Sparkling Vanilla Christmas Cookies Recipes

Steps:

• Tip the icing sugar, vanilla extract, egg yolk and butter into a mixing bowl, then stir together with a wooden spoon (or pulse in a food processor until well combined). Add the flour and mix to a firm dough. Shape the dough into two flat discs and wrap them. Chill for 20-30 mins. Heat oven to 190C/fan 170C/gas 5 and line two baking sheets with non-stick baking paper.
• Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to about the thickness of two £1 coins. Cut out Christmassy shapes (use a cutter if you like) and place on the baking sheets. Using the tip of a skewer, cut a small hole in the top of each cookie. Bake for 10-12 mins until lightly golden.
• Lift the biscuits onto a wire rack to cool. Meanwhile, mix the icing sugar with a few drops of cold water to make a thick, but still runny icing. Colour with edible food colouring, if you like. Spread it over the cooled biscuits, decorate with edible balls and thread with ribbon when dry.

Steps:

• Place flour and the icing sugar in a food processor. Process for 30 seconds. Add butter. Process until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add egg and vanilla. Process until dough comes together. If it is too dry, add some milk.
• Transfer to a lightly floured surface. Knead dough until smooth. Press or roll into a 9"/20cm circle. Wrap in greaseproof paper. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until firm.
• Preheat oven to 180C/360F, and line 2 flat baking/cookie trays with baking paper. Roll out dough between 2 sheets of baking paper until about 1/4"/5mm thick.
• Using snowflake biscuit/cookie cutters, cut shapes out of dough. Place on them gently on to the trays. Press leftover dough together and repeat cutting out shapes. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or until firm.
• Bake the cookies/biscuits for 10 minutes, swapping trays after 5 minutes, or until light golden in colour. Allow to cool on trays completely.
• Pipe trellis-work patterns following the snowflake shapes, or drizzle glace icing over the top; then dust them with edible glitter/edible silver dusting powder whilst the icing is still wet.
• Dust with remaining sugar or edible glitter/silver dust just before serving.
• Note for making holes for hanging on the Christmas Tree: Just before baking, take a plastic drinking straw and press into the top of the snowflake shapes - to make a small hole - then gently wiggle the straw around a bit to widen the hole, and bake as before. On taking them out of the oven, if the holes have closed up a bit, gently wiggle around again with a plastic drinking straw, to make the holes bigger! Excuse the language, I don't know how else to put it! LOL!

Steps:

• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs and salt; mix to combine. Add evaporated milk, vanilla extract, and vanilla bean seeds, if using; mix to combine.
• Reduce speed to low; slowly add flour. Mix until just combined; do not overmix. Divide dough into 4 equal pieces and shape each piece into a disk. Cover tightly with plastic wrap. Transfer to refrigerator and chill until firm, at least 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with nonstick baking mats or parchment paper.
• Working with one disk at a time, form dough into 1-teaspoon-sized balls. Roll each ball in sanding sugar and place on prepared baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. Lightly dip the bottom of a drinking glass in flour and gently press down on ball to flatten slightly. Transfer baking sheets to oven and bake until puffy, but still soft, 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool slightly on baking sheets before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Using a small offset spatula, carefully spread about 1 teaspoon filling on the flat side of one cookie; top with another cookie to make a sandwich. Repeat process with remaining filling and cookies.