Holiday Entertaining: Decorating Your Home With Christmas Cookies

Holiday Entertaining

Southern Socials

Decorating Your Home With Christmas Cookies 

Decorated Christmas cookies make lovely focal points around your home during the holidays. Sparkling Gold Star Sugar Cookies, Miniature Gold Star Sugar Cookies, Decorated Buttermilk Gingerbread Cookies & Miniature Buttermilk Gingerbread Cookies all utilize simple decorating techniques that you can easily replicate. During the month of December, I have featured an array of classic Christmas cookies that highlight different design elements with detailed tutorials that focus on specific topics ranging from how to tint frosting, how to make a fondant bow & how to flood a sugar cookies to the ingredients necessary for crafting these fun cookies. Look to The New Collection Of Classic Christmas Cookies for a list of cookies including Holly Candy Cane Sugar Cookies & Miniature Snowmen Sugar Cookies to Gift Box Sugar Cookies & more, the decorating techniques featured & links to each tutorial so you are successful in your own kitchen. In the meantime, I’ll be sharing the secrets to making several of these essential holiday treats plus pointers for packaging & serving them this morning on WBRC Good Day Alabama so I do hope you’ll join me. 

FROM THE KITCHEN OF BUTTERMILK LIPSTICK 
{testing notes}

How To Make Festive Christmas Cookies

Rolled cookies are prepared using a simple dough that is designed to be portioned using simple or more complex cutters. Some formulas include leavening but for more defined shapes, it may be omitted often times resulting in crisp cookies. Three Essential Rolled Christmas Cookies offers additional information regarding this particular cookie style along with recipes that are ideal to use during the holiday season.

The Technique

Christmas cookies can be such hard working treats. Not only are they a fun project to decorate with the kids, the sweets may be packaged for gifts or used in place of bows. Christmas cookies make wonderful elements to sprinkle about kitchen spaces too. Learn how to replicate these simple designs perfect for a delicious snack or dessert. 

Gold Star Sugar Cookies
makes about 7 dozen large & 10 dozen miniature cookies

A recipe of Classic Sugar Cookie dough may easily be transformed with yellow food coloring paste & a smattering of sparkle in order to create these festive treats. Get creative & cut a variety of shapes baking like sizes on the same pan to prevent smaller cookies from burning around the edges.

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
3 cups all purpose flour
1/4 tsp kosher salt
Yellow food coloring paste
1 tsp meringue powder
Sparkling yellow decorating sugar

Cream the butter & the sugar on Medium speed with a stand mixer until light & airy, about 5 minutes. Stop the mixer occasionally & scrape down the sides of the bowl using a rubber spatula. Add the egg, the vanilla & lemon juice. Mix the dough just until blended. Whisk together the flour & the salt in a small bowl. Add to the butter mixture & blend just until the dough comes together. Transfer to a lightly floured work surface. Tint the dough using the yellow food coloring paste by kneading it until evenly distributed. Divide the dough into four pieces & form them into discs. Wrap each disc with plastic. Chill 30 minutes or up to 2 days.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Roll 3 of the dough discs to a 1/8-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Cut 2 1/2-inch star shapes from the dough & place 1/4-inch apart on parchment paper-lined half sheet pans. Re-roll the dough scraps & repeat the process. Bake, in batches, 8 to 10 minutes. Meanwhile, roll the remaining dough disc to a 1/8-inch thickness & cut 1-inch star shapes. Place 1/4-inch apart on a parchment paper-lined half sheet pan. Bake 7 to 9 minutes or until lightly golden around the tips. Cool completely.

Place the stars over parchment paper. Combine 2 tablespoons water with the meringue powder in a small ramekin. Brush the cookies with the mixture, then sprinkle with a bit of the sparkling sugar. Let stand 30 minutes. Pick the stars up to remove the excess sugar. 

Decorated Buttermilk Gingerbread Cookies
makes about 3 dozen large & 5 dozen miniature cookies

Buttermilk replaces vinegar & keeps the dough tender in this traditional rolled cookie.

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
2 eggs, divided
3 cups all purpose flour
4 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp table salt
1/2 cup molasses
3 Tbsp whole buttermilk
11 Tbsp powdered sugar
1 tsp meringue powder
White food coloring paste
Red cinnamon candies

Cream the butter & the sugar in an electric stand mixer on Medium speed until light & airy, about 4 minutes. Add one egg & blend until the yellow disappears. Stop the mixer occasionally & scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula. Whisk together the flour, the ginger, the cinnamon, the soda & the salt in a small bowl. Add to the butter mixture alternately with the molasses & the buttermilk. Mix on Medium-Low just until the flour is blended. Divide the dough into four pieces & form them into discs. Wrap each disc with plastic. Chill 30 minutes or up to 2 days.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Roll 3 of the dough disc to a 1/8-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Cut shapes with a 3 x 2 3/4-inch cookie cutter. Place 1 inch apart on parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Whisk together the remaining egg & a smattering water in a small bowl, then brush over the dough. Bake, in batches, 8 to 10 minutes or until puffed & set. Meanwhile, roll the remaining dough to 1/8-inch thickness & cut 1 1/2 x 1 1/4-inch gingerbread shapes. Place 1/2-inch apart on parchment paper-lined half sheet pans. Brush the egg mixture over the dough. Bake 7 to 9 minutes. Cool completely.

Whisk together powdered sugar, meringue powder & 1 tablespoon hot water in a small bowl. Tint with white food paste, if desired. Add a smidgen of additional powdered sugar or a droplet of water, if necessary, to thicken or thin the icing for the desired piping consistency. It should have a slightly whipped consistency in order to hold shape once piped. Place the icing in a piping bag fit with a No. 1 tip. Pipe small dots on the large gingerbread cookies to resemble buttons. Top with cinnamon candies. Let stand until set, about 1 hour.

The Tune 
“In The Mood” The Andrews Sisters

social butterfly
instagram: buttermilklipstick
facebook: Buttermilk Lipstick
twitter: Buttermilk Lipstick@ButtermilkLips
{college football} Rebecca Gordon@TidefanFare
pinterest: Buttermilk Lipstick
Rebecca Gordon

Be sweet.