The Best Vanilla Almond Frosted Sugar Cookies Recipe

This cookie recipe is great for any party, bake sale or holiday, especially Christmas! Change the frosting color or sprinkle colors for any holiday. The vanilla almond flavor makes it better than any other sugar cookie recipe!

The Best Vanilla Almond Frosted Sugar Cookies - updated November 2020

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This is my absolute favorite sugar cookie recipe! 

Our family first started using this recipe when my sister Shannon was pregnant with my nephew, which is almost 17 years ago! 

The recipe was found in a Taste of Home magazine and it was titled "Baby Shower Sugar Cookies". How perfect for a new baby on the way. We made them for her baby shower and they were a hit!

Ever since then, I've made them quite regularly for Christmas cookies, or just because we love them. 

We love frosting them with white or colored frosting and some sprinkles on top! You can also sprinkle some plain or colored sugar on top before baking if you prefer them without frosting.

The vanilla and almond flavoring together is delicious and they turn out great every time!

Well, except once when my sister Shantel and I used the wrong ingredient. Baking powder, cream of tartar, salt and baking soda should never mistaken for one another. Disastrous!

We had to make another batch asap since those ones were a flop! We still ended up eating all the delicious cookies, it just took a little longer to get there!

What are the ingredients in this recipe?

• Almond Extract: This is defintely my favorite of all extracts. It's made of alcohol, water and bitter almond oil. Pure almond extract has a strong, sweet flavor that goes great with cherry, vanilla, chocolate, coffee flavors. You can try making it homemade or use store bought.

• Butter: A dairy product consisting of approximately 80% butterfat and made from the fat and protein components of milk or cream. Most commonly made from cow's milk, but can also be made from sheep, goat, yak, or buffalo milk.

• All purpose flour: It's a combination of hard and soft wheats. Bleached flour provides a softer texture. It's versatile and you can bake most anything with it!

• Vanilla extract: this extract is made from vanilla bean pods soaked in water and alcohol. Try using pure vanilla extract instead of imitation. This is the most common extract used in American desserts and I put it in pretty much anything sweet, Use store bought or make your own here!

• Baking soda: Also known as Sodium bicarbonate or bicarbonate of soda. It requires an acid and a liquid to become activated and helps baked goods rise. It can also help remove tough stains, eliminate foul odors, and clean difficult areas like the oven, microwave, and tile grout. Unopened, baking soda will remain shelf stable until the best-by date on the box, generally 2 years. Once opened, a box of baking soda should be used within six months because it loses its potency and power.

• sugar
• egg
• all purpose flour
• cream of tartar

Recipe tips:

• Prepare your dough in advance and freeze it. This is a time saver during the holiday season. 

• Once the cookies are completely cooled, freeze them on a sheet pan, and once frozen, transfer to a freezer safe container. Thaw them on a flat surface, then frost or serve as is.

• If you're rolling out the dough to use cookie cutters, don't skimp on the refrigeration time. This allows the dough to stiffen, which makes it easier to roll out. Use a large piece of parchment paper, tape down the corners, lightly flour and roll the dough in small batches about the size of a softball, on that surface. Always roll out from center to edge. 

• I always bake one sheet at a time in the center rack of the oven. Have an extra baking sheet available, so you can have the next batch ready to go in the oven.

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Other sugar cookie recipes you may like:

• Brown Sugar and Cinnamon Cookies
• M&M's Rainbow Sugar Cookies
• Frosted Animal Sugar Cookies
• Big Crunchy Sugar Cookies
• Royal Iced Sugar Cookies
• French Butter Sugar Cookies
• Jello Sugar Cookies

This recipe is ready in these steps:

• In a bowl, cream butter and sugar
• Add egg, beat well 
• Beat in extracts 
• In a bowl, combine flour, baking soda and cream of tartar
• Gradually add to the wet mixture 
• Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes
• Preheat oven
• Roll dough into balls
• Set on parchment lined baking sheet and flatten slightly with the palm of your hand
• Bake until edges are slightly browned
• Cool on a wire rack and decorate with frosting and sprinkles

Full recipe below

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You can add or substitute with the following ingredients:

• lemon extract
• Halloween sprinkles
• chocolate chips
• cinnamon
• Valentine's day sprinkles
• lemon zest
• cocoa powder
• Easter sprinkles
• pumpkin spice
• orange zest
• 4th of July sprinkles
• white chocolate chips

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Looking for more holiday recipes?

• Holiday Jello Poke Cake
• Red Velvet Cake Mix Sprinkle Cookies
• Almond Banket Bars
• Holiday Monkey Bread
• No Bake Grinch Haystack Cookies
• Gingerbread Pancakes
• Peppermint Hot Cocoa Cookies 
• Peppermint Ganache Brownies

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I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we did!

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Print

The Best Vanilla Almond Frosted Sugar Cookies

Yield: about 5 dozen

Author: Hot Eats and Cool Reads

Prep time: 40 MinCook time: 10 MinTotal time: 50 Min

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• frosting and/or sprinkles

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar. 
2. Add egg, beat well. Beat in extracts. 
3. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda and cream of tartar. 
4. Gradually add to the wet mixture. 
5. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before using.
6. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. 
7. Roll dough into 1 inch balls, set on parchment lined baking sheet and flatten slightly with the palm of your hand leaving 1-2 inches between each cookie. 
8. Bake for about 10 minutes or until edges are slightly browned.
9. Cool on a wire rack and decorate with frosting and sprinkles.

Notes:

The good thing about sugar cookie dough is that you can actually prepare it in advance and freeze it. This is a huge time saver during the holidays. 

Once my cookies are completely cooled, I freeze them on a sheet pan, and once frozen, I transfer them to a freezer-safe container. When I want to pull some out to frost and serve, I thaw them flat on a baking sheet.

If you're rolling out the dough to use cookie cutters, don't skimp on the refrigeration time. This allows the dough to stiffen, which in turn makes it easier to roll out. Use a large piece of parchment paper, tape down the corners, lightly flour and roll the dough in small batches about the size of a softball, on that surface. Always roll out from center to edge. 

I always bake one sheet at a time in the center rack of the oven. Have an extra baking sheet available, so you can have the next batch ready to go in the oven.

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