Ugly Christmas Sweater Cookies (best sugar cookie recipe) (2024)

Ugly Christmas Sweater Cookies are delicious, buttery, crispy sugar cookies decorated with ugly sweater designs that are sure to be winners at all your holiday gatherings! Try my Sugar Cookie Recipe for another cookie recipe easy to bake and decorate!

Ugly Christmas Sweater Cookies (best sugar cookie recipe) (1)

Ugly Christmas Sweater Cookie

This is the home of the ORIGINAL Ugly Sweater Christmas Cookie!! If you are looking for THAT sugar cookie… the one that is the perfect combination of sweetness, buttery crispness, and that goes perfectly with piping glaze… this is that cookie. It has won awards and has been a part of more cookie exchanges than I can count! It never fails to get praise and folks are always asking for the recipe!

Ugly Christmas Sweater Cookies (best sugar cookie recipe) (2)

How to Make Ugly Christmas Sweater Cookies

The image above is my ‘busy” ugly Christmas sweater. I am most certainly not saying it is based on anything in my closet…But, to get decorating, you have to get the cookies made first! The design is up to you.

To make the cookies, get out your stand mixer to get started. Do not preheat the oven right away; the dough has to chill for at least an hour before baking the cookies.

  1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until well combined (about 2 minutes).
  2. With the mixer on low, add in the eggs and egg yolks.
  3. Turn off the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl.
  4. With the mixer back on low, add the vanilla and almond extract.
  5. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, salt, and baking powder.
  6. Mix in the flour mixture about a cup at a time until fully incorporated.
  7. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour. (This might be a good time to check your closet for any ‘ugly sweater’ ideas or designs!)

Below is my ‘weird-eyed Rudolf with a red nose that sticks out way too far and is covered with gravy and mashed potatoes by the end of the night’ ugly Christmas sweater. Again, these are not similar to anything that might currently reside in my home…

Ugly Christmas Sweater Cookies (best sugar cookie recipe) (3)

Baking and Decorating the Cookies

After the dough has chilled for at least an hour, preheat the oven to 350°F. Roll the dough out onto a floured surface. Cut out the dough into your sweater shape (I made mine as large as my hand, but you could also use a sweater cookie cutter). Bake for 6-8 minutes, watching them carefully so you don’t burn the edges.

Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheet until they are firm enough to transfer to a cooling rack. When you are ready to decorate the cookies, I recommend using my favorite glaze icing to decorate them. It’s so much better than royal icing! Have fun using your imagination, and Merry Christmas!

Ugly Christmas Sweater Cookies (best sugar cookie recipe) (4)

5 from 1 vote

Ugly Christmas Sweater Cookies

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 8 minutes mins

Chill 1 hour hr

Total Time 1 hour hr 23 minutes mins

The BEST sugar cookie recipe ever! Ugly Christmas Sweater Cookies are delicious, buttery, crispy sugar cookies decorated with ugly sweater designs that are sure to be winners at all your holiday gatherings!

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Ingredients

  • 1 ½ cups (3 sticks or 340g) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 2 cups (400g) granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs, room temperature
  • 2 large egg yolks
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 2 teaspoons almond extract
  • 4 cups (500g) all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder

Instructions

  • In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until well combined (about 2 minutes).

  • With the mixer on low, add in the eggs and egg yolks, mixing until well incorporated.

  • Turn off the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl.

  • With the mixer back on low, add the vanilla and almond extract.

  • In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, salt, and baking powder.

  • Mix the flour mixture in with the butter mixture about a cup at a time until fully incorporated. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour.

  • When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F.

  • Roll the dough out onto a floured surface.

  • Cut out the dough into your sweater shape (I made mine as large as my hand, but you could also use a sweater cookie cutter).

  • Bake for 6-8 minutes, watching them carefully so you don't burn the edges.

  • Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheet until they are firm enough to transfer to a cooling rack. Have fun decorating!

Nutrition

Calories: 396kcal

Course: Dessert

Keyword: Ugly Christmas Sweater Cookies

Servings: 15 cookies

Calories: 396

Author: Amanda Rettke–iambaker.net

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Categorized in: Sugar Cookies

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Meet Amanda Rettke

Amanda Rettke is the creator of I Am Baker, and the bestselling author of Surprise Inside Cakes: Amazing Cakes for Every Occasion – With a Little Something Extra Inside.Over the course of her 15+ year blogging adventure, she has been featured in and collaborated with the Food Network, New York Times, LA Times, Country Living Magazine, People Magazine, Epicurious, Brides, Romantic Homes, life:beautiful, Publishers Weekly, The Daily Mail, Star Tribune, The Globe and Mail, DailyCandy, YumSugar, The Knot, The Kitchn, and Parade, to name a few.

Ugly Christmas Sweater Cookies (best sugar cookie recipe) (2024)

FAQs

What to add to ugly Christmas sweater? ›

Some are even no-sew ideas, so you can still deck your sweater out with lights, mirrors, ornaments and so much more with just a good old-fashioned glue gun.

How to win the ugly Christmas sweater Contest? ›

How To Win an Ugly Christmas Sweater Contest
  1. How to Win an Ugly Christmas Sweater Contest. Sure, Christmas is the season of giving. ...
  2. Consider Your Audience. What's ugly to one group might be charming to another. ...
  3. Go Full on Ugly. ...
  4. Consider an Interactive Sweater. ...
  5. Think Outside the Sweater. ...
  6. Bribe the Judge.
Jan 13, 2022

How to fancy up sugar cookie mix? ›

Take plain sugar cookies up a notch with exciting mix-ins like chocolate chips, rainbow sprinkles, toasted chopped nuts, chopped dried fruit or M&M's. Add these after blending your butter and egg into the sugar cookie mix. This is our favorite hack for holiday Pillsbury cookie dough.

What is the most expensive ugly Christmas sweater? ›

“Proceeds of this sweater will go to charity.” 2 Chainz promoted his five-figure sweater in a tweet, in which he wrote, “$90,000 cash. 50 carats of diamonds and 250 grams of gold on the worlds most expensivest ugly Christmas sweater.

What pants go best with ugly Christmas sweater? ›

It's best to keep your pants on the simpler side to ground that sweater of yours. If you want to keep the fun going, go for a pair of red or green chinos! Otherwise, some neutral trousers or a pair of dark wash denim will suffice.

What are the rules for ugly sweater? ›

To be eligible as part of the “sweater” it must be attached. Additional items such as hats, jewelry, pants or other festive attire will not be considered when voting for the Ugliest Christmas Sweater, but we encourage you to wear for entertainment purposes. How will the Ugliest Christmas Sweater Champion be determined?

What is a tacky Christmas sweater? ›

Updated on January 09, 2020. An ugly Christmas sweater is any Christmas-themed sweater that could be considered in bad taste, tacky, or gaudy. The general consensus is that the more embellishments—tinsel, reindeer, Santa Clauses, candy canes, elves, presents, etc. —the uglier the sweater.

Can you over mix sugar cookie dough? ›

Over-working the dough yields a tough cookie, which is not at all what you want. The very best sugar cookies are soft and tender. → Follow this tip: One of the keys to great sugar cookies is mixing the dry ingredients only until they're just incorporated, and not a second longer.

What happens if you add too much sugar to sugar cookies? ›

Sugar sweetens the cookies and makes them an enticing golden brown. Adding too little sugar can affect the taste and texture of cookies. Adding too much can cause them to be brittle. Take your time creaming the sugar and butter together at the beginning.

What is the #1 Christmas cookie? ›

Peanut Butter Blossoms are America's favorite Christmas cookie, based both on total number of pageviews from the U.S. population as a whole, and number of states that ranked it as their top cookie (which is six, by the way).

What is the least popular Christmas cookie? ›

On the naughty list of cookies, Americans gave the lowest win records to anise cookies, which only won 29% of its matchups.

What is the #1 cookie in the United States? ›

The chocolate chip cookie is far and away America's favorite cookie This should come as no surprise to anyone who enjoys the tasty treat. More than 53% of American adults prefer the cookies over the next most popular kind, peanut butter.

How do you attach something to an ugly sweater? ›

Tip: If you're worried about getting pinched or poked by hooks and wire, use a glue gun to attach your ornaments and bows to the sweater. You won't be able to reuse the sweater again afterward, but it'll look nice for your party!

Are ugly Christmas sweaters still a thing? ›

While the peak popularity might have passed, ugly Christmas sweater parties remain a fun and festive tradition enjoyed by many.

What day should you wear an ugly Christmas sweater? ›

National Ugly Christmas Sweater Day is celebrated on the third Friday of December each year.

How do you put garland on an ugly Christmas sweater? ›

Measure and cut strips of garland to vertically fit the front sleeves and front torso of your sweater. Beginning with the sleeves, run a line of hot glue down the sweater where you wish to attach a strip of garland, and press the garland firmly, yet carefully, into place.

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