These soft, perfectly sweet almond sugar cookies are sure to become your family's new favorite treat. With a delicate almond flavor and simple icing, they're perfect for holidays, special occasions, or just because!
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Sugar cookies are one of our favorite desserts to make for any holiday. It's so easy to customize them with fun shapes or icing decorations. I love changing up the flavor as well. These almond sugar cookies are one of my favorite versions.
This recipe is a family classic that I've made hundreds of times. The only trick is getting the sugar cookie dough consistency right. You want the dough to be soft but not sticky. If it is too crumbly, the cookies will be tough. If it is too soft, the cookies will fall apart.
The dough handles beautifully for cookie cutters, making it perfect for those precious moments when tiny hands want to help in the kitchen.
Why You'll Love These Almond Sugar Cookies
- Perfect Texture: These cookies strike the ideal balance between soft and sturdy, with a tender crumb that melts in your mouth.
- Make-Ahead Friendly: The dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days, allowing you to prep ahead and bake when you have time.
- Kid-Approved Flavor: The subtle almond extract creates a flavor that children and adults alike will adore.
- Yogurt Secret: The addition of yogurt creates an incredibly tender texture that sets these cookies apart from standard sugar cookies.
👩🍳 Cut out sugar cookies are a fun tradition at our house for nearly every holiday. It's like an edible decoration that's adorable and yummy!
Recipe Ingredients
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Butter — or shortening
- Sugar
- Egg
- Plain yogurt — regular or greek yogurt or sour cream
- Almond extract
- Vanilla extract
- Powdered sugar
- Milk
For the exact amounts needed, please see the recipe card below.
How To Make Almond Sugar Cookies
Step 1: Preheat oven to 350ºF. Sift dry ingredients together, set aside. In a large bowl, cream together butter or shortening and sugar. Add egg, almond extract and vanilla extract, mix well. Add yogurt, mix well.
Step 2: Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined. The dough shouldn't be sticky to touch. Add more flour if needed.
Step 3: Lightly flour a surface that you can roll the dough out on. Roll it out about ¼-inch thick and cut into desired shapes.
Step 4: Place cookies on a greased or lined sheet pan and bake for about 10 minutes. When the cookies are done, they should be light and dry in color, barely browned on the bottom.
Step 5: Make the icing by combining all of the ingredients and mixing well, thinning to the desired consistency by adding milk. Divid and color, if desired. Ice the cookies after they have cooled completely.
Recipe FAQs
Absolutely! The baked cookies will stay fresh in an airtight container for up to a week. You can also freeze the unbaked dough for up to 3 months—just thaw in the refrigerator overnight before rolling and cutting.
Yes, if you have almond allergies or simply prefer a different flavor, vanilla extract works beautifully as a 1:1 substitute. You could also try lemon or orange extract for a citrusy twist.
The yogurt adds moisture and a slight tanginess that balances the sweetness perfectly. It also creates a tender texture that's hard to achieve with other ingredients. As noted, sour cream works equally well if that's what you have on hand.
These cookies should remain light in color with just the slightest browning on the bottom. They may look slightly underdone on top, but they'll continue to set as they cool on the baking sheet.
Expert Tips
- Perfect Your Rolling Technique: Use two ¼-inch wooden dowels placed on either side of your dough as guides for your rolling pin to ensure even thickness throughout.
- Dough Consistency: If you press your fingers onto the dough, they should come away with minimal sticking. A tiny bit of sticking is fine, you'll be adding a little flour to the dough as you roll it out.
- Cooling Matters: Allow cookies to cool completely before icing them—even a slightly warm cookie can cause the icing to run.
- Thick or Thin: You can make these almond sugar cookies as thick or as thin as you'd like, just remember to adjust the baking time accordingly. I usually make them about ¼-1/3 inch thick. I think this gives the optimal cookie-to-icing ratio!
More Sugar Cookie Recipes To Try
If you like these almond sugar cookies, be sure to check out these other amazing sugar cookie recipes!
- Classic Soft Sugar Cookie Recipe: This truly is the best sugar cookie recipe, it turns out soft and perfect every single time. Easy to ice and fun for the whole family to make.
- Soft Pumpkin Sugar Cookies: Packed with so much great flavor in every cookie and topped with homemade cream cheese icing, these cookies really are a fantastic autumn dessert.
- Chocolate Sugar Cookies: A delicious twist on a classic sugar cookie! Perfect for cutout cookies and decorating any way you want.
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Almond Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
For the Almond Sugar Cookies
- 3 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup butter (or shortening)
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 egg
- ½ cup plain yogurt (regular or greek, see note)
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Icing
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon butter (melted)
- 2 tablespoons milk
Instructions
For the Almond Sugar Cookies
- Preheat oven to 350ºF.
- Sift dry ingredients together, set aside.
- In a large bowl, cream together shortening and sugar.
- Add egg, almond extract and vanilla extract, mix well.
- Add yogurt, mix well.
- Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined. The dough shouldn't be sticky to touch. Add more flour if needed.
- Lightly flour a surface that you can roll the dough out on.
- Roll it out about ¼ inch thick and cut into desired shapes.
- Place cookies on a greased or lined sheet pan and bake for about 10 minutes.
- When the cookies are done, they should be light and dry in color, barely browned on the bottom.
For the Icing
- Mix powdered sugar, almond extract, and vanilla extract.
- Add butter and milk 1 tablespoon at a time until icing reaches desired thickness.
- Divide and color icing as desired.
Notes
- Sour cream can be substituted for the plain yogurt. You can also use vanilla yogurt or Greek yogurt.
- The number of cookies you get from this recipe will vary depending on how thick you cut them and how large or small your cookie cutters are.
- If you would like to make the cookies thinner or thicker, remember to adjust the baking time accordingly.
- Try and use cookie cutters that are all the same size, that way the cookies will bake evenly.
Ashely
How many eggs?
Alli
1 egg, thank you for pointing that out! I've fixed the recipe.
Alli
Love the almond flavor!