Description
These Soft Christmas Cookies are a delightful holiday treat perfect for sharing during festive gatherings. Featuring a tender, buttery dough flavored with vanilla and almond extracts, they are topped with a smooth, sweet glaze that can be customized with food coloring and festive sprinkles. The recipe yields soft, melt-in-your-mouth cookies that are simple to make and sure to impress family and friends.
Ingredients
Scale
Cookie Dough
- 3 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 4 tablespoons milk
Glaze
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 4 tablespoons milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Food coloring (optional)
- Sprinkles (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven and prepare baking sheets. Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and line baking sheets with parchment paper to prevent sticking.
- Mix dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt until combined thoroughly.
- Cream butter and sugar. In a large bowl, beat the softened unsalted butter and granulated sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.
- Add eggs and extracts. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Then mix in the vanilla and almond extracts until well incorporated.
- Combine dry and wet ingredients. Gradually add the dry ingredient mixture to the wet mixture alternately with the 4 tablespoons of milk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients. Mix just until combined to avoid overmixing.
- Shape cookies. Scoop or roll dough into 1 ½-inch balls and place them on the prepared baking sheets, spacing about 2 inches apart to allow for spreading.
- Bake cookies. Bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden but the centers remain soft. Remove from oven and let cookies cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Prepare glaze. While the cookies cool, make the glaze by whisking together powdered sugar, 4 tablespoons of milk, and vanilla extract until smooth. Add food coloring if desired to achieve festive colors.
- Decorate cookies. Once cookies have completely cooled, dip the tops into the glaze or spread it on with a spoon. Add sprinkles on top immediately if desired for added holiday cheer.
- Allow glaze to set and serve. Let the glaze harden for at least 30 minutes at room temperature before serving or packaging the cookies.
Notes
- Make sure the butter is softened but not melted for best creaming results.
- Do not overbake to maintain soft texture; cookies may look slightly underdone when removed from the oven.
- Customize the glaze colors with food coloring to match holiday themes.
- Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- For a dairy-free version, substitute butter with vegan butter and milk with almond or oat milk.
