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Soft and buttery, these melt-in-your-mouth brown butter cream cheese sugar cookies are a must bake. Rich and nutty brown butter adds depth of flavor and keeps the sweetness in check; a touch of cream cheese in the dough makes it easy to work with and ensures that the cookies remain soft and tender. Recipe makes 24 sugar cookies.
Dressed up with frosting and sparkling sprinkles for a festive feel, these brown butter cream cheese sugar cookies are almost too pretty to eat and a beautiful twist on a holiday classic!
If you prefer drop style sugar cookies, you’ll also love my soft baked brown butter sugar cookies!
New to making brown butter? Check out my easy step-by-step tutorial to make brown butter in 5 minutes!
How to Make Perfect Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies
Chill the dough – Chilling the dough is essential! Chill the dough before punching out shapes, then chill cut out cookies on parchment-lined baking sheets before baking.
Roll out dough – Divide dough into two pieces and roll each piece out between two pieces of parchment paper. Transfer to the refrigerator (keep flat) and chill for at least 1 hour, or overnight.
Punch out cookies – Once the dough has chilled, remove the top layer of parchment paper from the dough. Use lightly floured cookie cutters to cut out cookies and transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets. Dough scraps can be re-rolled one time. Chill the cut-outs for 20 minutes in the refrigerator before baking.
Bake – Bake cookies for 12 to 14 minutes, rotating pans halfway through, or until lightly golden and tops and edges are set. For smaller cookies, baking time will be approximately 10 to 12 minutes. Let cookies cool completely on baking sheets before frosting.
Frosting – Combine powdered sugar, milk, corn syrup, almond extract, and salt in a small bowl. Whisk frosting until completely smooth and glossy.
Decorating Tips
To make the outline, transfer frosting to a piping bag and pipe the frosting around the edge of the cookies, then let set. To flood the center, add more milk to the frosting, one teaspoon at a time, until you reach the desired consistency. Fill the center of each cookie with frosting. Top cookies with sprinkles and let frosting set before serving.
More favorite holiday cookie recipes:
- Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies
- Soft Molasses Spice Cookies
- Peppermint Bark Brownie Cookies
- Raspberry Pecan Linzer Cookies
Brown Butter Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 14 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 14 minutes
- Yield: 24 cookies
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Description
Soft and buttery brown butter cream cheese sugar cookies topped with frosting and sparkling sprinkles! The perfect holiday cutout cookie! Recipe makes 24 cookies.
Ingredients
Cookies
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 oz reduced fat cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp pure almond extract
Frosting
- 2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
- 2–3 Tbsp milk
- 1 Tbsp light corn syrup
- 1/4 tsp pure almond extract
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Brown butter: Cook butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly until it foams, turns clear, and then turns a deep brown, about 6 minutes. Pour browned butter into a glass measuring cup and chill in the freezer until solidified, about 45 minutes to an hour.
- Make cookies: Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Beat solidified brown butter and sugar in a large mixer bowl at medium speed until creamy; beat in cream cheese and egg until combined. Beat in extracts until incorporated. Reduce speed to low and gradually add flour mixture; beat just until incorporated.
- Divide dough in half and roll out each half into a 1/4-inch thickness between two pieces of parchment paper. Transfer to the refrigerator (keep flat) and chill for at least 1 hour, or overnight. Once the dough has chilled, preheat oven to 350°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove the top layer of parchment paper from the dough and use cookie cutters to cut out cookies before transferring to prepared baking sheets. Chill in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
- Bake cookies for 12 to 14 minutes, rotating pans halfway through, until lightly golden and tops and edges are set. For smaller cookies, baking time will be approximately 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer baking sheets to wire racks and let cookies cool completely on baking sheets.
- Make frosting: Combine powdered sugar, milk, corn syrup, almond extract, and salt in a small bowl, whisking together until smooth and glossy. If the frosting seems too thick, add more milk, one teaspoon at a time, until you reach the desired consistency.
- Decorate cookies: Spread or pipe frosting onto cookies and top with sprinkles immediately, while the frosting is still wet. Let the frosting set completely before serving. Store cookies at room temperature.
Notes
Brown butter: Check out my full step-by-step recipe tutorial.
Cookie yield: About 2 dozen sugar cookies, depending on size. Yield will vary depending on the size of your cutter.
Make ahead: Shaped, unbaked cookies can be frozen up to 2 months and baked directly from the freezer, adding 1-2 minutes to baking time.
Do you have an idea of how long these cookies will stay fresh for?!
Hi Emma, these will stay fresh in an airtight container for 3 to 4 days. You can also freeze the frosted cookies for up to 1 month (freeze flat on a baking sheet for 1 hour, then store in a freezer-safe container).
Hi. I noticed that my cookies are spreading. I freeze the rolled out dough overnight and I refrigerate for 20+ mins once I cut the shapes out. Sometimes I’ll freeze the cutouts before baking for 20+ mins too. They cookies seem to spread either way. Any suggestions as to what I could try to stop them from spreading so much? Thank you.
Hi Lauren, what kind of butter are you using? It may be the fat content. Also, are you baking on parchment paper or silicone baking mats? I find cookies tend to spread more on silicone.
I usually use store brand unsalted butter. Really depends what I have in the freezer brand wise. I haven’t tried these cookies with the extra creamy European style butter. I bake them on silicone. I’ll try the parchment and see how that works. Thank you.
Hello. Question for you. I want to make a chocolate version of these delicious cookies but not sure how to tweak to account for the addition of cocoa powder. Have you tried that? If not, what would you suggest? Thank you.
Hi Lauren, I haven’t tried making a chocolate sugar cookie with this recipe. I would try adding in 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (whisk in with the all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt).
If you’re looking for a roll-out chocolate cookie that will hold shape, I’d go with the cookie I use for my homemade thin mints (just omit the peppermint extract): https://tutti-dolci.com/homemade-thin-mint-cookies/
Thank you so much for your help and quick response. I’ll give that a try and see what happens. Thanks for directing to the other chocolate cookie recipe too. Much appreciated.
Would this recipe work as well with full-fat cream cheese?
Hi Chelsea, yes! Happy baking! 🙂
These cookies are really excellent. They hold their shape in the oven really well. It’s hard trying to find a sugar cookie recipe that holds their shape and tastes phenomenal. So many sugar cookies look pretty but taste terrible. Not these. So buttery and delicious. Only sugar cookie recipe I use and I have made these countless times. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
I’m so happy to hear that, thank you Lauren! 🙂
Hi Laura…these cookies are amazing! I have been looking for the perfect cutout recipe. I found it here, thanks. Brown butter and cream cheese work for me!
Thanks
Kathleen
Thanks so much, Kathleen! That’s so great to hear! 🙂