This soft, buttery Funfetti Cutout Cookie Recipe is not only delicious but also fun and festive for any occasion. Use your favorite cookie cutters to make fun shapes and decorate with royal icing for a beautiful presentation.

Let's face it, sprinkles make me happy! They are colorful, fun, and the perfect addition to any celebration. Before having our daughter (our second child), I used to make custom decorated cookies for clients. I would make plain sugar cookies topped with royal icing for all occasions (birthdays, bridal showers, weddings, baby showers, baptisms, etc.). But adding sprinkles to the cookie dough, takes it to the next level. I can't resist a delicious funfetti dessert, and these cookies are no exception.

Funfetti cutout cookies are soft, buttery vanilla sugar cookies with the addition of a pop of color. The dough is simple to make, and adding a chilling time will help ensure perfectly cut shapes. Kids and adults alike will love these cookies. You can simply serve them as is or add a delicious frosting to complete. These cookies are the perfect celebration cookie!

Before you begin

Take out the following baking equipment.

Digital kitchen scale
2 baking sheet pans
Parchment paper
1 medium bowl
2 small bowls
Stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment
Silicone spatula
Rolling pin
Cookies cutters
Wire cooling rack

Allow all your ingredients to come to room temperature.
Read the recipe through from start to finish.

Understanding Ingredients

Butter adds a delicious flavor to cookies. But that is not the only role of butter in cookies. It also coats the proteins and starches in the cookie dough to create a delicate crumb. Always use unsalted butter and ensure that it is room temperature before beginning this recipe. Ideally, allow it to sit at room temperature as opposed to microwaving it to soften. For best results, always use real butter. Do not substitute or else your cookies will lose their perfect shape. And when it comes to mixing, make sure your butter is completely incorporated. Otherwise, you will have pockets of butter that will cause your cookies to spread when they melt in the oven.

Baking powder is added to these cookies to prevent dense cookies. The leavener creates carbon dioxide, which lightens the cookies and gives the cookies a lovely chew factor. I do not recommend using baking soda, or else it will cause the cutout cookies to spread (goes against everything we are trying to prevent!).

Rolling out Funfetti Cutout Cookies

Over the years, I have tested making cutout cookies without chilling the dough, chilling the dough once and chilling the dough before and after rolling out the dough. I have found the most effective method for making cutout cookies is to roll out the dough and then chill the dough. Following this particular sequence makes it simple to roll out the dough (no fighting cold dough to roll it out only to have it soften it up again), gives a clean cut with sharp edges, and helps prevent your cookies from spreading in the oven.

To get consistent cookie thickness every time, I always use an adjustable rolling pin (this one). I set my rolling pin to 1/4-inch (6 mm) for the perfect thickness. Anything less tends to be too thin, and increasing to 3/8-inch (9 mm) works but tends to be a bit thick and heavy.

Decorating cookies

Although these funfetti cutout cookies are delicious on their own, it's fun to dress these them up. There are a variety of ways to add the final touch. I always prefer using royal icing for a beautiful clean look, but you can also decorate with swiss meringue buttercream or a simple glaze.

Royal Icing

To make royal icing, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine 50 g of meringue powder with 150 g of lukewarm water. Turn the mixer on to low speed until combined and then increase speed to high for about 3 minutes. Add 907 g (2 pounds) of powdered sugar to the mixer and turn the mixer back on to low until the sugar is incorporated. Increase speed to high for 2 minutes. Add 12 g pure vanilla extract and continue to mix for an additional one minute. Keep covered when not actively using so that the royal icing does not dry out.

I have always preferred to outline my cookies with a stiffer royal icing and then flood the cookies with a thinned out royal icing. If using this method, I would highly suggest using this piping tip. When I switched to that specific piping tip, I honestly believe my outlining skills improved (this is not a sponsored post, just what has worked for me over the years of trial and error).

Tips and takeaways

Stick with sprinkles for this recipe. Nonpareils tend to bleed in the oven and will not yield as pretty cookies compared to using sprinkles (aka jimmies).
If you like almond flavor, I would recommend replacing half of the pure vanilla extract with pure almond extract.
If decorating these cookies with royal icing, I always recommend using a gel food coloring to get the best colors without affecting the consistency of your icing.

More cutout cookie recipes

Make sure to tag me @thesweetoccasion on Instagram and leave me a review below if you make this Funfetti Cutout Cookie Recipe. I'd love to see your creations and read your feedback. And if you would like to make this recipe later, be sure to pin this recipe using the button on any of these images. Let's make every occasion a sweet occasion!