Submitted by nicole on Tue, 07/02/2024 - 04:46

Make your pretty decorated sugar cookies even more flavorful with this amazing chocolate sugar cookie recipe. Chocolate cut out cookies are just like regular vanilla sugar cookies, but with an intense chocolate flavor. This recipe requires no chilling of the dough, holds its shape beautifully, and is absolutely delicious.

Stack of round chocolate sugar cookies next to a round cookie cutter, with text overlay reading "Chocolate Cut-Out Sugar Cookies (Easy No-Chill Recipe)."

I created this recipe by modifying my favorite no-fail sugar cookie recipe; it's essentially the same, and uses the same technique, but swaps out unsweetened cocoa powder for some of the flour. This is an intensely chocolaty cookie--kind of like the cookie part of an Oreo. If you'd like a less intense chocolate flavor, you can easily reduce the amount of cocoa powder (just replace it with flour so you have a total of 3 cups of dry ingredients).

Ingredients for chocolate cut out sugar cookie recipe on a white marble surface.

Chocolate Cut Out Sugar Cookie Ingredients:

2 1/4 cups flour
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup (226 grams) butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt

Chocolate Cut Out Sugar cookie dough in a kitchenaid bowl.

How to Make Chocolate Sugar Cookie Dough:

The process for making the chocolate cut out cookie dough is classic. Start by beating the softened butter and sugar together until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the egg and beat well.

Add the vanilla, salt, and baking powder and mix thoroughly.

Add the cocoa and flour and mix just until well combined. The dough should be firm (it should feel like playdough), but not crumbly. It has been very humid here, so I found I needed to add an extra half-cup of flour to get the right texture to the dough. When I lived in arid Phoenix, I often didn't use as much flour as any recipe called for. Trust your gut.

Dark chocolate sugar cookie dough wrapped in saran wrap and ready to roll out and cut with cookie cutters.

This is a no-chill chocolate cookie dough recipe, but I do keep my cookie dough wrapped in Saran wrap when I'm not actively working with the dough.

Chocolate cut out sugar cookie dough being rolled out with cocoa powder instead of flour.

How to Shape Chocolate Cut Out Cookies:

This is the technique I use for all my sugar cookies, and for my gingerbread houses, too.

Place a silicone baking mat (like a silpat) on your counter, then a sheet of parchment paper on top of the silpat. (Tip: I highly recommend buying sheets of parchment paper, not the rolls. The rolled paper curls up annoyingly and is difficult to work with. The pre-cut sheets are a dream.) Place the dough on top of the parchment paper and roll out the dough to about 1/8" thickness. The silpat on your counter will keep the parchment paper from sliding around.

You can use flour to roll out the cookie dough, but I like to use cocoa powder instead. It doesn't leave any floury white spots on the dark chocolate cookies, and intensifies the chocolate flavor.

Chocolate sugar cookie dough cut into round shapes, unbaked, and sitting on parchment paper on a cookie sheet.

Use a cookie cutter to cut out your chocolate sugar cookie shapes, then use an offset spatula to lift away the excess cookie dough. You can then slide the parchment paper with the cookie shapes on a cookie sheet to bake, and put a new sheet of parchment paper on the counter to roll out more cookies.

Stack of chocolate cut out sugar cookies stacked on parchment paper dusted with cocoa powder. A round cookie cutter sits next to the stack of round chocolate sugar cookies.