My easy Cream Cheese Sugar Cookie recipe is a tasty twist on classic sugar cookies. They're the only treats you’ll want to eat this holiday season! I’ve added rich cream cheese and lemon zest to the dough giving these cookies a slight tanginess and a hint of citrus that uplifts the traditional sweet flavor. Combined with a touch of vanilla, the result is a flawlessly balanced sugar cookie that’s melt-in-your-mouth delicious, even without any added frosting.
My favorite thing about these cookies is they’re SO easy to make. The dough makes 20 large cookies and comes together quickly in a food processor or a stand mixer, plus it’s a breeze to roll out and cut the dough into shapes. They’re perfect for a family baking day, a cookie exchange, or filling up a festive holiday gift basket. And for anyone who’s ever felt intimidated by baking cutout cookies, have no worries—this recipe is truly foolproof.
Jump to:
- Why No One Can Resist Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies
- Key Ingredients for These Christmas Sugar Cookies
- How to Make Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies
- How to Decorate with Buttercream Frosting
- How to Store These Sugar Cookies
- More Amazing Cookies to Enjoy
- Christmas Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies (with Buttercream Frosting)
Why No One Can Resist Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies
My favorite type of sugar cookies are thick and sweet enough to eat plain, but not too sweet that you wouldn’t add frosting or icing. Oh, and they should also have a lot of flavor. When I started testing these cookies, I wanted the flavor to be the star of the show. I wanted to create cookies that are just as delicious plain as they are covered with frosting or icing.
I usually find store-bought iced sugar cookies to be slightly disappointing—they can be overly sweet, crumbly, or rock-hard. In contrast, my cream cheese sugar cookie dough is pillowy soft, and tender with a creamy sweet flavor that’s hard to resist.
These Cookies Taste Great. The cream cheese in the dough gives these cookies an extra special richness and tanginess. The lemon zest adds a subtle brightness to the sugar cookie base. Cream cheese, vanilla, and lemon together are the holy grail of flavor combinations, and they smell heavenly while they’re baking.
The Texture is Wonderful. On the texture side, the cookies are soft but sturdy, making them the perfect base for frosting or icing. My cookies are ¼-inch thick, a little thicker than your typicaI sugar cookie. This thickness gives them wonderful chew and bite and makes them the perfect base for buttercream or icing. If you decide to turn them into iced cookies, they make a great-tasting canvas that you can decorate to your heart’s content. Whether you’re baking for the holidays or just craving a soft, flavorful sugar cookie, this recipe will quickly become a favorite.
For more Christmas cookie ideas check out my list of Christmas Cookie Ideas, and try two of my holiday favorites: Cranberry and Pistachio Shortbread Cookies and extra flaky Chocolate Rugelach.
Key Ingredients for These Christmas Sugar Cookies
This sugar recipe makes 20 large cookies and this buttercream recipe makes enough to decorate the cookies. If you want elaborate decorations I recommend doubling the recipe and freezing any leftover buttercream.
- Unbleached All-Purpose Flour: This gives the cookies their structure. I recommend sifting the flour before adding it to the other ingredients for the smoothest dough.
- Full-Fat Cream Cheese: This gives the cookies a subtle tang and a full richness, which you won’t get from a half-fat or low-fat cream cheese. Philadelphia brand cream cheese is my recommended brand because of it’s tanginess and moisture level. I haven’t tried this
- Baking Powder: This is a leavening agent that helps the sugar cookies rise and achieve a light, tender texture.
- Large Egg: The egg binds the dough together.
- Pure Vanilla Extract: Fragrant vanilla extract works wonderfully with the lemon zest, sugar, and cream cheese to enhance the flavors.
- Granulated Sugar: It’s called a sugar cookie for a reason! This provides sweetness and softness in the cookie.
- Lemon Zest: A hint of lemon zest complements the vanilla and tangy cream cheese.
- Unsalted Butter: Butter adds richness, moisture, and a tender crumb to the cookies. Make sure to use room-temperature butter when mixing the cookies. Cold butter won’t mix properly with the rest of the ingredients.
- Full-Fat Cream Cheese: This gives the cookies a subtle tang and a full richness, which you won’t get from a half-fat or low-fat cream cheese. Philadelphia brand cream cheese is my recommended brand because of its tanginess and moisture level. I haven’t tried this
Full ingredients, measurements, and instructions are in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
How to Make Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies
This sugar cookie dough can be made in either the food processor or a stand mixer, whatever you have on hand. I’m using a food processor here, but I provide stand mixer options in the full recipe card.
Step 1: Place the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl and whisk together.
Step 2: Crack the egg into a small bowl and add the vanilla extract. Whisk the egg and vanilla extract together.
Step 3: Place the sugar in the bowl of a food processor and zest the lemon directly on top of the sugar. Process the sugar-lemon mixture until combined.
Step 4: Add the butter and cream cheese to the food processor.
Step 5: Process the ingredients together until well combined and the dough appears creamy.
Step 6: With the food processor running, slowly pour the beaten egg into the food processor through the feeding tube.
Step 7: Add the dry ingredients all at once.
Step 8: Process the dough until it starts to form a ball.
NOTE: The dough ball will be a little sticky, so generously flour a work surface and your hands.
Step 9: Divide the dough into 2 even pieces. Wrap each piece of dough in plastic wrap. Refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours.
Step 10: Flour your work surface. Roll out the dough to 1/4-inch thickness.
Step 11: Cut out the cookies in your desired shapes. Reroll the dough and cut out additional cookies until the dough is used up.
Step 12: Place the cookies evenly spaced out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Step 13: Bake the cookies until the bottom edges are lightly golden brown.
Step 14: Remove the baking sheet from the oven. Cool the cookies on the baking sheet, then move them to a wire rack to finish cooling.
How to Decorate with Buttercream Frosting
Part of the fun of making Christmas cookies is decorating and I love decorating them with a good American buttercream frosting. Use my classic Vanilla Buttercream for these cookies. The frosting tastes great and pairs well with these cream cheese sugar cookies.
For decorating these cookies you'll need the following equipment:
This buttercream recipe is enough to decorate the cookies made in this recipe. If you want more elaborate decorations I recommend doubling the buttercream recipe. You can always freeze leftover frosting, or make more cookies.
How to Store These Sugar Cookies
As long as the cookies are unfrosted, they can be stored in an airtight container for up to 10 days. You can also freeze the dough for up to a month, so you can bake cookies anytime! After the initial refrigeration, place the dough in a large freezer-safe bag.
If the cookies are frosted with buttercream they are good at room temperature for up to 3 days in an airtight container. If you want to ship these as a gift, ship the plain cookies with the recipe for buttercream or icing and a set of pastry bags. They’ll make the perfect gift for friends and family who love to have fun in the kitchen.
More Amazing Cookies to Enjoy
Once your baking hat is on, there’s no need to take it off! Keep the tasty cookies coming with these tried-and-true recipes.
If you make this holiday sugar cookies please leave a rating and a comment below.
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Christmas Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies (with Buttercream Frosting)
Ingredients
Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies
- 3 cups (375 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1-1/2 teaspoons (6 grams) baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 large (50 grams) egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest the zest from one medium sized lemon
- 1 cup (227 grams) unsalted butter room temperature
- 3 ounces (85 grams) full fat cream cheese room temperature
Instructions
- The cookie dough can be made in either the food processor or a stand mixer.
For Both Methods
- Place the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl and whisk the ingredients together. Crack the egg into a small bowl and add the vanilla extract. Whisk the egg and vanilla extract together.
Food Processor Mixing Method
- Place the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl and whisk the ingredients together. Crack the egg into a small bowl and add the vanilla extract. Whisk the egg and vanilla extract together.
- Place the sugar in the bowl of a food processor. Zest the lemon directly into the bowl on top of the sugar. Process the sugar-lemon mixture for about 30 seconds.
- Add the butter, the cream cheese to the food processor. Process the ingredients together until the ingredients are well combined and the dough appears creamy.
- With the food processor running, slowly pour the beat egg into the food processor through the feeding tube. Once the mixture is well combined, scrape the sides of the food processor bowl and make sure all the ingredients are well combined.
- Add the dry ingredients all at once. Process the dough until it starts to form a ball of dough.
Stand Mixer Mixing Method
- Place the sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Zest the lemon directly into the bowl on top of the sugar. Use your fingers to rub the lemon zest into the sugar.
- Add the butter, the cream cheese to the butter. With the paddle attachment, mix the ingredients on medium speed until the ingredients come together are well combined and the dough appears creamy.
- Add the egg mixture and mix on medium speed until the egg is fully incorporated. Scrape the sides and bottoms of the bowl.
- Add the dry ingredients all at once. Mix the dough on low speed until the flour is incorporated. Increase the speed to medium and mix until the dough comes together into large clumps.
For Both Methods
- The dough will be a little sticky. Generously flour a work surface and your hands. Place the dough on the work surface, divide the dough into 2 even pieces (about 430 grams each). Shape each piece of dough into an 1/2-inch rectangle.
- Wrap each piece of dough in plastic wrap. Refrigerate the dough for 2 hours.
- At this point the cookie dough can be frozen for up to 1 month. Place both pieces of dough (after the initial refrigeration) in a large freezer-safe bag. Freeze the cookie dough for up to 1 month.
Bake the Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a half baking sheet with parchment paper or Silpat.
- Remove the cookie dough from the refrigerator and let it sit at room temperature for 15 minutes.
- Flour your work surface. Roll out the dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut out the cookie shapes. Reroll the dough scrapes to 1/4-inch thickness and cut out additional cookies.
- Place the cookies about 2-inches apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Bake the cookies for 12-14 minutes until the bottom edges are lightly golden brown. If you want your cookies a little on the pale side, aim for about 10-12 minutes.
- Remove the baking sheet from the oven. Cool the cookies on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then move them to a wire rack to finish cooling.
How to Store the Cookies
- The unfrosted (undecorated) cookies can be stored in a airtight container for up to 10 days.
Decorating the Cookie
- Make one (1) recipe of the vanilla buttercream. Determine how many different colors of buttercream you want. Place 1 cup of buttercream in a small mixing bowl and stir in the food coloring. Repeat this step for each color.
- Spoon the buttercream into the piping bags and decorate your cookies.
- Once the cookies are decorated with the buttercream they can be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 2 days. After 2 days store the cookies (in the container) in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. The buttercream will last longer, but the cookies will begin to dry out.
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