Melt-In-Your-Mouth Sugar Cookies
Posted: July 25, 2025
Updated: December 3, 2025
Instinct Level 4 – Advanced Technique: Patience and precision shine here: complex steps, longer time, sharper skills required.
Instinct Level 3 – Intermediate Balance: A little layering, some timing, and a dash of judgment — you’ve got this.
Instinct Level 5 – Expert Challenge: Multi‑stage, high‑skill cooking with nuanced judgment — a true kitchen adventure.
Instinct Level 2 – Easy with Guidance: Simple skills, short prep, clear steps — just follow along and you’re golden.
Instinct Level 1 – Beginner Friendly: You’ll breeze through this: quick, easy, no judgment calls, barely any cleanup.
My grandma made these for family and friends every Christmas and these were my absolute favorite – I was as excited for these cookies as I was for presents. Growing up as a skinny kid, I had no idea how unique these sugar cookies were...my first store-bought sugar cookie was a huge disappointment (even with frosting!). I am not entirely sure about the origin but they do seem to be similar to Amish sugar cookies. My twist is using lemon juice as an acid instead of cream of tartar (which is common to be in your pantry) and the cookies are a huge hit (especially for my nieces – they check the cookie jar first thing when coming over). They are so easy to make and super soft and crumbly.
cookies (approximately)
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Hands-On Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 45 to 55 minutes (for about 3 batches)
Total Time: ≈1 hour 10 minutes
Equipment
baking sheet (half-sized or 2 quarter-sized)
flat-bottomed glass and plate
Switch to Metric
Ingredients
Item
Quantity
Mise en Place / Notes
unsalted butter
2
sticks
softened
powdered (confectioners') sugar
1
cup
granulated (white) sugar
1
cup
plus more for pressing the cookies
vegetable oil
1
cup
eggs
2
large
room temperature is ideal (but not required)
freshly squeezed lemon juice
2
tablespoons
juice lemon(s) (1 medium lemon ≈ 3 tablespoons)
vanilla extract
1
teaspoon
kosher salt (Morton)
1
teaspoon
baking soda
1
teaspoon
colored sugar sprinkles
2
tablespoons
optional - for garnish
The Process
In Advance - At Least ½ Hour
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1.
Temp the butter and eggs: Remove 2 large eggs and 2 sticks butter from the refrigerator to soften and warm to room temperature (the butter will not be completely soft, but will give a bit when pressed).
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Prepare
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2.
Pre-heat oven to 375°F. Ensure that the oven rack is in the middle of the oven. Grease a baking sheet with oil, shortening, or melted/softened butter or use parchment paper, a silicone baking mat, or a nonstick baking sheet.
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3.
Mix the wet ingredients and sugar: In a large mixing or stand-mixer bowl add 1 cup powdered sugar, 1 cup granulated sugar, 2 sticks softened butter, and 1 cup vegetable oil. Cream the ingredients together on medium speed until the sugar is fully incorporated into the butter. Add 2 large eggs, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, and 2 tablespoons lemon juice and mix again until all the ingredients are fully incorporated.
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4.
Mix the dry ingredients: In a medium mixing bowl, use the spoon and sweep method to add 4 ⅓ cups flour. Then add 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon baking soda. Mix with a fork or whisk until the salt and baking soda are evenly dispersed into the flour.
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5.
Finish making the cookie dough: Add the bowl of dry ingredients (flour, salt, and baking soda) to the large mixing bowl of the creamed sugar and mix on medium speed just until the flour is thoroughly incorporated (try not to over-mix).
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Cook
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6.
Prepare the cookies: Roll the cookie dough into small balls (slightly smaller than a golf ball) and place on the baking sheet. Repeat until the baking sheet has about 12 cookies (balls should be ≈3 inches apart). Pour about 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar and/or colored sprinkles onto a plate. Coat the bottom of a flat-bottomed glass with sugar and lightly press down on each of the balls to reduce the height by about half.
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7.
Bake the cookies for about 10 minutes – just until the outsides are slightly golden (the middles might look under-baked, but they will be fine). After the cookies have been out of the oven for 1 to 2 minutes, remove and place on a cooling rack. Ideally, while the cookies are baking, prepare another cookie sheet.
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Serve
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8.
Serve the cookies once cool to the touch or allow to cool completely and store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.
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Notes
Suggestions
These cookies are a great gift! A handy trick is to reuse (cleaned and possibly decorated) Pringles cans – stack the cookies inside after they are completely cool and send in the mail.
Shortcuts
Don’t have time or forgot to pull out the butter? You can still soften butter by cutting into smaller pieces and warming in the microwave using 5 to 10 second increments (avoid melting) or using stacking bowls – fill 1 of the bowls about ¼ of the way with hot/boiling water, place the other bowl on top and place the butter inside the top bowl.
Troubleshooting / Prevention
The cookies are spreading too much: If the first batch results in thin cookies, the dough is likely too warm – refrigerate the dough for about 30 minutes then bake. Other culprits can be old baking soda or the butter was too warm or melted.
Cookies are hard: Don’t overbake – the edges should just be golden.
Cookies are too crumbly: Warming the eggs to room temperature is the best prevention. If this is still an issue, add 1 to 2 Tbsp. of milk or cream to the dough and mix.
Make Ahead
The dough can be made up to 2 days ahead and refrigerated. When ready to bake, let the dough warm up a little and cook as usual.
Uncooked cookie dough freezes well! Roll into logs about 3 inches thick, wrap with clear plastic wrap, and freeze in a freezer-safe container or bag. To cook, remove from the freezer and thaw to prepare as usual or cut the log into rolls about ½ inch and bake from frozen for about 12 to 15 minutes.
Storage & Leftovers
These cookies last awhile (as long as 2 weeks) when stored in an air-tight container at room temperature.
FAQs
Q: Can you taste the lemon? Do I have to add it?
A: The lemon juice is not actually in the cookies for flavor. It's the acidic component that reacts with baking soda to make the cookies rise. You can replace the lemon with cream of tartar or another acidic ingredient but skipping altogether will result in flat cookies.
Q: What if I don't have or don't want to use vegetable oil?
A: You can probably replace vegetable oil with another neutral oil. Don't use olive oil though – the taste of the olive oil will overpower the cookie. If you want to use olive oil, I would recommend finding a cookie recipe that is specifically designed for that strong olive oil flavor. Trust me...I know this from experience.
Cost
36 servings
| Ingredient | Per Serving | Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| butter | $ | 0.06 | $ | 2.24 | |
| sugar (powdered) | 0.01 | 0.50 | |||
| sugar (white) | 0.00 | 0.05 | |||
| oil | 0.00 | 0.15 | |||
| eggs | 0.02 | 0.60 | |||
| lemon juice | 0.01 | 0.24 | |||
| vanilla extract | 0.01 | 0.50 | |||
| flour (all-purpose) | 0.01 | 0.22 | |||
| salt | 0.00 | 0.04 | |||
| baking soda | 0.00 | 0.06 | |||
| sprinkles | 0.01 | 0.30 | |||
| Total | $ | 0.14 | $ | 4.90 |
It really doesn't get much cheaper than this for a cookie. Skip those expensive cookies from the coffee shop or bakery...these are better!
Nutrition Facts
serving size: 1 cookie
| calories | 143 |
% daily value*
| total fat | 5.9 g | 8% |
| saturated fat | 3.3 g | 17% |
| trans fat | 0.2 g | 0% |
| polyunsaturated fat | 2.0 g | 0% |
| monounsaturated fat | 5.2 g | 0% |
| cholesterol | 24.1 mg | 8% |
| sodium | 75.4 mg | 3% |
| total carbohydrates | 20.7 g | 8% |
| dietary fiber | 0.4 g | 1% |
| sugars | 0.0 g | 0% |
| protein | 2.0 g | 4% |
micronutrients
| vitamin a | 42.7 mcg | 5% |
| vitamin c | 0.2 mg | 0% |
| calcium | 5.1 mg | 0% |
| iron | 0.8 mg | 4% |
| vitamin d | 3.6 mcg | 18% |
| magnesium | 3.4 mg | 1% |
| potassium | 20.0 mg | 0% |
| zinc | 0.1 mg | 1% |
| phosphorus | 20.2 mg | 2% |
| thiamin (b1) | 0.1 mg | 6% |
| riboflavin (b2) | 0.1 mg | 5% |
| niacin (b3) | 0.6 mg | 4% |
| vitamin b6 | 0.0 mg | 1% |
| folic acid (b9) | 25.1 mcg | 6% |
| vitamin b12 | 0.0 mcg | 2% |
| vitamin e | 0.2 mg | 2% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000-calorie diet; your needs may differ.
Nutrition information is estimated using USDA databases and may vary based on ingredient brands and preparation methods.
The 2,000-calorie reference is used as a general guide. Individual calorie needs typically range from 1,600-2,400 calories per day for adult women and 2,000-3,000 calories per day for adult men, depending on age, activity level, and other factors.
Need to look something up?
Cream
(Action) To cream means to beat together fat (typically butter) and sugar until the mixture becomes light in color, fluffy in texture, and aerated. This action incorporates air pockets that contribute to the leavening and tender crumb structure in cakes, cookies, and other baked goods. Proper creaming ensures even distribution of sugar and fat, resulting in uniform rise and fine texture. The technique sets the foundation for many batters by creating a stable foam that traps leavening gases.
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