This is our family’s FAVORITE gluten-free Cut-Out Sugar Cookies recipe that doesn’t spread while baking! The soft buttery dough is rolled out, cut with cookie cutters, baked in the oven, then coated with the best homemade icing. Learn all the tips and tricks for getting the cookies to hold their shape and decorate them perfectly for this Christmas season.
I am absolutely OBSESSED with this gluten-free cut-out sugar cookies recipe!!!
They are hands down the BEST I have ever tasted… and no one can ever tell that they’re gluten-free!
Not only is the flavor wonderful, but the texture is perfectly soft and tender.
And, with the right ingredients and a few tips they hold their shape beautifully after being baked.
Create gorgeous designs with icing and share the love by gifting them to your friends and family. (Or hog them all to yourself… I won’t tell!)
So if you’re ready to make the most impressive Christmas cookies ever, keep reading and find out all the tips and tricks!
Ingredients
The simple ingredients you need to make this cut-out cookie recipe include:
- Flour. All purpose flour or Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1 gluten-free baking blend may be used. You can also substitute for a blend of white rice flour, tapioca starch, and xanthan gum.
- Sugar. Regular, white sugar is best. Do not replace with a sugar alternative such as coconut or even turbinado sugar.
- Egg. These will give the cookies their lift. Make sure you get large eggs.
- Salted Butter. This is where a large majority of the flavor comes from. You can try substituting with vegan “buttery sticks” or margarine if you are dairy-free.
- Extracts. Both clear vanilla extract and almond extract are used to give this recipe a unique taste.
How to Make this Gluten-Free Cut-Out Sugar Cookie Recipe
The basic steps for making cut-out cookies are simple to follow. Please see the recipe card below for more detailed ingredient amounts.
Make the Dough (No Need to Chill!)
Take your butter straight from the refrigerator. Cut it into cubes and load into a large bowl or stand mixer along with the sugar.
Cream the butter and sugar with a stand or handheld mixer on medium speed for 1-2 minutes, or until the dough resembles coarse crumbs.
Add in the egg and extracts and continue to mix for 1-2 more minutes.
Little by little pour in the flour allowing it to fully combine after each addition.
Once the flour is completely absorbed and the dough sticks together you are ready to roll.
You can either refrigerate the dough at this stage for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 2-3 months until ready to use.
Roll Out Dough
Sprinkle about ¼-cup of powdered sugar over a cutting board. By skipping flour and using powdered sugar you prevent sticking while adding even more flavor to your cookies!
Place half of the cookie dough onto the surface and sprinkle with another 2-3 tablespoons of powdered sugar.
Flatten out the cookie dough using a rolling pin until the dough is ¼ – ⅓ inch thick.
Cut into Shapes
Cut dough into shapes with metal cookie cutters. The metal ones make cleaner cuts than the plastic ones and are easier to use.
Use those cute cookie cutters to make these gluten-free gingerbread cookies next!
Bake in Oven
Place the shapes on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet about 1-inch apart. Parchment paper makes clean-up a breeze, they don’t get stuck on the baking sheet, and the cookies bake more evenly. You can also use a silicone mat, if you’d prefer.
Bake in a preheated 375°F oven for 9-11 minutes, or until the edges begin to brown slightly. Cook on the longer side if they are thicker, and for less time if they are thinner.
Let rest on a wire rack until they come to room temperature.
Sugar Cookie Frosting
Mix egg whites on medium speed for 1 minute. Add the butter (for the family icing), vanilla and 1-cup of powdered sugar. Combine until the sugar is fully incorporated.
Add the remaining sugar incrementally and stir well each time. If the frosting is too thick, add 1-2-tbsp of milk until the desired consistency is reached.
Finally, drop in your desired food coloring (gels work the best!) and stir until combined.
Decorate to Impress!
Use a piping bag fitted with a 3M piping tip to outline where you would like the family icing to fill. Then use a toothpick to spread it all over evenly.
You can also just spread it on with a butter knife or a spoon if the kiddos are helping you out!
Once it has set you can pipe designs with the royal icing.
Place white nonpareils on the wet icing with tweezers.
Shake on sprinkles and enjoy!
Meal Prep and Storage
- To Prep-Ahead: The cookie dough can be made in advance and refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months. Defrost in the refrigerator before rolling out.
- To Store: Baked sugar cookies taste best when kept in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3-4 days.
- To Freeze: Seal in a freezer-safe airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months.
FAQs
Cut-out sugar cookies are made by rolling out the dough and cutting it into shapes before baking. Drop sugar cookies are simply made by dropping the dough onto the cookie sheet, and are generally thicker.
Sprinkle powdered sugar on a wooden surface and use a rolling pin to press and roll the dough until it is flattened.
To avoid burnt or undercooked cookies try to roll the dough so that it is ¼ – ⅓-inch thick. You can check the thickness of cookie dough by measuring with a ruler.
Skip the baking powder and baking soda, use cold butter, and bake chilled dough on parchment paper-lined baking sheets.
Expert Tips and Tricks
- Forget the leaveners!! Baking soda and baking powder have a tendency to make cookies spread.
- Keep it cold. Use cold butter and keep the dough chilled until you are ready to bake so the cookies hold their shape.
- Sugar not flour. Dust powdered sugar on your rolling surface to prevent the dough from drying out and add even more flavor.
- Line the sheet. Bake the cookies on parchment paper to maintain shape, avoid sticking, and keep cleanup easy.
- Smooth it out. Toothpicks work great for evenly spreading the icing.
More Christmas Cookie Recipes
There’s never a bad time for cookies! And these cookies can all be made gluten-free:
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
No-Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies
Cut-Out Sugar Cookies that Don’t Spread!
The best Cut-Out Sugar Cookies are created with this recipe that can easily be made gluten-free! Learn all the tips and tricks for how to get the cookies to hold their shape and decorate them perfectly for this Christmas season.
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter cold, but not frozen, cubed*
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- ½ tsp. almond extract
- 2 ¼ cups flour or a gluten-free 1-to-1 baking blend
- ½ tsp. salt
Family Icing Recipe:
- 2 egg whites
- 2 Tbsp. butter melted*
- 3 cups powdered sugar sifted
- ½ tsp. vanilla extract
- 1-2 Tbsp. milk if needed
- food coloring
Royal Icing Recipe:
- 1 egg white
- 2 cups powdered sugar sifted
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp milk optional
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
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In the bowl of an electric mixer combine cold butter and sugar. Mix on medium for 1-2 minutes, or until butter and sugar are just combined.
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Add egg, vanilla and almond extract. Continue mixing for 1-2 more minutes.
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In a separate bowl combine white rice flour tapioca starch, xanthan gum and salt. Toss to combine.
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Slowly add dry ingredients to the butter sugar mixture. Continue mixing on medium until dough starts to form a ball.
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Place dough out on a lightly powdered sugar-coated surface. Roll dough out to ¼ – ⅓ inch thickness.
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Using cookie cutters, cut dough into desired shapes and place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
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Bake cookies for 9-11 minutes or until edges just begin to brown.
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Let cookies cool completely before frosting.
Family Icing:
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In a medium-sized bowl place, mix egg whites over medium speed for 1 minute. Add butter, vanilla and 1 cup powdered sugar. Mix until sugar is incorporated.
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Add remaining sugar incrementally and mix well between each addition. If frosting is too thick, add 1-2 tbsp milk until desired consistency is reached.
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Add food coloring as desired.
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Frost cookies using a toothpick to spread the icing where you want it on the cookies.
Royal Icing: *optional*
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Place egg white in a medium bowl. Mix egg white for 1-2 minutes or until it becomes frothy. Add vanilla and mix for another minute.
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Add powdered sugar and mix over medium-low speed for 4-5 minutes.
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If icing is too thick, add milk as needed to reach an easy piping consistency.
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Place royal icing in a piping bag fitted with a 3M piping tip. Pipe designs on cookies and enjoy!
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
- You can also use 1 1/2 cups sweet white rice flour, 3/4 cup tapioca starch, and 1 teaspoon of xanthan gum instead of the gluten-free flour blend.
- Food coloring gel works best when getting really vibrant colors in your icing.
- Use tweezers when placing small nonpareils onto the cookies.
- These sprinkles and these white nonpareils were used to decorate the cookies you see pictured.
- You can also use vegan “buttery” sticks or margarine if dairy-free.
- To Store: Baked sugar cookies taste best when kept in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3-4 days.
- To Freeze: Seal in a freezer-safe airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months.
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MERRILL EPPEDIO says
These look great! Can you sub Ghee or a dairy free butter for the butter?
Thank you!
Merrill
London says
Hi Merrill!! I have not personally tried it, but others have used vegan “butter” with great results. Would love to know how it turns out for you!
Erin says
Great cookie recipe – only problem for me was 375 degrees burnt my cookies, before my timer even went off! Lowered the heat to 350 degrees and the results were perfect!
London says
Hi Erin! So sorry the first round didn’t turn out well. Do you happen to live at a high elevation? Sometimes the altitude can require a few alterations to the recipe. Also, a lighter baking sheet (not a dark one) will work best. Thanks for your feedback!
Lani G Bray says
These were the best cookies ever! I made them with my 5 and 2 1/2 year old grandsons. Instead of using a mixer, we washed our hands and all took turns mixing the ingredients with them, which was gooey and fun for them. I was the last to mix the dough, getting the leftover big clumps of butter mixed in, and they came out perfect and delicious……did not spread in the oven.
London says
Yay!! So so happy you and your grandsons enjoyed the cookies and the cookie making process so much. Sounds like ya’ll had a blast! Thanks for your comment and rating. 🙂
Rachel M Duclos says
Made these with the kids. LOVED IT! The dough seemed sticky to me at first, but was perfect when I rolled it using the powdered sugar on the parchment. I see what a few said about tasting “starchy” but I thought they were great and not too too sweat!!! We didn’t even ice them, just ate them. We plan to make them again this week, lat week was a test run for holiday baking. This was the first time I got the experience of making cut out cookies with my kids, because it’s the first time a recipe that is gluten free that I could also make dairy and soy free that worked. Note: I used a coconut based “butter” replacement and brown rice flour and it was lovely.
London says
Yay!! So so happy you and the kids enjoyed them. Love the idea to use the coconut based “butter!” Thanks so much for your comment and rating 🙂
Michelle says
Sorry, me again—just to clarify, I want to bake and ice a batch of cookies, then freeze them for about a week. Wondering how that will affect them….
Michelle says
Hello! I am about to make these cookies and have two questions:
1) After baking, what’s the cookie lifespan? (: How many days do we have to eat them? I have only one child and it will take a while to go through a batch…
2) I want to make a batch of these a week ahead of time and save them for thawing out on Christmas weekend. Can I wrap them and freeze them? Or when they thaw, will they fall apart from being dried out in the freezer? I know gluten-free baked goods can be super sensitive to freezing or refrigerating.
London says
Hi Michelle!! I just made this last weekend on a Thursday night and by Tuesday they were pretty much on their last day. For optimal texture and flavor, I would say they last 3-4 days and up to 5. As far as freezing them… my suggestion would be to freeze the dough and bake them when you’re ready for the second half of the batch or freeze the baked cookies BEFORE decorating. Hope you enjoy the cookies!
Sharon Kerr says
Excellent!! Followed recipe and helpful tips exactly as given, and this was hands down, my most successful gluten-free baking experience to date – and there have been more prior attempts than I care to recall. Thank you so much for allowing me to share Christmas cookies with my celiac family and friends!
London says
Yay, Sharon!! I am SO excited you enjoyed the cookies so much. I hope your family and friends love the cookies, too. Thanks for your comment and rating 🙂
Nicole E. Taylor says
Hello! Can I sub arrowroot for the tapioca starch? Thank you!
N
London says
Hi Nicole! Normally I would say you definitely can substitute, but since it is such a large amount of starch, it may come out just a tad different in texture and I have not personally tested this one out to know. If you do try it out, I would love to know! Thanks so much for your question!
Karen says
What different results will I get if I use the 1 to 1 GF mixture?
London says
Hi Karen! It totally depends on the type of 1 to 1 flour you get. I would suggest getting Bob’s Red Mill for the best result! Depending on the brand, you may need to adjust the flour and/or butter ratio slightly. Thanks for asking!
samantha martin says
Just made these with my kids, [7 and 4] and they LOVED the dough, it rolled out easy, didnt stick to the pin or the parchment paper, and my kids made 26 cookies from this recipe! The cookies were thinner than yours, but they were still tasty! I did sub corn starch for tapicoa since my store didnt have that, and also i could only find brown rice flour, but they were still delicious! Also we loved the family recipe icing! Thanks again!!
London says
Yay, Samantha!! I am SO happy you and your little ones enjoyed the recipe so much. Thanks for letting me know and for leaving a rating!!