Cream Cheese Cookies

Cream cheese cookies are flavorful, soft and fluffy, thanks to the addition of their star ingredient: cream cheese! Cream cheese is a flavor enhancer in sugar cookie recipes, balancing the cookie’s sweetness and creating a cheesecake-like edge. But the soft cheese does much more than just add flavor. I won’t delve too deeply into the science, but the lactic acid in cream cheese tenderizes the dough by breaking down protein molecules (like gluten) into smaller pieces. The result: Light, chewy cookies with the most delightful texture.

These cream cheese sugar cookies taste fantastic with jam, but you can easily create a domed cookie if you omit the fruity filling. Either way, they’re an excellent choice for the holidays. Use the recipe as a cookie exchange recipe for holiday cookie swaps, or platter up the jammy thumbprint cookies with other holiday cookies, like cutout Christmas sugar cookies and buttery spritz cookies.

Ingredients for Cream Cheese Cookies

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• Cream cheese: Cream cheese creates cookies with an incredibly tender texture. Be sure to soften cream cheese so it’s easier to work with. If you forgot to leave it on the counter for 35 to 45 minutes, try microwaving it in 5-second intervals.
• Butter: Butter adds richness and helps to create the cookie’s structure.
• Sugar: Granulated white sugar plays several roles in this cookie recipe. Beyond adding sweetness, it aerates the dough when creamed with butter, creating cookies with a lighter, more appealing texture. Sugar also absorbs moisture to keep the cookies nice and moist.
• Egg yolk: Cookies made with egg yolks are lighter and chewier than cookies made with whole eggs.
• Vanilla extract: Vanilla adds depth and complexity to cream cheese sugar cookies. Use a high-quality vanilla extract brand for cookies with a richer, creamier character.
• All-purpose flour: This type of flour is best for cookies. Bread flour is too tough, and cake flour is too delicate. All-purpose flour is the Goldilocks of flour for cookies, creating a perfectly chewy texture that’s just right.
• Seedless strawberry jam: You can use any homemade jam or jelly recipes—or skip the jam for cream cheese sugar cookies without jam.

Directions

Step 1: Create the cookie dough

Dan Roberts for Taste of Home

In a large bowl, cream the butter, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy, five to seven minutes.

Editor’s Tip: Don’t skimp on the creaming time. The ingredients might be combined after a few minutes, but creaming butter and sugar is all about incorporating air into the batter. Continue mixing until the sugar crystals are no longer visible and the mixture becomes light-colored with peaks.

Dan Roberts for Taste of Home

Beat in the egg yolk and vanilla.

Dan Roberts for Taste of Home

Add the flour and mix well.

Step 2: Chill the cookie dough

Cover and refrigerate for one hour or until easy to handle.

Editor’s Tip: Taking the time to chill cookie dough is one of our top sugar cookie tips. Chilling prevents the dough from spreading, so the cookies turn out soft and puffy instead of crispy and flat.

Step 3: Shape the cookies

Dan Roberts for Taste of Home

Shape the dough into 1-inch balls. Place them 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets.

Dan Roberts for Taste of Home

Using the end of a wooden spoon handle, make a 1/2-inch-deep indentation in the center of each ball.

Dan Roberts for Taste of Home

Fill each one with about 1/4 teaspoon of jam.

Editor’s Tip: Use a piping bag (or a plastic bag with the corner snipped off) to easily pipe the jam into the cookies. If you prefer a jamless cookie, flatten the dough ball slightly instead of adding the indentation, similar to the process used in this 3-ingredient sugar cookie recipe.

Step 4: Bake the cookies

Bake at 350°F for 10 to 12 minutes or until set. Remove the cookies to wire racks to cool.

Editor’s Tip: To create a snow-covered finish, dust the cookies with confectioners’ sugar. Let them cool for a few minutes first or the sugar will melt into the cookie.

Dan Roberts for Taste of Home

Recipe Variations

• Change the filling: Use any type of seedless jam or jelly in this recipe, feel free to change it up with the seasons. Raspberry, grape or blueberry jam are tasty summer options, and apricot or fig jam looks festive in the fall. For a fun change of pace, try non-jam options like pumpkin puree or Nutella spread.
• Decorate: These cookies aren’t ultra sweet, so you can frost them instead of using jam. Try the rich buttery frosting from our sour cream sugar cookies recipe, or use a quick vanilla glaze to give them a shiny finish. Finish decorating them with your favorite sprinkles, nonpareils or jimmies.
• Add flavor: To give the cookies a unique spin, swap in almond, coconut, orange or lemon extracts. You can also add a little orange or lemon zest to boost the citrusy vibes.

How to Store Cream Cheese Cookies

Place the cooled cream cheese cookies in an airtight container, and store them in the refrigerator. If stacking the cookies, place a piece of parchment paper between the layers to protect the jammy filling.

Can you freeze cream cheese cookies?

You can freeze cookies like cream cheese cookies before or after baking them. Thaw the cookies (or dough) in the refrigerator overnight.

• To freeze baked cookies: Place the cooled cookies in a single layer on a baking sheet. Freeze for 30 minutes or until frozen solid. Transfer the cookies to a freezer-safe container, placing a piece of parchment between the layers to keep the cookies from sticking to each other.
• To freeze cookie dough: Press the fully chilled dough into a disk, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and place it in a freezer-safe bag.

How long do cream cheese cookies last?

Cream cheese cookies last up to one week in the refrigerator or up to three months in the freezer.

Cream Cheese Cookies Tips

Can you use cream cheese as a substitute for butter in cookies?

Cream cheese can be used as a substitute for butter in baked goods, but butter is more effective at creating structure. Cookies made with 100% cream cheese will be much softer and may feel like they fold or fall apart in your hands. For best results, we recommend only replacing some of the butter with cream cheese. When making any substitutions, it’s a good idea to keep a close eye on the cookies as they bake, as changing the ingredients can affect the baking time.

Do you have to refrigerate cream cheese cookies?

We recommend storing cream cheese cookies in the refrigerator or freezer. The USDA specifies that moist bars (such as cheesecake) should be refrigerated for up to seven days. Since this recipe includes cream cheese like cheesecake, we keep them cold to avoid bacterial growth.