There’s something truly magical about the scent of real vanilla beans filling your kitchen. I think these vanilla bean sugar cookies capture that feeling perfectly—tender and buttery inside with just the right crisp edge, they turn any ordinary moment into a cozy occasion. This is one of those easy sugar cookie recipes that requires no chilling, which means you can go from craving to baking in no time. It’s a wonderful, spontaneous choice for holiday baking, especially when you need a little comfort.
For me, this recipe is a beloved comfort food that feels right at home during the festive season. It’s a beautiful base for all your Christmas cookies recipes, whether you’re packing tins for friends, planning for a cookie swap, or simply dreaming up Christmas dessert ideas. When you’re looking for easy Christmas treats that still feel special, this batch never disappoints. It’s a heartfelt addition to any lineup of holiday cookies Christmas, offering a homemade touch that’s both nostalgic and new.
So, if you’re gathering Christmas baking ideas or simply yearning for a plate of timeless Christmas sweets, let these cookies be your starting point. They’re a gentle reminder that the most memorable holiday cookies Christmas often come from the simplest, most joyful recipes.
Nothing beats a great Vanilla Bean Sugar Cookies. Whether you're a fan of Christmas Cookie or want to try something from our Chicken Breast Recipes selection, keep scrolling!
Why You’ll Love This Vanilla Bean Sugar Cookies
- Real Vanilla Flavor: Vanilla bean paste provides beautiful specks and deep, aromatic flavor.
- Perfect Texture: Tender and soft inside with crisp edges that hold their shape.
- Simple to Make: No-chill dough means cookies are ready in under 30 minutes.
- Endlessly Versatile: Enjoy plain, rolled in sugar, or drizzled with glaze.
Ingredients & Tools
- 225 g unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 200 g granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla bean paste (or seeds from 1 vanilla bean)
- 315 g all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
- Optional: Coarse or sanding sugar, for rolling
Tools: A stand mixer or electric hand mixer, baking sheets, parchment paper or silicone baking mats, and a cooling rack.
Notes: Using room temperature ingredients ensures proper creaming. Vanilla bean paste is recommended for best flavor and speckles.
Nutrition (per serving)
| Calories: | 180 kcal |
| Protein: | 2 g |
| Fat: | 9 g |
| Carbs: | 24 g |
| Fiber: | 0.5 g |
Serves: 24 cookies | Prep Time: 15 minutes | Cook Time: 10-12 minutes | Total Time: 30 minutes
Before You Start: Tips & Ingredient Notes
- What does “softened” butter really mean? Your butter should be cool to the touch but yield easily when you press it. If it’s greasy or shiny, it’s too warm. The ideal texture is like a firm ice cream that’s just started to melt around the edges. This is key for proper creaming.
- Vanilla Bean Paste vs. Extract. I highly recommend the paste for its concentrated flavor and beautiful speckles. If you must use extract, you’ll need about 1 tablespoon to try and match the intensity, but you’ll miss the visual appeal.
- Don’t skip the salt. It might seem like a small amount, but salt is the secret weapon that balances the sweetness and enhances the vanilla flavor, preventing the cookies from tasting one-dimensional or overly sugary.
- Why room temperature eggs? A cold egg can cause the beautifully creamed butter and sugar to seize up and look curdled. A room temperature egg incorporates seamlessly, creating a smooth, emulsified base for your dough.
How to Make Vanilla Bean Sugar Cookies
Step 1: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and line your baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats. This little bit of prep means no sticking and easy cleanup later. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Giving these dry ingredients a good whisk ensures the leavening agents and salt are evenly distributed, which is crucial for an even rise and bake.
Step 2: In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or using a hand mixer), cream the softened butter and granulated sugar together on medium-high speed. You’re looking for a mixture that is noticeably paler in color, fluffy, and light. This should take about 2-3 minutes. Don’t rush this step—creaming incorporates air, which is part of what gives the cookies their lovely texture.
Step 3: Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Add the room temperature egg and the vanilla bean paste. Mix on medium speed until everything is fully combined. You’ll notice the mixture might look a little curdled at first, but it will come together into a smooth, fragrant, speckled batter. Scrape the bowl down again to make sure no hidden pockets of butter are lurking.
Step 4: With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Mix only until the flour streaks have just disappeared and a soft dough has formed. It’s tempting to keep mixing, but overmixing at this stage develops gluten and can lead to tougher cookies. A few remaining flour patches are okay—they’ll be incorporated when you finish by hand.
Step 5: Finish mixing the dough with a spatula to ensure everything is homogenous. If you’re using the coarse sugar for rolling, place it in a small bowl now. Scoop the dough using a tablespoon or a small cookie scoop (about 1.5 tablespoons of dough per cookie). Roll each portion into a smooth ball between your palms.
Step 6: If desired, roll each dough ball in the coarse sugar to coat it completely. This adds a delightful crunch and sparkle. Place the dough balls on your prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 2 inches apart to allow for spreading. You can gently press them down just slightly with the palm of your hand if you prefer a slightly flatter cookie.
Step 7: Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges are set and are just starting to turn a very light golden brown. The centers will still look soft and puffy—that’s perfect! They will firm up as they cool. Remember, oven temperatures vary, so keep an eye on them after the 9-minute mark.
Step 8: Remove the baking sheets from the oven and let the cookies cool on the sheet for 5 minutes. This allows them to set up so they don’t fall apart when you move them. Then, carefully transfer them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely. This step is essential for achieving that perfect crisp-yet-tender texture.
Storage & Freshness Guide
- Fridge: Not recommended; store at room temperature in an airtight container.
- Freezer: Freeze baked cookies for up to 3 months, or freeze unbaked dough balls and bake from frozen, adding 1–2 minutes.
- Reviving: Warm in a 300°F oven for 3–5 minutes to refresh crispness.
Serving Suggestions
Complementary Dishes
- A scoop of vanilla ice cream — The classic pairing is classic for a reason. The warm cookie and cold, creamy ice cream create a perfect temperature and texture contrast that’s simply divine.
- A bowl of fresh berries — The bright, tart acidity of raspberries or strawberries cuts through the cookie’s richness, cleansing the palate and making each bite of cookie taste new again.
- A sharp cheese plate — An unexpected but fantastic pairing. A bite of a sharp aged cheddar or creamy blue cheese followed by a bite of vanilla cookie is a sophisticated flavor experience.
Drinks
- A glass of cold milk — It’s the ultimate nostalgic comfort pairing. The cold, creamy milk is the ideal partner to the sweet, buttery cookie, and it just feels right.
- Earl Grey tea — The bergamot in the tea has a citrusy, floral note that beautifully highlights the complex flavors of the vanilla bean, turning your snack into a moment of pure bliss.
- Black coffee — The bitterness of a good, strong cup of coffee provides a robust counterpoint to the cookie’s sweetness, making for a very balanced and satisfying treat.
Something Sweet
- Dark chocolate mousse — The intense, bitter depth of dark chocolate creates a luxurious contrast with the sweet, floral notes of the vanilla cookie, feeling incredibly indulgent.
- Lemon sorbet — For a lighter finish, the zingy, refreshing quality of lemon sorbet works wonders after the rich, buttery cookies, leaving you feeling satisfied but not overly heavy.
- Poached pears — The soft, wine-poached pears with their subtle spice are an elegant and simple dessert that complements, rather than competes with, the delicate vanilla flavor.
Top Mistakes to Avoid
- Mistake: Using melted or overly soft butter. This is the number one reason cookies spread too much and become greasy. Your butter should be soft but still cool. If it’s melted, the structure of the cookie collapses in the oven’s heat.
- Mistake: Overmixing the dough after adding the flour. Once the flour is in, you want to mix just until combined. Overmixing develops the gluten in the flour, which can make your cookies tough and dense instead of tender and crumbly.
- Mistake: Overbaking the cookies. I’ve messed this up before too, thinking they need more color. They continue to cook on the hot baking sheet after being removed from the oven. Take them out when the edges are just set and the centers look soft for the perfect texture.
- Mistake: Not letting them cool on the baking sheet. Transferring them directly to a rack can cause them to break, as they haven’t had time to set. The 5-minute rest on the pan is crucial for a cookie that holds its shape.
Expert Tips
- Tip: Weigh your flour for accuracy. The most common reason for dry, cakey cookies is using too much flour. If you don’t have a scale, fluff your flour with a spoon, spoon it into your measuring cup, and level it off with a knife—don’t scoop directly from the bag.
- Tip: For extra flavor, let the sugar and vanilla bean paste mingle. You can rub the vanilla bean paste into the sugar before creaming it with the butter. This helps the vanilla oils infuse the sugar for an even more pronounced flavor throughout the cookie.
- Tip: Rotate your baking sheets. If you’re baking multiple sheets at once, rotate them front-to-back and top-to-bottom halfway through the baking time. This ensures all your cookies bake evenly, as most ovens have hot spots.
- Tip: Make the dough ahead. You can scoop the dough balls, freeze them solid on a tray, and then transfer them to a freezer bag. Bake directly from frozen, adding 1-2 minutes to the baking time, for fresh cookies anytime.
FAQs
Can I make these cookies ahead of time?
Absolutely! The baked cookies will stay fresh in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. For longer storage, you can freeze the baked cookies for up to 3 months. Alternatively, you can freeze the unbaked dough balls for a ready-to-bake treat—just add a minute or two to the baking time. The flavor actually deepens a bit after a day, making them even more delicious.
My cookies spread too much. What happened?
This is almost always a butter temperature issue. If your butter was too warm or melted, the cookies will spread excessively. Another culprit could be an old or inaccurate leavening agent (baking powder/soda). Make sure your butter is just softened, not greasy, and check the expiration date on your baking supplies. A hot baking sheet can also cause spreading, so try using a cool sheet for each batch.
Can I use vanilla extract instead of paste?
You can, but you’ll lose the beautiful speckles and some of the flavor complexity. If using extract, increase the amount to 1 full tablespoon to try and compensate for the milder flavor. The result will still be a lovely cookie, but it won’t have the same “wow” factor as the vanilla bean version.
Why are my cookies cakey and puffy?
A cakey texture usually points to too much flour or overmixing. Always measure your flour by weight for the best results. If you measured by volume, you likely packed in too much. Overmixing the dough after adding the flour develops gluten, which gives the cookies more of a bread-like, cakey structure instead of a tender, crumbly one.
Can I decorate these with icing?
Of course! These are a fantastic base for decorated cookies. For a simple glaze, whisk together 1 cup of powdered sugar with 1-2 tablespoons of milk or cream and a splash of vanilla extract until smooth. Drizzle it over the cooled cookies or dip the tops. For royal icing, let the glaze set completely before adding details. They hold their shape perfectly under a layer of icing.
Vanilla Bean Sugar Cookies: Easy No-Chill Recipe
Vanilla Bean Sugar Cookies are the perfect easy sugar cookie recipe for holiday baking, with a tender, buttery texture and real vanilla bean flavor.
Ingredients
For the Ingredients
-
225 g unsalted butter (softened to room temperature)
-
200 g granulated sugar
-
1 large egg (at room temperature)
-
2 tsp vanilla bean paste (or seeds from 1 vanilla bean)
-
315 g all-purpose flour
-
1/2 tsp baking powder
-
1/4 tsp baking soda
-
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
-
Coarse or sanding sugar (for rolling)
Instructions
-
Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and line your baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.01
-
In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or using a hand mixer), cream the softened butter and granulated sugar together on medium-high speed for 2-3 minutes, until pale, fluffy, and light.02
-
Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Add the room temperature egg and the vanilla bean paste. Mix on medium speed until fully combined and smooth. Scrape the bowl down again.03
-
With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Mix only until the flour streaks have just disappeared and a soft dough has formed.04
-
Finish mixing the dough with a spatula to ensure everything is homogenous. Scoop the dough using a tablespoon or a small cookie scoop (about 1.5 tablespoons of dough per cookie). Roll each portion into a smooth ball between your palms.05
-
If desired, roll each dough ball in the coarse sugar to coat it completely. Place the dough balls on your prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 2 inches apart to allow for spreading.06
-
Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges are set and are just starting to turn a very light golden brown. The centers will still look soft and puffy.07
-
Remove the baking sheets from the oven and let the cookies cool on the sheet for 5 minutes. Then, carefully transfer them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.08
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