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Making homemade cookies is a typical occurrence in my house. This time, I received a sugar cookie request from a friend at my run club. I decided to try a new-to-me recipe for a chewy and soft sugar cookie.
It was a gamble, but wow. This bakery-style sugar cookie is from “The New Family Cookbook” by America’s Test Kitchen. These sugar cookies possess that crave-worthy slightly crisp edge and chewy center. They looked beautiful (especially after I sprinkled on chunky coarse sugar).
I passed around a large container of these cookies to a dozen running friends after dinner. At first, I’d hear, “Oh, I’ll have just one.” Then what did I hear? “Hey, can I get another sugar cookie, please?” or “Are there any sugar cookies left?” As for the cookie requester, this was his absolute favorite type of sugar cookie. So there you go.
Table of Contents
- What’s In These Soft Chewy Sugar Cookies?
- How Do You Make Soft and Chewy Sugar Cookies?
- Recipe for Chewy and Soft Sugar Cookies by America’s Test Kitchen
- What Is America’s Test Kitchen?
- Inside “The New Family Cookbook” by America’s Test Kitchen
- The America’s Test Kitchen Cookbooks List
- Related Resources
What’s In These Soft Chewy Sugar Cookies?
This recipe includes most of the usual suspects plus one unexpected addition (you’ll see it in a moment). The ingredients in this sugar cookie recipe include:
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Granulated Sugar
- Unsalted Butter (I use Salted Butter)
- Vegetable Oil
- Egg
- Whole Milk
- Vanilla Extract
- Cream Cheese — yes, that’s the intriguing addition.
Did you notice there isn’t brown sugar (no light brown sugar or dark brown sugar) in this one or an egg yolk or anything like that. The dry ingredients are pretty run-of-the-mill.
Bonus: no softened butter is used in this cookie recipe (so you won’t cream butter and sugar like you’d expect). You’ll use melted butter that’s warm, not hot (hot butter would cook the egg whites, potentially leaving streaks in your baked goods).
Nope, there isn’t any almond extract or powdered sugar in this recipe either (you don’t even fuss with making buttercream frosting or cream cheese frosting and dealing with the powdered sugar mess either). The tops are so pretty, you won’t miss it.
But wait — what’s this?
Why put cream cheese in a sugar cookie? That’s weird, right? Can’t you taste the cream cheese? Nope. It’s only 2 ounces of cream cheese, but it plays an important role.
Cream cheese in this sugar cookie recipe improves the flavor (adding richness), and boosts the acidity, allowing for the addition of baking soda, making the perfect and delightful crackly-looking surface, my America’s Test Kitchen cookbook shared.
How Do You Make Soft and Chewy Sugar Cookies?
What do you have to do to make these cookies? Simple. Place butter in a microwave-safe bowl or in a pot on the stove, and melt the butter. Whisk in the cream cheese, so it mostly disappears, leaving behind a few small lumps here and there (which is fine).
Note: you don’t need a stand mixer for this wonderful sugar cookie recipe. Use your electric mixer if you’d like, but it’s just as fast to prepare without it.
Use a parchment-paper lined baking sheet. It will keep the cookies from sticking and spreading. Did you know that greasing your cookie sheet can cause cookies to spread? It makes sense when you think about it, all that slickness. You can use the same parchment paper sheets for the whole shebang.
Recipe for Chewy and Soft Sugar Cookies by America’s Test Kitchen
I guess I have a “thing” for a good sugar cookie. Between the recipes for Funfetti Sugar Cookies and the recipe for Amish Sugar Cookies, and now this recipe from America’s Test Kitchen (ATK) for Chewy and Soft Sugar Cookies, we’ve covered a lot of the bases. How fun is that?
This cookie offers a few variations in the America’s Test Kitchen cookbook:
- Chewy Hazelnut Browned Butter Sugar Cookies
- Chewy Chai-Spice Sugar Cookies
- Chewy Coconut-Lime Sugar Cookies
Get the cookbook. You won’t regret it. Oh, and when you cook or bake out of it, I’d love to know what you tried and love, so I can add it to my list, too.
Soft and Chewy Sugar Cookie Recipe
Equipment
- 1 Cookie Sheet
- 1 2 Tablespoon Cookie Dough Scoop (I used a 1 1/2 Tablespoon Cookie Dough Scoop)
Ingredients
Sugar Cookies
- 2 1/4 Cups All-Purpose Flour 11 1/4 Ounces
- 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1 1/2 Cups Sugar 10 1/2 Ounces
- 2 Ounces Cream Cheese Cut into 8 Chunks
- 6 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter Melted and Warm, But Not Hot (I used Salted Butter)
- 1/3 Cup Vegetable Oil
- 1 Large Egg
- 1 Tablespoon Whole Milk
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
Before Baking the Sugar Cookies, You'll Roll the Dough Balls In:
- 1/3 Cup Granulated Sugar
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350*. Ovens take longer to heat than you'd think.
- Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
- Whisk together the dry ingredients: all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
- Put the 1 1/2 cups of granulated sugar and the cream cheese in a large bowl and whisk in the warm melted butter. You will have a few lumps of cream cheese, but for the most part, it dissolves into the mixture.
- Whisk in the large egg, the milk, and the vanilla extract until the mixture is combined and smooth.
- Fold in the dry ingredient mixture (the flour mixture) using a rubber spatula until the cookie dough combines to form a soft, combined dough.
- Put the 1/3 cup granulated sugar in a shallow bowl for rolling the cookie dough balls (I use something similar to a pasta bowl because it has raised edges and offers a large flat space).
- Roll the dough balls one at a time (I know, I tried more than one, but you have to go with one dough ball at a time), scoop out cookie dough into a ball and roll it into the white sugar.
- Set the cookie dough balls 2" apart on the baking sheets. If you put the cookies too close, you will end up with connecting mutant cookies. You don't want that.
- Grease the bottom of a dry measuring cup with Pam for Baking with Flour or Baker's Joy and gently flatten each dough ball so they are 3" in diameter. If you use a different size cookie dough disher, then adjust accordingly (a smaller scoop, such as mine, meant I flattened my 1 1/2" cookie dough balls into a 2.5" diameter.
- Sprinkle 2 teaspoons of sugar from the 1/3 cup over the flattened cookies. I also used coarse raw sugar on a few cookies to add a little glittery shine.
- Bake one cookie sheet at a time for 11 to 13 minutes, turning the cookie sheet around halfway through the baking cycle. Cookies will begin to brown and the edges will be set when they are done. Always set your timer for slightly less than the lowest time in the range "just in case."
- Cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes and then move the baked cookies to a wire rack to finish cooling. Store in a covered reusable container when they are completely cooled.
What Is America’s Test Kitchen?
This is not a fly-by-night brand. ATK began in 1993 as a magazine, with founder Christopher Kimball eventually hosting the PBS TV show beginning in 2001. You may remember him as the round glasses-wearing, bow-tie-clad man.
Christopher began a new venture in 2016 (Milk Street) after contract disputes. Bridget Lancaster and Julia Collin Davison co-host the PBS segments with a slew of other folks making an appearance, too. You can read about the hosts of America’s Test Kitchen here.
With 2 million weekly viewers and over 600 episodes to date, America’s Test Kitchen has become a staple and has revolutionized the way Americans cook.
. . .
In addition to being the most reliable teachers — likely more so than your favorite TikToker — The America’s Test Kitchen test cooks spend about six weeks testing each recipe before releasing it to the world.
Kristin L. Wolfe, America’s Test Kitchen Turns 25 and Is Celebrating in a Big Way, Forbes Website, October 6, 2024, Accessed January 30, 2025.
America’s Test Kitchen maintains its high standards as the place to go when you want an unbiased view of products and “the best” version of a recipe. They don’t mess around. Well, they do, but in a way that assures a recipe will turn out every time and be the best it can be.
It costs us an average of $10,000 to develop a single recipe, which includes cooking up to 40 versions before finalizing the recipe.
The Editors of America’s Test Kitchen, Join Our Community of Recipe Testers, America’s Test Kitchen website, March 22, 2023,
That attention to detail is evident in everything produced by the ATK brand. If you’ve ever felt that too many modern cookbooks were missing a little something something, that it was more about the Insta-worthy photos than substance, flip through the pages of any ATK cookbook.
“The New Family Cookbook” is no different.
Inside “The New Family Cookbook” by America’s Test Kitchen
If you have never seen a cookbook by America’s Test Kitchen, you are going to be so excited. I wish I could be there to see the shocked look on your face. These are recipes you can trust. Always.
In a time when cookbook companies choose to skip images, ATK provides clear, crisp images with many recipes in this 878-page book (that’s with the recipe index). Images do more than showcase the finished product. ATK images highlight a useful kitchen technique or break down the steps involved in a recipe.
Cookbooks from America’s Test Kitchen are for beginning and experienced cooks. “The New Family Cookbook” is a delightful deep dive into a huge variety of food sure to appeal to a wide audience. Chapters inside “The New Family Cookbook” include:
- Welcome to America’s Test Kitchen
- Preface
- Getting Started
- Chapter 1 Appetizers
- Chapter 2 Salads
- Chapter 3 Soups
- Chapter 4 Poultry
- Chapter 5 Meat
- Chapter 6 Seafood
- Chapter 7 Vegetarian Entrées
- Chapter 8 Grilling
- Chapter 9 Casseroles
- Chapter 10 Pasta
- Chapter 11 Pizza and Sandwiches
- Chapter 12 Vegetables
- Chapter 13 Rice, Grains, and Beans
- Chapter 14 Eggs and Breakfast
- Chapter 15 Quick Breads
- Chapter 16 Yeast Breads
- Chapter 17 Cookies and Bars
- Chapter 18 Cakes
- Chapter 19 Pies and Tarts
- Chapter 20 Fruit Desserts
- Chapter 21 Puddings, Custards, and More
- The America’s Test Kitchen Shopping Guide
- Conversions and Equivalencies
- Index
One of my favorite recipes (other than the sugar cookies), is the One Pan Roast Chicken Parts with Root Vegetables. It is amazing. I plan to try the Oatmeal-Raisin Cookie recipe from this book soon (I know, raisins don’t belong in cookies, but tell that to the man I’m wooing).
I’m also itching to try the Lo Mein recipes, the Best Reuben Sandwich recipe, and the Roast Beef and Blue Cheese Panini (I’m in a sandwich mood).
Then there’s the baking recipes. Black and White Cookies, Raspberry Streusel Bars, Oatmeal Butterscotch Bars, and the Chocolate Chip Snack Cake are a small sample of recipes I’ve been eyeing. You’ll like the recipe index, too. It’s highly organized.
I hope you bake this soft and chewy sugar cookie recipe and get lots of use out of this amazing cookbook.
America’s Test Kitchen Cookbooks
A third-party company made newer editions of ATK cookbooks in a ring-bound format. I linked to the legitimate versions of the book instead (whether that was paperback, hardcover, or (at least in the early years, spiralbound).
If you click around, the beginning of the description of these third-party books will say they are not affiliated with America’s Test Kitchen. I don’t like that and I don’t trust it. Stick with the actual brand. You get what you pay for.
The America’s Test Kitchen Cookbooks List
Cooking at Home With America’s Test Kitchen (2005)
The America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook (2006)
America’s Test Kitchen Favorites: The 2007 Companion Cookbook to the Hit TV Show (2006)
The Best Simple Recipes: More Than 200 Flavorful, Foolproof Recipes That Cook in 30 Minutes or Less (2010)
America’s Test Kitchen Light & Healthy 2011: The Year’s Best Recipes Lightened Up
Slow Cooker Revolution: One Test Kitchen. 30 Slow Cookers. 200 Amazing Recipes. (2011)
America’s Test Kitchen Menu Cookbook: More than 250 Recipes and 50 Menus That Guarantee Foolproof Entertaining (2011)
The America’s Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook (2010)
Simple Weeknight Favorites (2012)
DIY Cookbook: Can It, Cure It, Churn It, Brew It (2012)
The America’s Test Kitchen Quick Family Cookbook: A Faster, Smarter Way to Cook Everything from America’s Most Trusted Test Kitchen (2012)
The America’s Test Kitchen Cooking School Cookbook: Everything You Need to Know to Become a Great Cook (2013)
Slow Cooker Revolution Volume 2: The Easy-Prep Edition: 200 All-New, Ground-Breaking Recipes (2013)
Comfort Food Makeovers: All Your Favorite Made Lights (2013)
The America’s Test Kitchen Family Baking Book (2013)
The Healthy Back Kitchen: Move Easier, Cook Simpler How to Enjoy Great Food While Managing Back Pain (2013)
Pressure Cooker Perfection: 100 Foolproof Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook (2013)
The New Family Cookbook: All-New Edition of the Best-Selling Classic Cookbook with 1,100 New Recipes (2014)
The How Can It Be Gluten Free Cookbook: Revolutionary Techniques. Groundbreaking Recipes. (2014)
The Make-Ahead Cook: 8 Smart Strategies for Dinner Tonight (2014)
The Best Mexican Recipes: Kitchen-Tested Recipes Put the Real Flavors of Mexico Within Reach (2015)
The How Can It Be Gluten Free Cookbook Volume 2: New Whole-Grain Flour Blend, 75+ Dairy-Free Recipes (2015)
Bread Illustrated: A Step-By-Step Guide to Achieving Bakery-Quality Results At Home (2016)
Naturally Sweet: Bake All Your Favorites with 30% to 50% Less Sugar (2016)
Foolproof Preserving and Canning: A Guide to Small Batch Jams, Jellies, Pickles, and Condiments (2016)
Master of the Grill: Foolproof Recipes, Top-Rated Gadgets, Gear, & Ingredients Plus Clever Test Kitchen Tips & Fascinating Food Science (2016)
What Good Cooks Know: 20 Years of Test Kitchen Expertise in One Essential Handbook (2016)
Vegan for Everybody: Foolproof Plant-Based Recipes for Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, and In-Between (2017)
Cooking at Home With Bridget & Julia: The TV Hosts of America’s Test Kitchen Share Their Favorite Recipes for Feeding Family and Friends (2017)
Food Processor Perfection: 75 Amazing Ways to Use the Most Powerful Tool in Your Kitchen (2017)
The New Essentials Cookbook: A Modern Guide to Better Cooking (2018)
Cook It in Your Dutch Oven: 150 Foolproof Recipes Tailor-Made for Your Kitchen’s Most Versatile Pot (2018)
Sous Vide for Everybody: The Easy, Foolproof Cooking Technique That’s Sweeping the World (2018)
Just Add Sauce: A Revolutionary Guide to Boosting the Flavor of Everything You Cook (2018)
Multicooker Perfection: Cook It Fast or Cook It Slow-You Decide (2018)
How to Braise Everything: Classic, Modern, and Global Dishes Using a Time-Honored Technique (2019)
The Side Dish Bible: 1001 Perfect Recipes for Every Vegetable, Rice, Grain, and Bean Dish You Will Ever Need (2019)
Mediterranean Instant Pot: Easy, Inspired Meals for Eating Well (2019)
Spiced: Unlock the Power of Spices to Transform Your Cooking (2019)
America’s Test Kitchen Twentieth Anniversary TV Show Cookbook: Best-Ever Recipes from the Most Successful Cooking Show on TV (2019)
How To Cocktail: Recipes and Techniques for Building the Best Drinks (2019)
The Ultimate Burger: Plus DIY Condiments, Sides, and Boozy Milkshakes (2019)
Bowls: Vibrant Recipes with Endless Possibilities (2019)
Easy Everyday Keto: Healthy Kitchen-Perfected Recipes (2020)
Cooking for One: Scaled Recipes, No-Waste Solutions, and Time-Saving Tips (2020)
Foolproof Fish: Modern Recipes for Everyone, Everywhere (2020)
The Complete Modern Pantry: 350+ Ways to Cook Well with What’s on Hand (2020)
Everything Chocolate: A Decadent Collection of Morning Pastries, Nostalgic Sweets, and Showstopping Desserts (2020)
Toaster Oven Perfection: A Smarter Way to Cook on a Smaller Scale (2020)
How Can It Be Gluten Free Cookbook Collection: 350+ Groundbreaking Recipes for All Your Favorites (2020)
Healthy Air Fryer: 75 Feel-Good Recipes. Any Meal. Any Air Fryer. (2021)
The Ultimate Meal-Prep Cookbook: One Grocery List. A Week of Meals. No Waste (2021)
Five-Ingredient Dinners: 100+ Fast, Flavorful Meals (2021)
One-Hour Comfort: Quick, Cozy, Modern Dishes for All Your Cravings (2021)
Cook for Your Gut Health: Quiet Your Gut, Boost Fiber, and Reduce Inflammation (2021)
The New Cooking School Cookbook: Advanced Fundamentals: 200 Skills, 400 Recipes (2022)
Modern Bistro: Home Cooking Inspired by French Classics (2022)
Boards: Stylish Spreads for Casual Gatherings (2022)
The Savory Baker: 150 Creative Recipes, from Classic to Modern (2022)
Fresh Pasta at Home: 10 Doughs, 20 Shapes, 100+ Recipes, with or without a Machine (2022)
The Complete America’s Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook 2001–2023: Every Recipe from the Hit TV Show Along with Product Ratings (2022)
The Complete Guide to Healthy Drinks: Powerhouse Ingredients, Endless Combinations (2022)
The Everyday Athlete Cookbook: 165 Recipes to Boost Energy, Performance, and Recovery (2022)
Cooking with Plant-Based Meat: 75 Satisfying Recipes Using Next-Generation Meat Alternatives (2022)
Vegan Cooking for Two: 200+ Recipes for Everything You Love to Eat (2022)
The New Cooking School Cookbook: Advanced Fundamentals: 200 Skills, 400 Recipes (2022)
The Complete Small Plates Cookbook: 300+ Shareable Tapas, Meze, Bar Snacks, Dumplings, Salads, and More (2023)
Gatherings: Casual-Fancy Meals to Share (2023)
A Very Chinese Cookbook: 100 Recipes from China and Not China (But Still Really Chinese) (2023) with Kevin Pang and Jeffrey Pang
Kitchen Gear: The Ultimate Owner’s Manual: Boost Your Equipment IQ with 500+ Expert Tips, Optimize Your Kitchen with 400+ Recommended Tools (2023)
Ultimate Air Fryer Perfection: 185 Remarkable Recipes That Make the Most of Your Air Fryer (2023)
Food Gifts: 150+ Irresistible Recipes for Crafting Personalized Presents (2024)
America’s Test Kitchen 25th Anniversary Cookbook: 500 Recipes That Changed the Way America Cooks (2024)
The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook, 10th Anniversary Gift Edition: 700+ Recipes for Everything You’ll Ever Want to Make (2024)
When Southern Women Cook: History, Lore, and 300 Recipes with Contributions from 70 Women Writers (2024)
Mostly Homemade: 100 Recipes to Help You Save Time and Money While Eating Better (2024) by Antoinette Johnson
The Skillet: 200+ Simpler Ways to Make Just About Anything, From Perfect Meals to Breads, Desserts, and More (2024)
The Complete Cook’s Country TV Show Cookbook: Every Recipe and Every Review from All Eighteen Seasons Includes Season 18 (2024)
Mostly Meatless: Green Up Your Plate Without Totally Ditching the Meat (2025)
Umma: A Korean Mom’s Kitchen Wisdom and 100 Family Recipes (2025) by Sarah Ahn and Nam Soon Ahn
Baking for Two: 200+ Small-Batch Recipes, from Lazy Bakes to Layer Cakes (2025)
Perfect Baking Cookbooks Series
The Perfect Cookie: Your Ultimate Guide to Foolproof Cookies, Brownies & Bars (2017)
The Perfect Cake: Your Ultimate Guide to Classic, Modern, and Whimsical Cakes (2018)
The Perfect Pie: Your Ultimate Guide to Classic and Modern Pies, Tarts, Galettes, and More (2019)
The Complete ATK Cookbook Series
The Complete Cooking for Two Cookbook: 650 Recipes for Everything You’ll Ever Want to Make (2014)
The Complete Vegetarian Cookbook: A Fresh Guide to Eating Well With 700 Foolproof Recipes
(2015)
The Complete Mediterranean Cookbook: 500 Vibrant, Kitchen-Tested Recipes for Living and Eating Well Every Day (2016)
The Complete Make-Ahead Cookbook: From Appetizers to Desserts 500 Recipes You Can Make in Advance
(2017)
The Complete Slow Cooker: From Appetizers to Desserts – 400 Must-Have Recipes That Cook While You Play (or Work) (2017)
The Complete Diabetes Cookbook: The Healthy Way to Eat the Foods You Love (2018)
The Complete Baby and Toddler Cookbook: The Very Best Baby and Toddler Food Recipe Book (2019)
The Complete Summer Cookbook: Beat the Heat with 500 Recipes that Make the Most of Summer’s Bounty (2020)
The Complete One Pot: 400 Meals for Your Skillet, Sheet Pan, Instant Pot®, Dutch Oven, and More (2020)
The Complete Plant-Based Cookbook: 500 Inspired, Flexible Recipes for Eating Well Without Meat (2020)
The Complete Salad Cookbook: A Fresh Guide to 200+ Vibrant Dishes Using Greens, Vegetables, Grains, Proteins, and More (2021)
The Complete Autumn and Winter Cookbook: 550+ Recipes for Warming Dinners, Holiday Roasts, Seasonal Desserts, Breads, Food Gifts, and More (2021)
America’s Test Kitchen 100 Series
100 Recipes: The Absolute Best Ways To Make The True Essentials (2015)
100 Techniques: Master a Lifetime of Cooking Skills, from Basic to Bucket List (2020)
Cooking for Two Annual Series
Cooking for Two 2010: The Year’s Best Recipes Cut Down to Size (2010)
Cooking for Two 2011: The Year’s Best Recipes Cut Down to Size (2011)
Cooking for Two 2012: The Year’s Best Recipes Cut Down to Size (2012)
Cooking for Two 2013: The Year’s Best Recipes Cut Down to Size (2013)
Best of America’s Test Kitchen
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2007: The Year’s Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2008: The Year’s Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2009: The Year’s Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2010: The Year’s Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2011: The Year’s Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2012: The Year’s Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings (2011)
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2013: The Year’s Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2014: The Year’s Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2015: The Year’s Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2016: The Year’s Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2017: The Year’s Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2018: Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2019: Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2020: Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2021: Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2022: Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2023: Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings
The Best of America’s Test Kitchen 2024: Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, and Tastings
Related Resources
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