I’ve made these again and again. Everyone loves them, especially my kids.

These are my favorite sugar cookies for any season. They’re perfectly sweet with a pop of tang. They stay soft and crumbly, similar to shortbread, but hold up to decorating. And most importantly, they don’t spread. There’s nothing worse than cookies that go into the oven looking like reindeer and come out looking like sea slugs.

I love eating them plain and slightly warm from the oven, but for a genuine treat, I recommend finishing them with a simple powdered sugar glaze or a buttercream frosting.

There are two key ingredients that make this cookie spectacular:

1. Corn starch, which stops the cookies from spreading. It’s tasteless and creates a soft crumbly texture.

2. Cream cheese, which balance out the sweetness with a decadent, creamy tang.

I also recommend using high quality vanilla extract. The ingredients are very simple so the vanilla flavor really shines through.

Chilling is not necessary, making this recipe quick and easy. However, I always chill my cutout cookies on the baking sheet for about 10-15 minutes before baking. This gives you really sharp lines for decorating. I also let them cool for at least an hour before decorating.

Vanilla Sugar Cookies

Makes thirty 2 1/2” cookies

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

• 4 ounces cream cheese (half a brick)

• 1 cup sugar

• 1 extra large egg yolk, at room temperature

• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract

• 2 3/4 cup flour + extra for rolling out the dough

• 1/3 cup cornstarch

• 3/4 tsp kosher salt

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, and salt. Set aside.

2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter, cream cheese, and sugar together till combined, about 1 to 2 minutes.

3. Add the egg yolk and vanilla. Mix till fully combined, scrape down the bowl as needed.

4. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture. Continue mixing on medium-low speed till the dough comes together.

5. Wrap the dough in plastic and chill for 30 minutes to an hour.

6. Preheat your oven to 375°F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

7. Roll the dough out on a floured surface, about 1/4” thick. Use your favorite cookie cutter to cut into shapes. If you want to stamp the tops, see my note below. I highly recommend chilling the cut out cookies for 10 minutes before baking, especially if stamping them, to help them hold their shape. Bake on center rack for 11 to 12 minutes. Repeat with remaining dough.

8. Allow the cookies to cool on a wire rack. Decorate as desired.