Soft Frosted Sugar Cookies

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Soft Frosted Sugar Cookies, or Lofthouse cookies, are a light and fluffy dessert, perfect for Christmas. Tender and eye-catching, these are the best sugar cookies for a party or cookie exchange.

soft frosted sugar cookies on a white plate.

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How To Host a Cookie Exchange with your Soft Frosted Cookies

If you’re hosting a cookie exchange, you can’t miss out on these copycat Lofthouse sugar cookies! Make invitations for your guests, and be sure to keep track of RSVPs. Decorate the house with festive holiday decor, and ask your guests to bring their favorite homemade cookies.

You can even ask for recipes from each guest ahead of time, so that when they all take home their cookies at the end of the day, they can make their favorite cookies again and again!

Made with easy ingredients, like butter and sugar, these super soft cookies topped with sugar cookie frosting are a breeze to make!

  • Minutes to Make: This recipe is so easy to make, with no complicated ingredients or directions.
  • Family Friendly: Kids will love frosting and decorating these delicious soft cookies!
  • Adaptable: Make many different varieties of sugar cookies by adding food coloring, almond extract, or peppermint extract to taste.

If you’re looking for more cookie recipes, try these Norwegian Christmas Cookies, Kolaczi Polish Cookies, and Oreo Cheesecake Cookies.

We also love these Chocolate Sugar Cookies – they’re a yummy twist!

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What Are Lofthouse Cookies?

A platter of the Christmas treats.

These frosted sugar cookies with a soft center are also called Lofthouse cookies, after the brand that created them. The cookies are super soft and chewy, and well-known thanks to their cakey texture and heavy frosting – just like the lofthouse cookies. You’ll find that this copycat recipe is even better than Lofthouse!

Ingredient Notes for Soft Frosted Cookies

Sugar, flour, pudding mix for the cookies.

Make sure you don’t forget these super-simple ingredients for your soft sugar cookies!

  • Shortening: Vegetable shortening helps cookies keep their shape.
  • Eggs: When baking, always use large eggs unless otherwise stated.
  • Instant Vanilla Pudding: This gives the cookies a velvety soft texture.

See the recipe card below for a complete list of the ingredients with measurements.

Variations and Substitutions for Soft Sugar Cookies

Looking to put your own spin on these chewy frosted sugar cookies? Try these tips:

  • Extracts: Add vanilla, almond, coconut, or peppermint extract for some more flavor.
  • Pudding: You don’t have to just use vanilla pudding! Use any flavor you want.
  • Sugar: Try brown sugar instead of granulated sugar to vary the texture and flavor.
  • Electric Mixer: We recommend using an electric mixer, but you can use a hand mixer as well.

How to Make Frosted Sugar Cookies

It only takes a few easy steps to make this delicious frosted sugar cookie recipe. Prep, combine, bake, and enjoy! If you like lofthouse cookies than you will want to make sugar cookies like these.

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These are the basic steps for making soft frosted sugar cookies. Refer to the full, printable recipe card below for detailed instructions.

Mixing the batter for the cookies.

Step 1: Prep

First, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, or prepare a silicone mat. Make the cookie dough in a large bowl. Use a hand mixer or stand mixer with a paddle attachment to cream together the butter, shortening and sugar until light and fluffy, or on medium-high speed. Next, add in eggs, vanilla extract, and instant pudding mix. Continue mixing until the ingredients are thoroughly incorporated, and the dough is moist and soft.

Step 2: Dry Ingredients

In a medium bowl, stir together the dry ingredients: all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt. Next, add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients a little at a time, mixing between additions until all the flour is incorporated. Use a rubber spatula or butter knife to scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Step 3: Scoop and Bake

Next, using a cookie scoop or spoon, scoop into tablespoons and place on prepared cookie sheets, about 2 inches apart. Then, bake for 12-15 minutes or until set and lightly golden brown around the edges. Remove the cookies from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, before moving to a cooling wire rack to cool completely. Finally, decorate with a dollop of frosting and sprinkles. And store cookies in an airtight container.

Recipe FAQs for the Best Frosted Sugar Cookies

Of course! Lightly flour your work surface and use a rolling pin to flatten dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Then, use round cookie cutters, or whatever cookie cutters you want to shape your cookies. Gather the remaining dough to make even more cookies.

To make these cookies even more fun, try adding candy bits, powdered sugar, crushed peppermint, or sprinkles.

Store in an airtight container or ziploc bag with as little air as possible so that they stay soft. Keep at room temperature for up to 5 days. Store in single layers with parchment or waxed paper in between the layers.

Coffee and the soft frosted sugar cookies.

Expert Tips for Making Soft Frosted Cookies

  • Frosting: Have some extra time? Make the frosting yourself with our vanilla buttercream frosting recipe! You can also use royal icing or cream cheese icing, or make your favorite frosting.
  • Chill Dough: Cover the dough in plastic wrap and chill the cookies to keep them from spreading too much.
  • Variation tip: Top with little candies after icing.
  • Refrigeration: Remember that if you use buttercream icing, you must eat the cookies right away, or store them in the fridge or freezer.
  • Cooling Your Cookies: The cookies may look a bit too puffed when they’re fresh from the oven, but they should settle and flatten out as they cool.
soft frosted sugar cookies on a white plate.
5 from 2 votes

Soft Frosted Cookies

Yield: 72 cookies
Prep: 12 minutes
Cook: 12 minutes
Total: 24 minutes
Soft frosted cookies are such a beautiful cake like cookie that is fluffier and creamier than traditional sugar cookies.
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⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️Did you try this recipe? Please leave a star rating and review below!

Ingredients

  • ¾ Cups Butter – softened
  • ¼ Cup Shortening
  • 1 ½ Cups Sugar
  • 2 Eggs
  • 1 ½ teaspoon Vanilla Extract
  • 2 ½ Cups Flour
  • 3.4 ounce Instant Vanilla Pudding, 1 box
  • 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
  • ½ teaspoon Salt

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • Cream together butter, shortening, and sugar with an electric mixer.
  • Add in eggs, vanilla, and instant pudding mix. Continue mixing until thoroughly incorporated.
  • In a separate bowl stir together flour, baking powder and salt.
  • Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture a little at a time mixing between additions until all the flour is incorporated.
  • Using a dough scoop or spoon scoop drop by tablespoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheet, about 2 inches apart.
  • Bake for 12-15 minutes or until set and lightly golden brown around the edges.
  • Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack to cool completely.
  • Once cookies have cooled, frost with icing.

Expert Tips

  • This Recipe Can be Doubled: Great recipe for a crowd.  Simply increase the ingredients proportionately and make different versions like the ones listed above.
  • Add Decorations and Sprinkles: Enhance the soft baked cookie with sprinkles and decorations.
  • Short cut tip: Use this amazing buttercream frosting recipe or alternatively use premade cookie icing like these.
  • Variation tip: Top with little candies after icing.
  • Fridge: Remember that if you use buttercream icing you must use right away or store in the fridge or freezer.

Estimated Nutritional Information

Calories: 62kcal | Carbohydrates: 9g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 10mg | Sodium: 46mg | Potassium: 7mg | Fiber: 0.1g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 66IU | Calcium: 6mg | Iron: 0.2mg
The nutritional information provided are estimates. To learn more about how I calculate this information go to www.itisakeeper.com/about-its-a-keeper/privacy-disclosure-policies/
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Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American

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