Published
Wonderfully sweet and ultra soft, Gooey Butter Cookies are so easy to make from scratch! Featuring cream cheese, almond extract, and powdered sugar, these butter cookies are completely homemade – no boxed cake mix here. Add these simple cookies to your Christmas baking list!
Why We Love This Gooey Butter Cookie Recipe
Being from St. Louis, it wouldn’t be Christmas baking season in my family without a batch of homemade gooey butter cookies! Rich, creamy, and melt-in-your-mouth delicious, these sweet cookies are always a hit. You can’t stop at just one!
- Gooey. There’s nothing quite like soft, creamy gooey butter cake in cookie form.
- Tangy. Cream cheese gives these cookies their signature flavor.
- Irresistible. You can’t stop at just one!
Variations on Ooey Gooey Butter Cookies
I love these gooey butter cookies for their classic taste, but you can experiment and change up the flavor to create new and interesting cookies. Try adding chocolate chips, flavored baking chips, nuts, or shredded coconut. Or to cut the sweetness a touch, try adding the zest of a lemon.
How to Store
These gooey butter cookies are best fresh, but they keep well in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days. To extend their shelf life to 5-6 days, refrigerate them.
How to Freeze
You can freeze the unbaked dough or the baked gooey butter cookies in a single layer on a lined baking sheet until solid, about 1-2 hours. Transfer to an airtight container or Ziplock bag to store for up to 3 months for the raw dough or 1 month for the baked cookies. Bake the dough directly from frozen, adding a few extra minutes to the bake time, or thaw the cookies at room temperature before enjoying.
Serving Suggestions
I love dunking these cookies in a glass of cold milk (or oat milk), a good cup of coffee (I love bulletproof coffee), or a warm mug of tea (try this spiked bourbon chai).
More Buttery Cookie Recipes To Try
- Chocolate Gooey Butter Cookies
- Lofthouse Cookies
- Pignoli Cookies
- Spritz Cookies
- Pecan Sandies
- Italian Anise Cookies
- Shortbread Cookies
- Snowball Cookies
5-Star Review
“These cookies are super easy and so delicious. They never last long in my house❤” – Brenda
Gooey Butter Cookies Recipe
Equipment
- Kitchen Scale (optional)
- Stand Mixer
- Baking Sheet
- Cookie Portion Scoop
Ingredients
- ½ cup salted butter 113 grams, room temperature (1 stick) — European style recommended
- 8 ounces cream cheese 227 grams, room temperature (1 brick)
- 1½ cups granulated sugar 300 grams
- 1 large egg 50 grams, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon almond extract 4 grams
- 2¼ cups all-purpose flour 270 grams
- ½ cup powdered sugar 57 grams, divided
- 1 tablespoon baking powder 12 grams
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, cream cheese, and granulated sugar together until smooth.½ cup salted butter, 8 ounces cream cheese, 1½ cups granulated sugar
- With the mixer running, add in the egg and then the almond extract.1 large egg, 1 teaspoon almond extract
- In a separate bowl, stir the flour, baking powder, and ¼ cup powdered sugar together.2¼ cups all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon baking powder, ½ cup powdered sugar
- With the mixer on low, slowly add the dry flour mixture to the already creamed mixture.
- Once smooth, remove the bowl from the mixer and cover. Place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill.
- Line a large sheet pan with nonstick parchment paper. Place the extra ¼ cup powdered sugar (for rolling) in a shallow bowl.
- Once chilled, use a 2-tablespoon cookie scoop to create a cookie dough ball and immediately roll the cookie dough ball fully in powdered sugar.
- Place powdered sugar covered cookie dough balls on the baking sheet, 6 at a time, and bake for 10-11 minutes. When they’re no longer wet on top and are firm on the sides, they’re done. We prefer them on the shorter cook time so they’re extra gooey.
- Allow to cool on the sheet pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Becky’s Tips
- For super soft cookies, do not overmix the dough. When adding the flour, mix the dough together on a low speed so the gluten doesn’t become overworked (this leads to tougher cookies).
- Wait for the oven to fully preheat before baking the cookies. They bake quickly so keep your eye on them!
- Give some space between each cookie dough ball on the baking sheet – the cookies will spread while they bake!
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did you make this? Leave a comment!
How to Make Gooey Butter Cookies Step by Step
Mix the Wet: Preheat your oven to 350°F. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat ½ cup of salted butter, 8 ounces (1 brick) of cream cheese, and 1½ cups of granulated sugar together until smooth. With the mixer running, add 1 large egg and 1 teaspoon of almond extract.
Stir the Dry: In a separate bowl, stir 2¼ cups of all-purpose flour flour, 1 tablespoon of baking powder, and ¼ cup of powdered sugar together.
Form the Dough: With the mixer on low, slowly add the dry flour mixture to the already creamed mixture. Once smooth, remove the bowl from the mixer and cover. Place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill.
Roll Into Balls: Line a large sheet pan with nonstick parchment paper. Place the extra ¼ cup powdered sugar (for rolling) in a shallow bowl. Once chilled, use a 2-tablespoon cookie scoop to create a cookie dough ball and immediately roll the cookie dough ball fully in powdered sugar.
Bake the Cookies: Place the powdered sugar-covered cookie dough balls on the baking sheet, 6 at a time, and bake for 10-11 minutes. When they’re no longer wet on top and are firm on the sides, they’re done. We prefer them on the shorter cook time so they’re extra gooey. Allow to cool on the sheet pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
I am making these now and noticed an discrepency on the printed recipe. Step 4 of the printed version states to add the full 1/2 c of powdered sugar to the dry ingredients. The recipe on the web page states to us 1/4 c powdered sugar with the other dry ingredients.
I assume 1/4 c added to the dry ingredients is correct.
Hi heath, there is a feature in the recipe that allows us to pin ingredients to the steps, but it does not allow for adjustments in the total when the ingredient is divided. Please refer to the verbiage in each step as to how much of the 1/2 cup to use in each step!
Can I prep the dough and rest overnight? I’d like them to be fresh for Christmas Eve!
Hi Melissa, you can fridge the dough overnight.
Perfect recipe. The cookies turned out great. I would recommend to anyone!!!
Taste like flour… I cooked them even longer than the recipe stated and they taste like flour… so sad, was hoping for a baked bear dupe.
Hi Ash, how did you measure the flour for this recipe? It sounds like you may have used too much!
Do you think I could make these into bar cookies in a 9 x 13 pan?
We haven’t tried that, but it could work! You could also make our gooey butter cake recipe instead!
Hi, just found this recipe and can’t to try them but I don’t have a stand mixer, will a regular hand held mixer work?
Absolutely!
Great recipe. I subbed vanilla for almond, as I’m not a big fan of the 60s taste of almond extract cookies. Otherwise made exactly to code. I don’t understand the commenters who complained about not being able to taste these cookies– they are tender, light, creamy and wonderful, like a buttery pastry crust. The sugar on the outside is just enough to give you a pop of sweetness without being overwhelming. They are incredibly tender in the center almost like a macaron. These are going in my cookie rotation for sure.
These cookies are super easy and so delicious. They never last long in my house❤
Those look wonderful, Brenda! Thanks so much for sharing!
Hi, I went to the butter site and it is not available in my area or anywhere close. Do you know if Kerry Irish gold butter could possibly work? It’s the only European butter I saw available around here.
Yes, any brand of European butter should work! Danish Creamery is just our personal favorite!
These tasted good but I couldn’t get them to bake. The inside was raw while the outside was browned. I tried flattening them, changing the temp, and the cool time. So confused!
Hi Jorin, we highly recommend investing in a kitchen scale to get the most accurate measurements for your ingredients. Too much butter could cause these cookies to spread and bake quickly on the outside while remaining raw in the middle. Be sure not to skip the chilling step, as it is crucial to reducing spread as well. The other issue may be your oven temperature. If you invest in an oven thermometer, you’ll be able to tell if your oven temperature is off, which can have a huge impact on the outcome of this recipe!