The Best Chocolate Sugar Cookies Christmas Recipe That Actually Works

Okay, so chocolate sugar cookies christmas have been my absolute obsession for the past three weeks. I’ve made them so many times my kitchen counter has permanent cocoa powder stains (my husband is thrilled, obviously).

Here’s the thing—I grew up making regular sugar cookies every Christmas, you know, the boring vanilla ones? But last year my niece was like “Aunt Sarah, can we make chocolate ones?” and I was like… wait, is that even a thing? Turns out it’s VERY much a thing, and now I can’t go back.

Why This Chocolate Sugar Cookie Recipe Actually Works

Look, I’ve tried probably eight different chocolate sugar cookies recipes from various websites. Some were from chocolate sugar cookies allrecipes (decent but kinda bland), others promised crispy chocolate sugar cookies but delivered hockey pucks instead. One recipe I found claimed to be the best chocolate sugar cookie recipe and it literally spread across my entire baking sheet like some kind of cookie blob monster.

This version? It’s the one I actually make now. Like, without modifications or silent cursing while I’m elbow-deep in dough.

The secret is cocoa powder. Not melted chocolate (tried that—disaster), not chocolate chips mixed in (weird texture), but good quality cocoa powder. I use Hershey’s Special Dark because I’m fancy like that. Regular works fine too though.

What Makes These Different From Regular Sugar Cookies

So basically, these chocolate sugar cookies with cocoa powder have this deep, almost brownie-like flavor, but they’re still light and—here’s the important part—they don’t spread everywhere. I was SO tired of no spread chocolate sugar cookies being either cardboard-textured or turning into thin crispy things that shatter if you look at them wrong.

These are chewy chocolate sugar cookies in the center with slightly crisp edges. Best of both worlds. My mother-in-law (who is VERY picky about Christmas cookies, trust me) said they’re better than the ones from that fancy bakery downtown. I was honestly shocked.

Ingredients For Chocolate Sugar Cookies Christmas Recipe

Ingredients:

• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour (don’t use cake flour—learned that one the hard way)
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (see? LOTS of chocolate)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder (yes, you need both)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened (NOT melted, that’s important)
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, plus more for rolling
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract (I use the good stuff from Costco)
• 1/4 cup milk (I’ve used almond milk when we ran out—works fine)

Now, about shopping for these ingredients… Good luck finding decent cocoa powder that isn’t $15 a container. I stock up when it’s on sale because I make these A LOT during the holidays.

How to Make Simple Chocolate Sugar Cookies Christmas Style

Step 1: Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line your baking sheets with parchment paper. (I forgot this step once and spent 20 minutes scraping burnt cookie off my pan. Don’t be like past me.)

Step 2: In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set it aside. This is the boring part.

Step 3: In a large bowl (or your stand mixer if you’re lucky enough to have one), beat the butter and sugar together until it’s fluffy. This takes like 3-4 minutes. Your arm will hurt if you’re doing it by hand. Worth it though.

Step 4: Add eggs one at a time, beating after each one. Then add vanilla. The mixture will look kinda weird and separated at this point—that’s totally normal, I promise.

Step 5: Add half the flour mixture, mix it in, then add the milk, then add the rest of the flour mixture. Don’t overmix or they’ll be tough. (Speaking from experience here—version 2.0 of this recipe was basically chocolate hockey pucks because I got distracted by a phone call and mixed for like five minutes straight.)

Step 6: The dough will be soft. Like, really soft. That’s fine. Cover it and stick it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. I usually do an hour because I get distracted doing other stuff anyway.

Step 7: Once chilled, roll the dough into balls about 1 1/2 inches across. Roll them in granulated sugar. This part is oddly satisfying—my kids fight over who gets to do it.

Step 8: Place them on your prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart. They spread a little but not too much. Flatten them slightly with the bottom of a glass (or your hand, whatever works).

Step 9: Bake for 10-12 minutes. They’ll look slightly underdone in the center—THAT’S WHAT YOU WANT. They firm up as they cool. Set a timer because I’ve definitely forgotten them in the oven and created chocolate charcoal discs before.

Step 10: Let them cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then move them to a cooling rack. Try not to eat all of them immediately (I fail at this every single time).

Tips For Easy Chocolate Sugar Cookies Christmas Baking

Okay so here’s some stuff I’ve figured out through trial and error (mostly error):

Don’t skip the chilling step. I tried making these once without chilling because I was impatient and they spread like crazy. Not cute.

Use room temperature butter. Cold butter doesn’t cream properly, melted butter makes them spread too much. Room temp = happy medium. I usually take mine out like an hour before I start baking. Or I forget and microwave it for 5 seconds (don’t judge).

These freeze amazingly well. I make a double batch and freeze half the dough. Roll into balls, freeze them on a baking sheet, then toss them in a freezer bag. You can bake them straight from frozen—just add a minute or two to the baking time.

Want them crispier? Bake an extra 1-2 minutes. Want them chewier? Take them out at 10 minutes. I personally like them right at 11 minutes but my husband thinks I’m wrong (he’s wrong).

What To Do If Things Go Wrong

Cookies spreading everywhere? Your butter was probably too warm or you didn’t chill the dough long enough.

Too cakey? You overmixed the batter. Be gentle with it.

Too hard? Overbaked. They should look slightly soft in the center when you take them out.

Taste kinda bland? Use better cocoa powder. The cheap stuff just doesn’t have the same depth of flavor. Also make sure your baking soda isn’t expired—that happened to me once and they tasted weird and flat.

Why These Are The Best Chocolate Sugar Cookies Christmas Recipe

I mean, I’m biased because I’ve made them like fifteen times in the past month, but here’s why I think they’re actually the best:

1. They taste like real chocolate, not just brown-colored vanilla cookies
2. Perfect texture—chewy center, slight crisp on edges
3. They don’t spread all over the place
4. Easy enough that I don’t stress about making them
5. Everyone actually eats them (my picky 8-year-old approves, which is basically a miracle)

These old fashioned chocolate sugar cookies christmas style remind me of the drop chocolate sugar cookies my grandma used to make, except better (sorry Grandma). She used to just drop spoonfuls of dough on the pan but rolling them makes them look way prettier.

Serving Suggestions That Actually Make Sense

Honestly? These are perfect just plain. But if you wanna get fancy:

• Sandwich two cookies with buttercream frosting in the middle (my sister does this and they’re incredible)
• Drizzle melted white chocolate on top (fancy!)
• Roll them in colored sugar instead of white for Christmas vibes
• Eat them with a glass of cold milk like a normal person

I’ve also served these at three different Christmas parties this year and people keep asking for the recipe. So I guess I’m doing something right?

Final Thoughts On This Chocolate Sugar Cookies Christmas Recipe

Look, I’m not gonna lie—the first time I made these they were just okay. The second time I figured out the chilling thing. The third time I realized good cocoa powder matters. Now? They’re genuinely great.

Are they perfect? No. Sometimes one batch spreads more than another for no apparent reason (baking is weird). Sometimes I burn a few because I’m watching Netflix and forget about them. But they’re delicious and people love them and that’s what matters for a Christmas cookie, right?

If you’re looking for a chocolate sugar cookies christmas recipe that’s actually reliable and tastes amazing, this is it. Make them. Your family will thank you. Or they won’t say anything because their mouths are full of cookies, which is basically the same thing.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I have another batch in the oven and I should probably check on them before they become crispy chocolate sugar cookies by accident.

Happy baking!