 Tablespoons Cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon Kosher Salt
3/4 teaspoon Baking Powder
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 F.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the softened butter (8 Tablespoons) and granulated sugar (3/4 cup) and beat on low-medium speed (speed 4-6 on a KitchenAid mixer) for about five minutes, or until the color has lightened to a very pale yellow – nearly white. If your butter isn’t totally softened, it could take longer. Scrape down the bowl frequently to ensure everything is getting mixed together.
- With the mixer on its lowest setting, add the egg (1 – large) and vanilla extract (2 teaspoons) to the bowl and then beat on low-medium speed (speed 4-6 on a KitchenAid mixer) until you can no longer distinguish the egg from the butter and sugar. It will become fluffy, nearly doubled in size, and there should be no shiny streaks.
- Scrape down the bowl and then allow it to mix on low speed for another 30 seconds.
These are your wet ingredients. - In a small mixing bowl, add the all-purpose flour (1 and 3/4 cups – spooned and leveled, see note *), cornstarch (2 Tablespoons), kosher salt (1/4 teaspoon), and baking powder (3/4 teaspoon). Whisk together by hand for about one minute until everything is combined.
These are your dry ingredients. - Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients then mix on low until the dough is completely combined and there are no light spots. You may need to scrape down the bowl and paddle at some point as you go.
- Scoop the cookie dough using a small cookie scoop and place on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. If you get fewer than 18 cookies, it means you most likely didn’t take enough time with step 3.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the cookies have puffed and show slight cracks on the top.
- Allow to cool on the tray before enjoying.
If you’ve got the time, I’d love it if you could leave a review by visiting the recipe on ficklebeabakehouse.com!
Notes
* To properly measure your flour, spoon the flour into a measuring cup and then level it off using the handle of the spoon or the flat side of a knife.
To help with your grocery shopping, I’ve listed the ingredients for this recipe below – as well as where they can generally be found in the store:
Dairy
- Unsalted Butter
- Egg – large
Pantry
- Granulated Sugar
- Vanilla Extract
- All-Purpose Flour
- Cornstarch
- Kosher Salt
- Baking Powder
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