Christmas Star Cookies Recipes

GRANDMA'S STAR COOKIES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream the butter, shortening and sugars until light and fluffy. Add 1 egg at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in orange juice concentrate and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Cover and refrigerate until easy to handle, about 2 hours., On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/4-in. thickness. Cut with a 3-in. star-shaped cookie cutter dipped in flour. Place 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350° until edges are firm, 7-8 minutes. Remove to wire racks to cool., For frosting, combine the confectioners' sugar, butter, orange juice concentrate, vanilla and enough milk to reach spreading consistency. Tint with food coloring if desired. Frost cookies; decorate as desired.

STAR COOKIE TREES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, sift together flour, salt, and baking powder. Set aside.
• Place the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and beat on medium speed until mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs and vanilla extract.
• Reduce speed to low, and gradually add the flour mixture, mixing until thoroughly combined. Divide the dough into four parts, and flatten each piece into a disk. Wrap the disks in plastic, and chill for at least 30 minutes.
• Heat oven to 325 degrees. Place a clean piece of parchment paper or a Silpat (a French nonstick baking mat) on work surface, and dust generously with flour. Place one disk of dough in center, and roll to 3/16 inch thick. While rolling, occasionally run a large offset spatula under the dough to distribute the flour and prevent sticking. Use more flour for the top or bottom of dough if necessary. Transfer parchment paper and rolled dough to a cookie sheet that fits in freezer. Place in the freezer for 15 minutes or until the dough is chilled through. (This may be done in the refrigerator, but it will take longer.) Repeat process with remaining dough (you can stack sheets in the freezer to chill).
• Remove dough and parchment from the freezer, and transfer to work surface. Using the cutout templates and a paring knife or utility knife, cut three of each size star. Using a plastic straw, poke a hole in the center of each cookie. Remove the templates from the dough, and pull away scraps from the stars. If the stars are too close together, carefully use a spatula to transfer them to a parchment or Silpatlined baking sheet. Return cut cookies to the freezer to chill before baking; this will prevent excessive spreading. Reroll scraps, and cut out remaining stars.
• Once the cookies are chilled through, remove them from freezer, and place in the oven. Bake 15 to 18 minutes, rotating at least once, until cookies begin to get color. Remove from oven, and transfer to a heat-proof surface.
• Decorate the cookies with Royal Icing and sanding sugar or nonpareils if desired. Place one of the largest cookies on a plate, and place an 11-inch wooden skewer in the hole. Stack the remaining two largest cookies on top, spiraling them so that the points don't line up. Continue to stack the cookies in descending-size order. If you have left the cookies undecorated, dust them with confectioners' sugar if desired. Serve.

FINNISH STAR COOKIES (JOULUTORTTU)

Steps:

• Whisk together flour, baking powder, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a medium bowl. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and cream cheese on medium speed until well combined, about 1 minute. Add sugar and lemon zest and continue to beat until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add 1 egg and beat until combined. Beat in flour mixture on low speed until combined. Divide dough in half. Shape each half into a square, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate until firm, 1 to 2 hours.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Remove one-half of dough from the refrigerator. On a lightly floured sheet of parchment, roll out dough into a square about 1/8 inch thick. Cut out squares using a 3 1/2-inch square cutter, then carefully transfer to prepared baking sheets, spaced about 1 1/2 inches apart. If dough becomes too soft, transfer parchment with dough to a baking sheet and refrigerate until firm.
• Place 1 teaspoon preserves in the center of each square. Using a small paring knife, cut 1 1/4-inch slits diagonally from each corner toward the filling. Fold every other tip over to cover filling, forming a pinwheel. Press lightly to seal. If dough becomes soft, refrigerate until firm.
• Lightly beat remaining egg with remaining pinch of salt. Using a pastry brush, lightly brush tops of cookies with egg wash. Bake until edges are golden and cookies are slightly puffed, 15 to 20 minutes. Let cool on sheets 5 minutes, then transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with remaining dough.

SPARKLING VANILLA CHRISTMAS COOKIES

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.