Painted Christmas Tree Cookies

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup unsalted butter (room temperature)
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2.5 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 pinch salt
• 2 egg yolks
• brown and green paste food coloring
• Optional: Christmas-themed sprinkles

Equipment: 

• Rolling Pin
• Christmas Tree Cookie Cutters
• Thin Paint Brushes (2-3)

Steps:

Please note, you bake the cookies AFTER you've painted them!

Part I: Making the Cookie Dough

1. Beat together butter and sugar until well combined. 
2. Add egg, vanilla and beat again until well combined.
3. Next add flour, baking powder and salt - whisking together. 
4. The texture will be crumbly, knead the dough together with your hands and form two discs. If you find the cookie dough too crumbly, add a bit more butter (1 tsp at a time) until you get a good consistent texture. 
5. Refrigerate the dough for 1 hour (or up to 24 hours). Then remove and thaw for 15 minutes at room temperature. 

Part II: Making the "Paint"

1. Separate egg yolk in two or three bowls (depending on number of colours you wish to incorporate). 
2. Dip a toothpick into the brown food colouring gel and then dip into bowl with yolk, mix until you have a solid colour.  Use clean thin paint brush to paint the tree stumps and branches/
3. Repeat for the other yolk bowls with green food colouring gel. I decided to use two green colours ("Kelly Green" and "Teal"). 
4. Feel free to add sprinkles/candies onto your cookies once painted. 

Part III: Baking the Cookies:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Celsius. 
2. Bake for 11 minutes or until outer edges are just slightly golden brown. Remove from oven and enjoy!

1. In a bowl, add 3/4 cup of unsalted butter that is room temperature and 1 cup granulated sugar. 

 

2. Beat until well combined. 

  

Pause beating of the mixture to scrape down the sides (and bottom) and re-beat until well combined. This ensures all aspects of the batter will be well mixed (sometimes the beater mixes the button)

  

3. Add one egg, and then 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.  

 

4. Beat until well combined: 

5. Next add 2.5 cups of flour, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, and 1 pinch salt and whisk together:

  

6. The final texture will be a bit crumbly.

7. Knead the dough until the surfaces are smooth. 

  

8. Flatten into disks and wrap in seran wrap

 

9. Refrigerate for 1 hour (or up to 24 hours):

 

then remove the cookie dough from fridge and allow to thaw for 15 minutes until soft enough to roll.

10. Add flour (or use wax paper) on your working surface and spread. Then roll out your dough to be about 5 mm thick with a rolling pin.

11. Push your Christmas Tree Cookie Cutter down int he dough - wiggle ever so slightly and then lift surrounding dough!

12. Add your shortbread cookie cut outs to the cookie tray lined with parchment paper. The next step we will be painting the trees!

13. Next we will separate the egg yolk - do this over a sink! Crack the egg in two, and transfer the egg yolk from one shell to the next repeatedly, allow egg white to drip through, Transfer yolk to bowl.

14. Dip a toothpick (or chopstick) into food colouring gel paste, and then subsequently dip into the egg yolk, mix well and dip your paint brush in.

15. Paint your tree stumps and branches with the brown egg yolk you just created.

16. Once you've coloured your other egg yolk bowls with green, paint the leaves/pine needles on the tree. Get creative!

17. If you have christmas themed sprinkles, feel free to add ornaments to your trees!

18. Bake in an oven that has been preheated to 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 11 minutes (or until outer edges lightly browned).