Stained Glass Trees Recipes

STAINED GLASS TREES

Steps:

• Sift together flour, salt, and baking powder into a large bowl; set aside.
• Put butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add egg; mix until smooth, 1 minute. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture, and mix until combined. Stir in vanilla.Wrap dough in plastic, and refrigerate until cold, about 45 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. Roll out chilled dough on a well-floured surface to a little more than 1/8 inch thick. Cut out shapes using a 5-inch tree-shape cookie cutter. Using a metal spatula, space 2 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Using the tip of a paring knife, make a triangular cutout in center of each cookie for candy filling. Reroll scraps, and cut.
• Sprinkle candy in a single layer in hole of each cookie, avoiding edges of triangle. Refrigerate until dough is firm, about 15 minutes.
• Bake cookies until candy has melted and completely filled cutout and cookie edges are just starting to turn pale golden brown, 11 to 12 minutes. Do not let the cookies brown, or the candy centers may become bubbly. Let cool completely on sheets on wire racks. Use a metal spatula to remove cookies from parchment.

STAINED-GLASS CHRISTMAS TREE COOKIES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Place each color candy in separate resealable freezer plastic bag; seal bag. With rolling pin, coarsely crush candy; set aside.
• In large bowl, beat butter and sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Beat in corn syrup, vanilla and lemon extract. On low speed, gradually beat in flour, baking powder and salt.
• Divide dough in half. On floured cloth-covered work surface, roll each half to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut dough with 3-inch Christmas tree-shaped cookie cutter. Cut out and remove several smaller dough shapes from each cookie. Place tree shapes 2 inches apart on cookie sheets. If desired, reroll small cutouts with remaining dough. Fill each hole in tree shapes with about 1/2 teaspoon crushed candy.
• Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until edges are light golden brown and candy is melted. Place cookie sheets on cooling racks; cool cookies 8 minutes. With back of metal pancake turner, gently lift warm cookies from foil; place on cooling racks. Cool completely, about 15 minutes, before storing in loosely covered containers.

STAINED-GLASS ORNAMENTS

Steps:

• 1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. Set aside.
• 2. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy. Add the sugar and molasses and beat for 2 minutes. Beat in the water. On low speed, beat in the flour mixture until a soft dough forms.
• 3. Gather the dough into a ball and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour or up to overnight.
• 4. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line cookie sheets with aluminum foil.
• 5. Divide the dough into thirds. Divide each third into 10 equal pieces. Using your palms, roll each piece on a lightly floured work surface into a rope 1/4 to 1/2 inch in diameter. Gently trace the design of your choice onto the prepared cookie sheets (a wooden spoon handle or chopstick works well for tracing on foil). Outline each design with a rope of dough, pressing the ends together to seal securely.
• 6. Sprinkle the inside of each design with the crushed candies, dividing the candies evenly among the outlined designs and creating an even layer.
• 7. Bake in the center of the oven or until the edges of the cookies are golden and the candy has melted, 6 to 9 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheets on wire racks until the candy hardens, about 5 minutes. Gently peel the foil away from the cookies and transfer to the racks to cool completely.

STAINED GLASS TREES

Steps:

• Sift together flour, salt, and baking powder into a bowl.
• Put butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add egg; mix until smooth, 1 minute. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture, and mix until combined. Stir in vanilla. Wrap dough in plastic, and refrigerate until cold, about 45 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 325°F with racks in upper and lower thirds. Roll out chilled dough on a well-floured surface to a little more than 1/8 inch thick. Cut out shapes using a 5-inch tree-shape cookie cutter. Using a metal spatula, transfer shapes to baking sheets lined with parchment paper, spacing 2 inches apart. Using the tip of a paring knife, make a triangular cutout in center of each cookie for candy filling. Reroll scraps, and cut.
• Sprinkle candy in a single layer in hole of each cookie, avoiding edges of triangle. Refrigerate until dough is firm, about 15 minutes.
• Bake cookies until candy has melted and completely filled cutout and cookie edges are just starting to turn pale golden brown, 11 to 12 minutes. Do not let the cookies brown, or the candy centers may become bubbly. Let cool completely on sheets on wire racks. Use a metal spatula to remove cookies from parchment. Cookies can be stored in airtight containers at room temperature up to 5 days.
• How to makes Stained Glass Trees
• Use a paring knife to cut out a triangular center from each tree; fill each triangle with a single layer of chopped candies. Keep the pieces a slight distance from the edge of the triangle, as the heat of the oven will melt the candy, and it will spread. Midway through baking, quickly open the oven door and check for any little holes in the "glass"; use a toothpick to fill them in.