Irresistible Eggless Sugar Cookies: A Sweet Delight for Everyone

I have been making these Eggless Sugar Cookies every December with my daughter since she was three. We have so many fun memories of rolling the dough, cutting them into cute holiday shapes, baking, and decorating them with sprinkles. We set aside a Sunday in mid-December to make Christmas sugar cookies. Over the years many of my daughter’s friends have joined us in our Sugar Cookie making sessions. It’s always a blast with Christmas music on, messy aprons, and a kitchen full of fun, laughter, and everlasting memories. 

I hope this makes you even more interested in how to make these eggless sugar cookies. So, let’s indulge in the sweet and delightful world of eggless sugar cookies with my easy-to-follow recipe. These cookies are perfect for those who prefer egg-free treats without compromising on taste and texture.

In this recipe, I’ll guide you through each step, using simple and pantry-friendly ingredients. The sugar cookies turn out buttery and tender, thanks to the combination of unsalted butter, powdered sugar, and a touch of milk. With a hint of vanilla extract, they’re irresistibly aromatic. The addition of all-purpose flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and cream of tartar ensures a perfect balance of softness and crumble. And if you’re in the mood for decoration, we’ve got you covered with eggless royal icing and an array of colorful toppings. Get ready to bake a batch of eggless sugar cookies that will delight your taste buds and impress your loved ones.

Ingredients to make Eggless Sugar Cookies

Ingredients for the sugar cookies

• 1 cup (2 sticks)  unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
• ¼ cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cream of tartar

Ingredients for the Eggless Royal Icing

• 3 cups Confectioners Sugar (Powdered Sugar)
• 3 tablespoons water
• 3 tablespoons Light Corn syrup

Ingredients for decorating the eggless sugar cookies (optional)

• Sprinkles
• Colored sugar
• Various candy

How to make eggless sugar cookies: Step by Step Guide

There are 3 major steps involved in making these delicious eggless sugar cookies.

• Making the dough
• Rolling the dough and cutting cookies out
• Icing and decorating

There is a detailed description of each of these steps below. But, first let’s take a look at a quick step-wise process of making these eggless sugar cookies:

1. Add butter, powdered sugar milk, and vanilla to the bowl and beat with a handheld or stand mixer on medium speed for 2 minutes till butter is combined well with the sugar.
2. Stir in flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and cream of tartar and mix until combined. Divide the dough into 2 and form discs and wrap them with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for about 1 hour.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Roll each disc to ¼ inch thickness in between 2 pieces of parchment paper. Using cookie cutters, cut in desired shapes. Place cookie cutouts about 2 inches apart on the cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
4. Bake for 10-11 minutes until the edges are light brown. Remove from the oven and cool for 2 minutes before placing it on the cooling rack and cooling completely.
5. For icing and decoration, in a bowl, combine the icing ingredients and mix with a spoon till smooth. Adjust the consistency of the icing (thick or thin) using more water or powdered sugar. Add any food coloring if using. Using a small spatula or butter knife to frost the cookies with the glaze. If you want to get really fancy with your decorations, you can fill a piping bag with the glaze and the smallest tip you have. Pipe borders or small designs on the cookies with it. 
6. Immediately after glazing decorate with sprinkles or colored sugar if using. The glaze will take a couple of hours to set completely. Once dry, store in an airtight container for up to a week.

Here is a detailed description for making this eggless sugar cookie recipe.

The Dough for Eggless Sugar Cookie recipe

The dough for these Eggless Sugar Cookies is easy to make and roll. The powdered sugar (also called Confectioner’s sugar) and cornstarch make the cookies light. Powdered sugar is basically regular granulated sugar that has been finely ground and mixed with a little bit of cornstarch. 

Cream of tartar is a unique ingredient in this recipe. It is found in the spice aisle of the grocery stores. Cream of tartar is widely used in baking as it helps keep baked goods fluffy, light, and white.  Cream of tartar combined with baking soda makes baking powder. If you are out of cream of tartar, you can substitute the baking soda and cream of tartar in the recipe for 2 teaspoons of baking powder. 

The dough can be made up to a week in advance and stored tightly wrapped in plastic wrap in the refrigerator. If the dough has been in the refrigerator for more than an hour, you may have to take it out of the refrigerator and wait for about an hour before you can roll it. 

Rolling and Cutting eggless sugar cookies

Use a large rolling pin and roll in between two pieces of parchment paper. Initially, I used to roll the dough using flour without the parchment paper but recently discovered that rolling in between parchment paper is so much easier. You can move the parchment paper around for easy and even rolling and don’t have to use any flour.

Cut out cookies in desired shapes. Over the years we have collected a large assortment of cookie cutters. You really don’t need cookie cutters to cut out shapes. You can use any clean kitchen tool like small mason jar lids to do the job. Once the cookies have been cut, gather all the scraps and re-roll it to cut out more cookies. We don’t leave anything behind and keep going till the very end!

1. Dough chilled and ready to use
2. Dough rolled in between 2 sheets of parchment paper
3. Rolled out dough
4. Dough being cut into shapes

Eggless Royal Icing

The glaze is so easy to prepare and its almost like royal icing but can eggless version.  All you have to do is mix powdered sugar with water and corn syrup and stir to combine. Adjust the amount of water or powdered sugar to make the glaze thinner or thicker. It should be of thick pouring consistency or it won’t stay on the cookies. 

You can use food coloring (either water-based or gel) to color the glaze. Here is the brand of gel food colors we use. We usually mix the glaze up in one big bowl and then separate it out into 4-5 bowls for the different colors we choose. You need the tiniest amount of food coloring to color the glaze. It is so much more fun to have colorful cookies than just boring white ones. The kids really enjoy the glazing and decorating part. 

Spread the glaze on the cookies using small spatula or even a butter knife will do. If you want to get really fancy with your decorations, you can fill a piping bag with the glaze and the smallest tip you have. Pipe borders or small designs on the cookies with it.  When the glaze is still wet, decorate it with colorful sprinkles or colored sugar.  There is no right way to do this, just have fun!

The quantities in the recipe card yield about 4 dozen cookies. But it would really depend on the size and shape of your cookies. We use all different shapes and sizes and cookie cutters around the holidays- snowman, gingerbread man, snowflake, Christmas tree are some of our favorites. 

Recipe tips to make Eggless Sugar Cookies

• The sugar cookie dough can be made up to a week in advance and stored tightly wrapped in plastic wrap in the refrigerator. If the dough has been in the refrigerator for more than an hour, you will have to take it out of the refrigerator and wait for about an hour before you can roll it. 
• Using 2 sheets of parchment paper to roll the dough really makes the rolling and cleaning up much easier.
• Only ice and decorate the cookies once they are completely cooled.
• The icing should be of a thick pouring consistency or it won’t stay on the cookies. Add a tablespoon of water and mix before you add another.

Final Thoughts

This is a no-fail recipe for Eggless Sugar Cookies that are easy to make and stay fresh and soft for days!

Bake some cookies with your family, listen to Christmas music, and enjoy the most wonderful time of the year!

We would love to hear from you! Leave us a comment and rating (once you have tried the recipe). Also, tag us on Instagram @livinginfused with a picture of your creation.

FAQs- Eggless Sugar Cookies

Tools used to make Eggless Sugar Cookies

• Half Sheet Pans
• Unbleached Parchment paper
• Cookie cutters
• Cooling racks
• Gel Food Colors

More Eggless Holiday Baking recipes to try

Recipe Card: Eggless Sugar Cookies