These are my all-time favorite gluten-free sugar cookies! I think you’re going to fall in love with it too. They are soft and flavorful, but like classic sugar cookies, hold their shape while baking. They’re great for decorating with frosting and sprinkles.
This recipe also includes my all-time favorite sugar cookie frosting (hint it has sour cream) which takes these cookies to the next level.
Why You’ll LOVE this Recipe
- Soft sugar cookies with crispy edges
- Almond extract for amazing flavor
- Hold their shape while baking
- A little sour cream (secret ingredient!) for moist cookies
- Easily made dairy-free with vegan butter and dairy-free sour cream
- Freezes great!
Ingredients for Gluten-Free Sugar Cookies
Here are a few notes on the key ingredients to make these best gluten-free sugar cookies. If you have any additional questions leave me a comment/
- Gluten-Free 1:1 Baking Flour: Also known as gluten-free measure-for-measure flour. I like to use a gluten-free all purpose flour blend that contains xanthan gum. King Arthur flour is my favorite brand.
- Cornstarch: A little cornstarch gives these cookies a lighter texture.
- Sour cream: Sour cream imparts a richness to the cookie dough and helps create a chewy texture in gluten-free baking. You can easily use dairy-free sour cream if you prefer.
- Vanilla extract/almond extract: The combination of these two extracts gives this the cookie dough amazing flavor!
Dairy-free? To make these cookies dairy-free I recommend using 1/2 cup shortening and 1/2 cup vegan butter in place of the 1 cup of butter. You can also use Forager dairy-free sour cream.
For an almond flour version, try these almond flour sugar cookies!
How to Make Gluten-Free Sugar Cookies
Make the Dough
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or use a large bowl with a hand mixer) add the butter and white sugar. Cream together until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Add the egg, almond extract, vanilla extract, salt and baking powder. Mix until well combined.
- With the mixer running on low, add half of the sour cream followed by the cornstarch. Add 1/2 of the gluten-free flour blend to the wet ingredients followed by the other 1/2 of the sour cream. Mix until combined then add the other 1/2 of the dry ingredients and mix until incorporated.
- Scrap down the sides and bottom of the bowl then mix again until totally combined.
Roll and Bake the Cookies
- Divide the dough into two flattened balls and wrap the dough balls tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 2 days.
Tip: If you prefer drop cookies and don’t want to roll out the dough, try these gluten-free Christmas cookies.
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Line 2 baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.
- Lightly sprinkle a clean counter or work surface with gluten-free flour. Roll out the chilled dough with a rolling pin to the desired thickness on the lightly floured surface. Cut out the cookies with desired cookie cutters, then use a thin spatula to transfer the cookies to the cookie sheet.
- Bake the cookies for 9-11 minutes until set. Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
You also might like these gluten-free funfetti sugar cookies!
Gluten-Free Sugar Cookie Frosting
These gluten-free sugar cookies are perfect for any holiday! We like making them as Christmas cookies during the holiday season. They also make great hearts for a Valentine’s cookie, pumpkins for a Halloween cookie and more.
You can use any frosting you like to decorate these cookies. They work well with royal icing or buttercream frosting.
I’ve included my favorite recipe for buttercream frosting (that has a secret ingredient) in the recipe below. Once you try sour cream in buttercream frosting you’ll never go back! It’s so delicious.
Recipe FAQ
For best results, it’s important to chill the gluten-free sugar cookie dough before rolling it out. Chilled dough create cut-out cookies that hold their shape. The chilling time also gives the gluten-free flour time to hydrate for a non-gritty dough.
For a soft sugar cookie, roll the dough until it is about 1/4-inch thick. For crisper cookies you can roll the dough thinner to 1/8 inch. I prefer 1/4-inch thick cookies!
Yes! You can easily use dairy-free butter and dairy-free sour cream in this recipe. To make these cookies dairy-free I recommend using 1/2 cup shortening and 1/2 cup vegan butter in place of the 1 cup of butter. You can also use dairy-free sour cream – I like the brand Forager.
Storage/Freezing Instructions
To Store: Store the cookies in an airtight container or wrapped tightly in plastic wrap at room temperature for up to 3 days.
To Freeze: Plain gluten-free sugar cookies freeze well up to 3 months. To freeze, layer the cookies between sheets of parchment paper and place in a freezer-friendly container or Ziploc. Thaw in the refrigerator or at room temperature.
More Gluten-Free Cookie Recipes
Making gluten-free sugar cookies is one of our favorite holiday traditions! I hope you like this recipe as much as we do! If you try it be sure to leave me a comment/rating below. I’d love to hear from you!
Gluten-Free Sugar Cookies (Tried & True!)
Video
Ingredients
For the Cookies:
- 1 cup butter softened, 227g
- 1 cup granulated sugar 200g
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 cup sour cream 60g (dairy-free sour cream works!)
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 1/2 cups gluten-free 1:1 baking flour 380g
For the Frosting:
- 1/2 cup butter 113g
- 1/4 cup sour cream 60g (dairy-free sour cream works!)
- 3 cups powdered sugar 390g
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
- 2 tablespoons milk or almond milk
- food coloring optional
Instructions
Make the Dough:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or use a large bowl with a hand mixer) add the butter and granulated sugar. Cream together until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Add the egg, almond extract, vanilla extract, salt and baking powder. Mix until well combined.
- With the mixer running on low, add half of the sour cream followed by the cornstarch. Add 1/2 of the flour followed by the other 1/2 of the sour cream. Mix until combined then add the other 1/2 of the flour and mix until incorporated. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl then mix again until totally combined.
- Divide the dough into two flattened balls and wrap each ball tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 2 days.
Bake the Cookies:
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Line 2 baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.
- Lightly sprinkle a clean counter with gluten-free flour. Roll out the chilled dough to the desired thickness on the lightly floured surface. (Tip: For a soft sugar cookie, roll the dough until it is about ¼-inch thick. For crisper cookies you can roll the dough thinner to ⅛ inch. I prefer ¼-inch thick cookies!)
- Cut out the cookies with desired cookie cutters, then use a thin spatula to transfer the cookies to the prepared pan.
- Bake the cookies for 9-11 minutes until set. Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Make the Frosting:
- In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients. Using a hand mixer, whip until light and fluffy. Add a little more milk if the frosting is too thick, or more powdered sugar if it’s too thin.
- Frost the cookies as desired. Enjoy!
I tried these and they turned out amazing! I eat gluten-free, and since my daughter has a cow’s milk dairy allergy, I substituted Becel plant based butter and used sheep’s milk yogurt (which is thick and has 5% milk fat like low fat sour cream) and it worked beautifully! Just thought I would let you know in case anyone else out here needs to make them dairy-free… it works!
Hi Lisa! We’re glad to hear those substitutions worked well and that you loved the cookies. Thank you for sharing with us!
I want to use the sugar cookie dough as my base to fruit pizza. Do I need to do anything special? Ungreased 10 x 15 pan? Would 20 minutes at 350 work? I tasted the dough and it’s yummy. My granddaughter has to have gluten free so I’m hoping this will be a great alternative cookie dough for her.
That sounds so fun, JoEllen! That should work great! We’d bake it on parchment paper or a silicone baking mat still. You might want to start checking it a little before 20 minutes just to be safe. Finding the perfect baking time will be the trickiest part. We’d love to hear how it goes!
These are the best gluten free sugar cookies ever!
I took a batch with me to work and everyone is begging me to bring more. I rolled out the dough to 1/4” thick, continuously powdering with Bob’s red mill 1:1 and cut them out. Takes 12 minutes to bake into the texture of the store bought soft sugar cookies.
We love to hear how much everyone enjoyed the cookies, Chaney! Sounds like you have it down to a science. Thank you for taking the time to share your positive experience with us!
The dough is very wet even after refrigerating. Does adding flour upset the balance of the ingredients
Hi Vivien, did you use the recommended flour blend? Other GF flour blends may not hydrate the same. Otherwise, it does sound like the wet/dry ratio was a little off. You can add a little more gf flour to fix this. We’d recommend starting with just a tablespoon or two, chilling, then assessing if it needs more. The chill time will help the added flour hydrate. We hope this helps!
Hi is the butter unsalted or salted in the cookies?
Hi Ella, we prefer salted butter in all of the recipes. Happy baking!
I was wondering if the ingredients besides the butter needs to be warm or room temperature? Also if I can’t find that exact gluten free flour is that okay?
Hi Kris, only the butter needs to be softened. No other ingredients need a special temperature. Both King Arthur GF Measure-for-Measure Flour and Bob’s Red Mill GF 1:1 Baking Flour work well. We aren’t sure how other blends will do. We hope you enjoy the cookies!
These cookies are fantastic! I didn’t have any almond extract on hand so just used vanilla to add that amount. Made them into footballs for Super Bowl and everyone thought they were super cute and quite delicious! I’ll be saving this recipe to make again.
We love this, Christina! Thank you for taking the time to share your positive experience with us!
Tried these today and the cookies turned out wonderful. I used 1/2 shortening and 1/2 vegan butter as you recommended to make them dairy-free. I wasn’t as happy with the vegan butter in the frosting (no shortening). The frosting seemed to separate even with additional powered sugar. Any recommendations?
Hi Kelly, we’re so pleased you enjoyed the dairy-free version of the cookies! For the frosting, vegan butter can be tricky if it gets too warm. You could try chilling the frosting then whipping it a little more. Also, with vegan butter we’d mix the powdered sugar in slowly since dairy-free options can be so sensitive. We hope this helps!
I’ve been looking for gluten free cookie recipes, and these were the best I ever tried! They came out soft, crunchy, and amazing! I used gluten free schär mix, and I let the dough sit in the freezer for the night.
We’re so glad you loved the sugar cookie recipe so much, Dunya! Thank you for sharing with us!
Hi! Do we need to include almond extract?
Hi Emily, good question! It’s not a requirement, but we think it really gives these cookies an extra delicious depth of flavor. You can also sub more vanilla extract, if you prefer.