Frosted Sugar Cookie Cups
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If you love sugar cookies but want something a little more fun and festive, these Sugar Cookie Cups are the perfect twist. Baked in a mini muffin tin and filled with a swirl of frosting and sprinkles, they’re as cute as they are delicious. This easy recipe turns simple ingredients into a crowd-pleasing treat that’s great for holidays, parties, or just because.
Raise your hand if you love a soft frosted sugar cookie. Me, too! These mini sugar cookie cups are soft in the center, golden brown on the edges, and hold their perfect cup shape thanks to the mini muffin pan. They’re the kind of delightful treat that looks bakery-fancy but comes together fast with pantry staples.
Sugar Cookie Cups
This easy dessert is all about simple ingredients, quick prep, and easy entertaining. The sugar cookie base bakes up into soft dough that you shape right out of the oven with the back of a teaspoon. Once cooled, you can decorate them with a piping bag or a butter knife, whatever works best for your frosting style.
Even better, they are easy to make ahead and store in an airtight container, then tote them to any event. You can change up the colors of the frosting and the sprinkles depending on the season or holiday, and use either store-bought or homemade frosting.
Ingredients in Sugar Cookie Cups
You will find the exact measurements and instructions at the bottom of this post in the printable recipe card.
- Salted Butter (melted). Melted, softened butter helps the butter to mix in smoothly.
- White Granulated Sugar for sweetness and structure. It gives the sugar cookie crusts a light crisp edge.
- Eggs (room temperature) add moisture and hold everything together. Room temperature eggs incorporate more easily and evenly.
- Vanilla Extract gives that classic sugar cookie flavor. Substitute almond extract if you prefer.
- Baking Powder and Baking Soda give the perfect rise while keeping the dough soft. Helps to make the indentation without cracks.
- All-Purpose Flour for structure. Be sure to spoon and level it to avoid dense cookies.
- Pink and White Frosting: We used store-bought frosting in a piping bag for those clean swirls. Use a homemade vanilla buttercream frosting or cream cheese frosting if you like.
- Rainbow Sprinkles: A simple topping that adds festive flair. Customize with chocolate eggs for Easter, red and green for Christmas cookies, or pastel sprinkles for a baby shower.
How to Make Frosted Sugar Cookie Cups
These cookie cups come together so quickly and easily! You’ll be enjoying them in no time!
First, preheat oven to 350°F and lightly coat a mini muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray.
In a large bowl, mix the melted butter and sugar using an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Add in the eggs and vanilla extract, then mix again until combined.
In a small bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: baking powder, baking soda, and flour. Stir into the butter mixture until a soft dough forms with no dry streaks.
Scoop the dough into the muffin cups, filling each one all the way to the top. Bake for 11 minutes or until the edges are golden brown and the tops look just set. As soon as they come out of the oven, use the back of a Tablespoon or teaspoon to gently press down the center of each cookie cup. This helps create that perfect spot for your frosting to sit.
Let them cool completely in the pan or transfer to a cooling rack after 10 minutes.
Once fully cooled, decorate each one with a swirl of frosting using a piping bag or spread with a butter knife. Finish with rainbow sprinkles.
Love it? Pin it!
If you love this Sugar Cookie Cup Recipe, make sure that you can find it. Pin it to your favorite Pinterest recipe board before you go!
Tips, Tricks & Substitutions
- Always make your indent while the cookies are still warm so they hold their shape.
- Let them cool completely before adding frosting to avoid melting.
- Frosting them directly in the muffin tin helps keep things tidy, but if you want to release them onto a cooling rack before frosting, you might find this simpler.
- Store in a single layer in an airtight container covered with plastic wrap for up to 5 days.
- This sugar cookie cup recipe works best in a mini muffin tin. A regular-sized muffin tin requires more dough and extra baking time.
- Want to try other fillings? Spoon in a little lemon curd, cherry pie filling, or dulce de leche for a fun twist. Then frost.
- Use store-bought refrigerator cookie dough to really speed things up.
- Use a scratch recipe for cream cheese frosting or buttercream frosting to make everything from scratch.
If you love sugar cookies, be sure to check out my Aunt Vern’s Sugar Cookie recipe and these soft frosted sugar cookies that our family makes every year. You may also love these: Frosted Sugar Cookie Bars, Chocolate Kiss Sugar Cookies, Funfetti Sugar Cookies, Sour Cream Sugar Cookies, Brown Sugar Cookies, Chocolate Chip Sugar Cookies, and these delicious Iced Maple Sugar Cookies, too! Next up, I think I will try a Sugar Cookie in a Mug!
These cookie cups are the perfect size for a sweet little treat. They’re easy, customizable, and just plain fun. If you give them a try, be sure to tag your creation on social media—I love seeing your takes on my recipes!
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Frosted Sugar Cookie Cups
Ingredients
- ½ cup salted butter melted
- 1 cup white granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup pink frosting
- ¾ cup white frosting
- 2 Tablespoons rainbow sprinkles
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°.
- Combine the butter and white granulated sugar in a large mixing bowl. Use an electric hand mixer to cream the ingredients together for about 2 minutes, or until smooth. Once the mixture is smooth and creamy, whisk in the eggs and vanilla.
- Add the baking powder, baking soda, and flour. Gently whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until no dry pockets remain in the cookie dough.
- Fill a mini muffin tin with your cookie dough, making sure that each mold is filled all the way with cookie dough. Bake your cookies for 11 minutes.
- As soon as your cookies come out of the oven, use the handle of a spoon to create an indent in the center of each cookie. Let the cookies cool on the counter for 30 minutes.
- Use the piping tip of your choice: the frost half the cookie cups with pink frosting and half with white frosting. Top the cookies with the sprinkles. Enjoy!
Notes
- You can store these cookies in an airtight container on the counter for up to 5 days. Try to avoid stacking the cookies on top of each other so the frosting doesn’t get messed up.
- You can use store bought frosting or your favorite homemade recipe. We just used store bought frosting for the photos.
- Make sure you indent your cookies right after they come out of the oven. You want your cookies to be soft when you do it so that they don’t get torn up too much.
- It is important to let your cookies cool before frosting them. You don’t want your frosting to melt, especially if you are using a homemade buttercream frosting.
- Your cookies should pop out of the tin easily after they have cooled.
- You can frost your cookie cups in the muffin tin, or remove them and frost them on a wire cooling rack.
