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Chocolate Cut Out Cookies Recipe

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★★★★★

4.5 from 55 reviews

These Chocolate Cut Out Cookies are tender, rich, and full of chocolate flavor, perfect for decorating with your favorite frostings or royal icing. Made with a blend of cocoa powder and classic baking ingredients, this dough is easy to roll out and cut into fun shapes, then baked to a perfect texture that holds its form well. Refrigerating the dough before baking helps the cookies maintain their shape and ensures a tender crumb.

Ingredients

Scale

Cookie Dough

  • 2 cups (260g) all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 cup (85g) natural unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 tbsp (8g) cornstarch
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 cup (224g) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 1/4 cups (259g) granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

Optional Frostings

  • Buttercream Frosting
  • Easy Sugar Cookie Icing
  • Royal Icing

Instructions

  1. Mix Dry Ingredients: In a medium-sized bowl, combine the all-purpose flour, cocoa powder, cornstarch, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set this mixture aside for later use.
  2. Cream Butter and Sugar: In a large mixing bowl, beat the room temperature unsalted butter with the granulated sugar on medium speed for 2-3 minutes. The mixture should become lighter in color and creamy in texture, indicating proper creaming.
  3. Add Wet Ingredients: Add the large egg and vanilla extract to the creamed butter and sugar. Mix until everything is well combined.
  4. Incorporate Dry Ingredients: Gradually add the dry ingredient mixture to the wet ingredients. Mix just until the dough comes together. The dough may initially look crumbly, but continue folding gently with a spatula or your hands until it forms a cohesive ball. Avoid over mixing.
  5. Refrigerate Dough: Cover the dough and refrigerate it for at least 1 hour, or up to 3 days. This step helps the cookies to bake more tenderly and hold their shape better.
  6. Preheat Oven and Prepare Baking Sheet: Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a cookie sheet with a silicone baking mat for even baking and easy release.
  7. Roll Dough: Bring the chilled dough back to room temperature to make rolling easier. Divide the dough into two equal portions and roll each between two sheets of parchment paper to about 1/4 inch thickness.
  8. Freeze and Cut Shapes: Place the rolled dough with parchment on a cookie sheet and freeze for about 5 minutes. Remove from freezer, peel off the top parchment sheet, and quickly cut dough into desired shapes. Transfer cut cookies back onto the baking sheet. Optionally, chill again briefly to reduce spreading.
  9. Bake Cookies: Bake the cookies immediately while still cold for 8 to 12 minutes, or until done but not overbaked. The edges may be slightly firm while centers stay tender.
  10. Shape While Warm: Remove cookies from the oven and, if they have spread too much, gently press the edges inward using a butter knife or similar tool. Doing this while they are warm helps maintain the intended shape.
  11. Cool Cookies: Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 3-5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
  12. Repeat: Continue rolling, cutting, and baking until all the dough is used up.
  13. Decorate: Once fully cooled, decorate with your choice of buttercream, sugar cookie icing, or royal icing as desired.

Notes

  • Refrigerating the dough is recommended for better shape and tenderness but not mandatory.
  • Keeping the dough cold right before baking minimizes spreading.
  • Cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to one week.
  • Use parchment or silicone mats to prevent sticking.
  • Adjust baking time based on cookie size and thickness.
  • For best results, roll dough evenly to maintain consistent bake time.

Keywords: chocolate cookies, cut out cookies, cocoa powder cookies, holiday cookies, decorated cookies

Find it online: https://spatulaqueen.com/chocolate-cut-out-cookies-recipe/