(Copycat Crumbl) Sugar Cookies with Almond Buttercream
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! What we have here is a very important recipe that is very close to my heart. Mainly for the fact that I am obsessed with all things cookies but also with sugar cookies and almond flavoring.
A month ago, Clayton and I went to Idaho for a weekend getaway. We stopped at Crumbl Cookie in Cour de A’lene and tasted several of their cookies. Their storefront is cute and modern with touches of pink mixed in with white and black.
We ordered their sugar cookie with almond frosting, milk chocolate chip, smore’s, and twix cookie. MY OH MY! They were all incredible but we both looked at each other and nearly said in unison “we should have gotten another sugar cookie!”
IT WAS THAT GOOD.
Here I am finally sharing this recipe publicly, but it certainly has not been the 1st, or 2nd, or 3rd time I have made them since being there over a month ago (giving too much away am I?! ) 😉
Now, moving on to the importance of this cookie and my tips and recommendations for making them, and then you can be on your merry way.
POWDERED SUGAR: it is VERY VERY important. I know it may seem weird but please do not substitute this. This gives the cookie that chewy, thick bite we all search for.
OIL: vegetable oil is what i normally use but coconut oil (or any other non flavorful oil) would work as well. So I have questioned: “Why not just use all butter, because butter is KING right?!” The oil give the sugar cookies the moisture it needs to stay soft and last longer.. it also odly makes the cookie texture so buttery and soft but crispy on the edges.
VANILLA EXTRACT: good vanilla is 100% important in a sugar cookie, because remember.. there are no there added flavor to enhance this cookie (like chocolate chips or cocoa powder). The Haitian Perrier Vanilla Extract is what I use and love.
ALMOND EXTRACT vs. ALMOND EMULSION/FLAVORING: these two are DIFFERENT. The extract is going to be stronger and more potent the flavoring/emulsion is going to be thicker and diluted in strength. I do not have a huge underlying preference, but lately I have really love my emulsion because it does not seem as bitter (but it also takes more too)
FOOD COLORING: pink is the classic color for this cookie (and also my daughter, Charli’s favorite color) but certainly use a different color or keep it simple and white! Keep in mind this is a small batch, so you only need a VERY small drop, or you will reach definite neon status.
CHILL THE DOUGH + LIGHTLY FLATTEN: make sure to practice some patience and chill the dough balls in the fridge for 10-15 minutes so the cookies will not spread when baking. After chilled, lightly flatten the cookies with a flat surface (or the palm of your hand). Make sure to only flatten slightly. The reason is to bake evenly while still maintaining a thick moist cookie.
FOR BEST RESULTS: bake for only 9-10 minutes chill the cookies 10 minutes before eating. They do not need to be stored in the refrigerator though.
It is absolutely time. With all of my being, enjoy this delicious morsel of a cookie and share your thoughts with me by commenting below, emailing at itsalwaysthyme@gmail.com or on my Instagram account @itsalwaysthyme
Sugar Cookies with Almond Buttercream
Ingredients
Chewy Sugar Cookie
- ½ cup of unsalted butter, softened
- ½ cup of confectioner's (granulated) sugar
- ½ cup of granulated sugar
- ½ cup of vegetable or coconut oil
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp. of pure vanilla extract (Perrier Hatian is my fav)
- 3 cups of all purpose flour
- ½ tsp. of baking soda
- ¾ tsp. of cream of tartar
- ½ tsp. of salt
Almond Buttercream Frosting
- ½ cup of unsalted butter, softened
- 3 cups of confectioner's (powdered) sugar
- 3 Tbsp. of heavy cream or milk
- 1/2 tsp. of almond extract
- salt to taste
- 1 very small drop of pink food coloring
Instructions
To Make the Cookies:
- 1. Start by beating the butter in a stand mixer or with a hand mixer. (This batch isn't very big so you will not need to beati the butter very long.)2. Next, add the sugars and oil and continue to beat at medium to high speed. Make sure to scrap down the sides of your bowl and beater often. (There may be some smaller peices of butter that have not been completely incorporated in the batter but that is fine)
- 3. Next, add the eggs and vanilla and beat again for a minute until it is combined well.4. Stop the mixer and gently add the dry ingredients. Slowly turn the mixer on to low speed and mix until the dry ingredeints are combined well with batter. (There is no need to beat after this time, just slowly until everything looks mixed in well) The dough will feel a bit soft but it defeinitely should not feel dry. 5. Preheat the oven to 350° and scoop the sugar cookie dough into 12-14 large balls and place on a small pan or baking sheet. (I use my Pampered Chef #20 cookie scoop and heap it) Refrigerate the sugar cookie dough for 10-15 minutes to keep them from spreading when baking.6. Divide the cookie dough balls onto 2 half sheet baking pans. Line them with parchment or spray. 7. With an item with a large flat bottom (i use my drinking glass), lightly press down the dough balls. You do not want to press them down too far or your cookies will be too flat and not stay as soft and chewy. This step is just to ensure they have an even perfect bake while still maintaining a thick cookie.8. Bake for 10 minutes and no longer. If you oven runs hotter, I reccommend 9 minutes.9. Take the cookies out of the oven. They can stay on the pan until completely cool.10. Once the cookies are cooled, you can frost them!
To Make the Buttercream:
- 1. While the cookies are baking or cooling, start beating the butter in your mixer until fluffy. Remember to pause and scrap down the sides of the bowl again.2. Add the powdered sugar, milk, and extract on low speed until combined and then beat for several minutes until light, airy, and there are no clumps. 3. Next, add the small touch of food coloring and the pinch (or two) of salt. (salt plays an important role in buttercream because it cuts the sweetness beautifully)4. Make sure to taste and adjust flavor if needed. If you want the frosting a little thinner, just add a little more milk or cream.
really really yummy, tastes exactly like crumbl, love the icing as well. would definitely recommend 🙂
You have confectioner’s granulated sugar and then granulated sugar. I could not find confectioner’s granulated sugar just regular granulated sugar.
I wouldn’t say these taste just like crumbl, the frosting is spot on but the cookies are lacking flavor some and definitely not sweet enough. I would just add extra sugar to the frosting to make sure it balances out the cookie. I didn’t have any extra sugar left and I made sure to have a tiny bit extra or they would probably be super good. Typically I also add vanilla to my buttercream and do a more basic sugar cookie recipe and add some almond extract to that as well and they are closer to a crumbl cookie.
I wrote the comment above and just wanted to say that after trying the cookies the next day after being in the fridge all night, I did taste the crumbl! I will say that my biggest cookie scoop is giant and not big enough to turn this batch into only 12 cookies so I had to cook mine a little longer and my “under done” ones turned out so much better and the done ones were kind of like a shortbread texture. Bake until a cookie barely begins to form/ moisture appearance just disappears/ small cracks form and get those bad boys out onto a cooling rack even if they don’t look done then they have full flavor. I did still add a little bit of almond extract to the cookie and some vanilla extract to the frosting. Yum. So sorry for the last review, I did chill them but they just didn’t get the full flavor until MUCH later.
I have made these countless times and everyone loves them! I add a bit of almond to the cookie along with the called for vanilla and add a bit of vanilla to the frosting, just personal preference. I’ve made them large and I’ve made them small. Just be sure to not over bake. Thank you for a family favorite!!
Thanks!
I’ve not tried the recipe yet, it appears to be the closest I’ve found in terms of copycat (good job!), but here’s some small differences I may have found via Crumbl’s ingredient list
Note: Their ingredients match up exactly to Watkins brand flavors & extracts .
Watkins All Natural Baking Vanilla (FLAVOR, not extract)
SALTED BUTTER ( instead of unsalted )
Corn Starch (I’m not a baking pro, but they’re using corn starch in there for something )
Loved this recipe and so did the whole family. Thank you! ♡