Cut these sweet cinnamon sugar cookies into any shape you like! We chose pumpkins for some fall flare, but they’re just as good as a holiday treat or throughout the year.

With our favourite fall holidays quickly approaching, we thought it was the right time to share these sweet pumpkin-shaped cinnamon sugar cookies! They’re the cutest, and so perfect for the season.
You need just 8 ingredients for these cookies, and a little time to roll out and decorate. Decorating is optional, but the most fun. It makes a pretty big batch – several dozen – so you can drop some off at a family member or friend’s doorstep, or freeze for later.
We think it’s the perfect time of year to warm up with some baking, and there’s nothing better than cute cookies when the weather gets colder. Kids love helping with decorating and it’s a great way to keep them entertained – something we all need right now!
💖Why You’ll Love This Recipe
✔️ They need just eight ingredients, including salt and vanilla! Can’t get much easier than that.
✔️ It’s a one-bowl recipe, less dishes to worry about.
✔️ It makes a big batch and freezes well, so you can start baking early in the season and freeze cookies for later.
📋Ingredients
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- Cinnamon: you could try adding extra spices, like nutmeg or cloves, or go for pumpkin pie spice.
- Sugar: these are made with plain white sugar, but cane sugar will work too. The texture will be slightly different but not noticeably so.
- Vegan/Gluten-free: If you need a plant based version, try these vegan sugar cookies, which use a few different spices in the mix (you can use all cinnamon if preferred). Here’s a good gluten-free sugar cookie recipe.
Use the JUMP TO RECIPE button at the top, or scroll to the bottom of the post to see the printable recipe card with full ingredient measurements and complete instructions.
👩🍳Method
STEP 1: Cream the butter and sugar until fluffy.
STEP 2: Add the eggs and vanilla and beat again to combine.
STEP 3: Add the remaining ingredients and mix to a crumbly dough.
STEP 4: Press together and roll the dough out.
STEP 5: Cut into desired shapes and chill before baking.
STEP 6: Bake, cool, and decorate.
💡Top Tips
TOP TIPS
1. Use two baking sheets. If you have a fan-forced oven, you can bake more than one batch of cookies at once.
2. Cool fully before icing. It’s not Bake Off, take your time! Chill the cookies before icing to ensure it doesn’t melt when piped on.
3. Don’t over-mix. As soon as the flour is just mixed in, stop mixing. Over-mixing can lead to tough cookies.
📝Recipe Notes
- Freezing the cut out cookies before baking helps them to retain their shape in the oven and prevent too much spreading. We highly recommend not skipping this step, but you can if you’re not worried about the cookies holding their shape.
- We used royal icing in the pictured cookies, but you can use any type you like. Cream cheese icing or vanilla buttercream are both great!
- To freeze, make sure any icing you’ve added is hardened first. Place the cookies in single layers in an airtight container, with parchment paper between each layer to prevent sticking. They can be frozen for up to a month.
❓Recipe FAQ
Be sure to chill the cookies before baking and don’t add any extra butter or sugar. This way they’ll keep their shapes perfectly in the oven.
This style of cut-out sugar cookie is soft and slightly snappy, but not hard. If they’re hard, they’re either over baked or over mixed.
Yes, it’s no problem to leave sugar cookies out at room temperature in a sealed container or cookie jar, even after topping with royal icing. They’ll keep for a few days.
🍂More Festive Cookie Recipes
Recipe
Cinnamon Sugar Cookies
Description
Equipment
- Measuring cups and spoons or a digital kitchen scale
- Large bowl
- Hand or stand mixer
- Rolling Pin
- baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Cookie cutters
- Wire rack
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cup sugar
- ¾ cup butter, room temperature
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Add the sugar and butter to a large bowl (or the bowl of a standing mixer) and use an electric mixer to beat on high speed for about 2 minutes. It should be fluffy and lighter in colour.
- Add the egg and vanilla and beat again until well combined.
- Add the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt to the bowl. Mix again until the flour has been well incorporated and the dough is well mixed. It will be slightly crumbly but hold when pressed between finger and thumb.
- Turn the cookie dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Roll the dough with a rolling pin about ¼-inch (6-mm) thick.
- Cut the dough into your desired shapes.
- Place the cut-out cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Place the sheet in the freezer for 10-15 minutes.
- While the cookies are chilling, preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC).
- Place the tray of cookies in the oven and bake for 9-11 minutes, or until the edges are very lightly golden. Repeat for the remaining dough.
- Remove the cookies from the oven and cool on the baking sheet for 5-10 minutes.
- Remove the cookies from the tray and let them cool completely on a wire rack before icing.
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