Bake

Turmeric Sugar Cookies

by:
September 17, 2018
4.6
25 Ratings
Turmeric Sugar Cookies
Photo by Jenny Huang
  • Prep time 20 minutes
  • Cook time 22 minutes
  • Makes 24 cookies
Author Notes

A whole new way to sugar cookie, thanks to one ingredient: ground turmeric. Coupled with butter and sugar, this often-savory spice not only gets to show off its incredible color, but flavor too. Our staff thought they were everything from lemony, to tangy, to raspberry-y. What notes will you pick up? —Emma Laperruque

What You'll Need
Watch This Recipe
Turmeric Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
  • Cookie dough
  • 1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 1 2/3 cups (333 grams) granulated sugar
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 2 1/3 cups (299 grams) all-purpose flour
  • Sugar crust
  • 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
Directions
  1. Heat the oven to 375° F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.
  2. Add the butter, sugar, and salt to the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium for a few minutes until light and fluffy, scraping down the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.
  3. Add the eggs and vanilla. Continue beating—again, scraping down the sides as needed—until cohesive and fluffy.
  4. Add the turmeric and baking powder and mix on low just to combine. Add the flour and mix on low again until completely combined. Detach the bowl from the machine and use the rubber spatula to make sure there are no floury dry spots on the sides or bottom of the bowl.
  5. Stick the dough in the fridge to firm up for 10 or so minutes. Meanwhile, you can clean up and make the sugar crust mixture: In a small bowl, combine the sugar and turmeric, and stir.
  6. Scoop the dough by generously rounded tablespoons (about 40 grams each). I fit 6 on each sheet tray, so start by scooping 12 cookies. Roll each dough blob lightly between your hands into a smooth sphere. Now roll each sphere in the sugar. Divide evenly between the lined sheets. No need to flatten—they’ll spread in the oven.
  7. Bake for 9 to 11 minutes until puffy, slightly crackly, and just beginning to brown around the edges. They will fall as they cool. That’s good. You want them crispy around the edges and chewy-tender in the middle.
  8. Cool for a few minutes on the tray, then use a spatula to transfer to a cooling rack.
  9. Repeat with the remaining cookie dough.
  10. These freeze well.
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See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • Lucy Mcmorris
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  • goodgalsasha
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Emma Laperruque
Emma was the food editor at Food52. She created the award-winning column, Big Little Recipes, and turned it into a cookbook in 2021. These days, she's a senior editor at Bon Appétit, leading digital cooking coverage. Say hello on Instagram at @emmalaperruque.

Popular on Food52

60 Reviews

Lucy M.
Lucy M. August 22, 2024
This review is based on the cookies someone else made for our library cookbook club. I approached with great trepidation, but these were really tasty. I will be making myself.
 
Lynn C.
Lynn C. December 23, 2022
Long story about why I was looking for a cookie with turmeric but so happy I found this one. Love the color, inside & out, & they're delish. Only change was I made them smaller, about 25g each (& I did weigh them; I don't have cookie scoops). They still needed 11 minutes to bake, & they turned out plenty big, about 2-1/2" each.
 
Heather H.
Heather H. December 24, 2019
Can cookie cutters be used for this dough recipe?
 
Emma L.
Emma L. December 27, 2019
Hi Heather! My hunch is that the dough might be too soft—but you could certainly form it into blocks, wrap, refrigerate for a few hours, and see. If it's too soft at that point, no harm done! You can just let it soften up a bit and scoop from there.
 
SophieL
SophieL December 7, 2019
I made these cookies exactly as written and they're wonderful! My turmeric was a bit old so next time I'll add more and also make them smaller. I love the reviewer comments and am getting some great ideas for variations (Chinese five-spice? Wow!). This recipe's a keeper. Thanks!
 
Emma L.
Emma L. December 9, 2019
Thanks, Sophie!
 
goodgalsasha
goodgalsasha May 2, 2019
love the flavour but could not get the cookies to spread as thinly as was shown in the video.
what could i have done wrong?
 
Emma L.
Emma L. May 2, 2019
Hello! Did you use chilled butter or chill the dough at all? My first thought is that the butter and/or dough might have been too cold.
 
Miss B.
Miss B. April 13, 2019
I picked up mostly on the taste of sugar and butter, but maybe my turmeric has losts its flavour. Still super tastey!
 
moody B.
moody B. February 11, 2019
I had a strange experience with these cookies! I followed the recipe exactly as written, but I refrigerated the dough for about 5 hours while I was out of the house. When I baked them up, they turned red inside! I'm not kidding, the cookies are golden yellow ish on the outside but the red inside is obvious, when bitten into they are deep red inside. Taste good if not a little... strange.
 
Emma L.
Emma L. February 11, 2019
Mine usually have a reddish inside, too!
 
Kt4
Kt4 February 11, 2019
Fascinating!

From schoolessons.com: Turmeric is an natural colour indicator because it changes its colour in acid medium as well as in base medium.

When turmeric is combined with any base liquid like it turns red in colour while when turmeric comes in contact with any substance like that of vinegar, that is acidic in nature, it turns yellow.
 
Anagha
Anagha December 4, 2019
Actually this is very common. Since Baking powder is acid base, when it touches turmeric it turns red. This chemistry fact is used to even scare people in villages in India. The con artist would dip the knfe in turmeric, and when he would cut the lime, it would turn red, he would scare the people that the goddess is mad at them hence this is happening : )
 
Dominique A.
Dominique A. January 29, 2019
I made half this recipe and added lemon zest. The texture is perfectly chewy with crisp edges. They're not too sweet and have a great nutty flavor. Thanks for the recipe.
 
Emma L.
Emma L. January 29, 2019
Lemon zest sounds awesome! So glad you enjoyed.
 
Aster G.
Aster G. January 5, 2019
Used King Arthur GF measure for measure flour and they turned out great, y’all! Chilled them for ~30 mins and they kept their shapes fairly well. They’re delicious and subtle and everything I hoped they’d be. Thanks for a great recipe, Emma!
 
Emma L.
Emma L. January 6, 2019
Yay! Thanks, Amber!
 
judy
judy December 14, 2018
I love sugar cookies. I have an anise recipe much like this that I love because I Love licorice. I like that I can roll the dough into a log, wrap and put in "icebox" for icebox cookies. I have made versions with orange zest, pecans, brown sugar instead of white, adding chocolate, or candied citrus zest--or both!. I usually use 1/2 AP and 1/2 WW pastry flour. I tell myself it isomer nutritious as I eat another one! This weekends foray for the holidays is orange zest and chopped cranberries. I have several now in logs in the fridge ready to bake when family comes. Happy holidays, folks. I'll have to give turmeric a try. And what about a garam masala or Chinese 5 spice with a hit of chili? Hmmmm so many possibilities for a simple basic dough.
 
Laura R.
Laura R. December 12, 2018
These cookies are delicious!! I made them for my dad who has rheumatoid arthritis. We try to get as much natural anti-inflammatories into him as we can. These cookies will do the trick. Not only were they simple to make but very tasty, too. These will definitely be a regular. Thanks for the great recipe!
Also, I followed the advice of another reviewer and refrigerated the dough longer than 10 minutes. Actually, I refrigerated them overnight. The dough was perfect to work with.
 
Emma L.
Emma L. December 13, 2018
Thanks so much, Laura! So glad you and your dad enjoyed them.
 
Kt4
Kt4 December 9, 2018
This sounds very interesting! I'm going to have to give them a try. Thinking I might divide the dough and also add all the Golden Milk seasonings (ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, pinch black pepper) to half for comparison.
 
Emma L.
Emma L. December 9, 2018
Ooh! That sounds like such a delicious comparison—if you try, please let me know how it goes.
 
Jenny
Jenny December 5, 2018
I made these exactly as written and they were great! Soft in the middle and just slightly crisp at the edges. The turmeric is indeed very subtle, but I like the mystery of it. I would never guess it was turmeric if I didn’t know. I think they’d be great as an ice cream sandwich!
 
Emma L.
Emma L. December 6, 2018
So glad you enjoyed, Jenny! I also think they'd be great as an ice cream sandwich :)
 
Jennifer K.
Jennifer K. December 2, 2018
Hey Emma! These are definitely our new house favorite! I've made them several times already.

I wanted to make these for my niece, but she needs gluten free ... can I substitute the AP flour with coconut or almond flour ... ooh, maybe oat four?
 
Emma L.
Emma L. December 3, 2018
Hi Jennifer! So happy to hear that your family's enjoying the cookies. With respect to adapting the recipe for your niece: I think your best bet would be an all-purpose gluten-free flour blend. (I worry that using just one type of gluten-free flour, such as coconut or almond, would be too drastic a swap.) If you give it a try, I'd love to hear how it goes.
 
Jennifer K.
Jennifer K. December 4, 2018
Thank you! I'll let you know how it goes.
 
Jennifer K.
Jennifer K. December 13, 2018
Okay, so I tried the gluten free version. The only substitute I made was all-purpose gluten free flour blend. The dough was even softer than the original, so keeping it chilled was key. Once the dough warmed up, it was too tacky to handle. Smaller balls were required ... my first pan melted into several large squares. ;-) The cookies came out flatter and little more delicate, but the taste was the same and just as good. Hopefully they will survive transport to my niece.
 
sqqqrly
sqqqrly December 30, 2022
You might try einkorn flour. Not totally gluten free but most that are gluten sensitive can tolerate einkorn. Einkorn is an ancient wheat.
https://jovialfoods.com/what-is-einkorn/
 
sqqqrly
sqqqrly December 30, 2022
If interested, listen to the 'How I built this' podcast about Jovial. Very interesting. Einkorn is unchanged from what it was 20,000 years ago.
 
Ashley
Ashley November 17, 2018
I made a double batch of these for an early Thanksgiving treat. They are wonderful! I used a gluten free flour blend of sorghum, cornstarch, and tapioca, so I'm not if that influenced the fact that they spread A LOT. They're super thin and huge, but still chewy at the centers, with a crisp crust and edge. I added extra turmeric to the batter, and they're a delightful golden yellow, with an earthy, sweet flavor. So far it has just been myself and my mom who tried them, but we have been picking away at them all evening. These will become a regular in the cookie rotation.
 
Kat S.
Kat S. November 8, 2018
This recipe inspired a whole slew of suger cookies with unexpected flavors. We made a batch and split it into sections and mixed different spices into each. Paprika was a particularly fun one.
 
Emma L.
Emma L. November 8, 2018
Whoa! What were some of the others?!
 
Erin H.
Erin H. October 29, 2018
These cookies definitely did not disappoint! I found the turmeric to be subtle, but it adds such great, unexpected note to the flavor. The texture was a perfect balance with the crunchy edges and soft middle. Mine didn’t crack, so I just pulled them when the edges started browning (10 minutes.)

The only thing I would do differently next time is lessen the sugar, as they are a tad too sweet for my preference. Otherwise, I love everything about this cookie!
 
Emma L.
Emma L. October 29, 2018
Thanks, Erin!
 
Lisa
Lisa October 27, 2018
These are definitely different, but good for the adventurous one. I substituted half the butter for tahini and used all rice flour. The texture was great, chewy edges and soft-ish in the middle (I like it that way.) I can definitely taste the turmeric. I may make them again and decrease the turmeric slightly and add ground ginger.
 
Emma L.
Emma L. October 28, 2018
Thanks for reporting back on these adaptations, Lisa! Love the idea of adding ground ginger.
 
Michelle C.
Michelle C. October 23, 2018
My last six are in the oven now. The aroma is delightful & the flavor equally so. I haven't experienced much tumeric but LOVE these (grownup) sugar cookies. I had to bake mine for 13 minutes & the results are crispy edges & chewy center. Yum. I also drop each blob directly into the shallow bowl of sugar crust. Then with finger tips, I sprinkle the mixture onto the blob then gently toss between both hands to form a ball. Note, I did end up with yellow finger tips. LOL. Thank you FOOD52 for this recipe that I'll be using for Christmas!
 
Emma L.
Emma L. October 28, 2018
Thanks, Michelle! Means a lot to me that you'll repeat them for the holiday :)
 
Michelle C.
Michelle C. December 21, 2019
Season's Greetings Emma, I meant to reply last year...where did the time go? These yummy turmeric sugar cookies have become a must bake for the holidays! I add red & green sugar to the sugar crust mixture so my cookies are festively dressed! Thanks so much for this recipe. Enjoy the holidays.
 
Emma L.
Emma L. January 6, 2020
"Where did the time go?" I wonder this a lot! So glad you're enjoying the recipe.
 
Jennifer U.
Jennifer U. October 7, 2018
Great recipe! The Turmeric is not overwhelming and the color is nice. Outsides are crispy and inside is chewy just as the recipe promised. It's a keeper!
 
Emma L.
Emma L. October 7, 2018
Yay! Thanks so much, Jennifer.