I had the honor of developing 3 festive recipes for the 2019 Holiday Cookies issue of Bake From Scratch magazine. These Vanilla Sugar Cookie Trees with Cream Cheese Frosting, my Orange Currant Oatmeal Cookies and my Salted Hazelnut Chocolate Maple Rum Bars! I poured a whole lot of love into each recipe and seeing them come to life in the pages of Bake From Scratch magazine was a holiday dream come true. Turning the pages of a physical book or magazine is a joy that simply can't be matched by scrolling the internet.
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Before we get into this, I'm gonna let you know right now that decorating these Vanilla Sugar Cookie Trees with Cream Cheese Frosting takes some serious time. These cookies are a project. But, I've got alternative decorating ideas that will make things move a whole lot faster if you're short on time.
Start with a simple sugar cookie base
The dough gets a double dose of vanilla from both vanilla extract and the faint speckle of a freshly split vanilla bean. Don't worry if you don't have a vanilla bean, you can double down on the vanilla extract. The vanilla comes through beautifully in these cookies and tastes like a true and nostalgic, holiday sugar cookies. Plus, the dough rolls out like a dream, cuts easily and holds its shape with perfectly crisp edges when baked into cookies. All of the things you want in a solid sugar cookie recipe.
Pro Tip: When mixing the dough, be sure to beat the heck out of the sugar and butter
You want it super light and fluffy. This will help the cookies keep sharp edges when baking. Freeze the cut cookies and bake from frozen for best results.
Get ahead: freeze the sugar cookie dough
Get a jump start on your holiday baking!
Pro Tip: You can mix up the dough, roll out and cut your trees and store them in the freezer. Then, bake them up on decorating day.
The cookies get dressed in their holiday best with a festive flourish of wintergreen hued frosting in a dazzling mini star design. The pointillism style frosting of these Vanilla Sugar Cookie Trees makes them a labor of love. It takes time to adorn each cookie with dozens of tiny star dots. But, it's easier and much more forgiving that trying to flood the cookies with a more intricate and detailed decoration. This style really takes more time than it takes skill. My suggestion, put on your favorite holiday movie or two, recruit a family member or friend to help and watch movies while you work. It's a nice way to spend a Sunday in December, and shows that you truly poured your heart your baking.
Ideas for faster decorating
- You can use a larger tip. Here I've used a Wilton No. 16 or 18 Open Star Tip. Switch it up to a larger size tip and you'll power through much quicker. Or meet in the middle and mix up the sizes.
- Skip the tips altogether and just smear that frosting on in a big swoopy mess like I do with my Big Pink Cookies. They still taste just as great but save you some serious time.
- If you go for the swoop method, add some holiday sprinkles for a festive touch.
- If you don't want to mess with multiple colors, keep it simple and just add a single color.
- If you want variation in color, mix up 3 separate colors and frost the cookies in the different colorways for variation, using the simple swoop method. Or even add a little of each color to each cookie and then drag an offset spatula across the top for an ombre effect.
Cookies are a perfect gift
This time of year I put extra effort into my baked goods because I give them as gifts to my friends and family. These Vanilla Sugar Cookie Trees with Cream Cheese Frosting are a gorgeous gift that will warm the hearts and holidays of your loved ones. I encourage you to share the love by giving the gift of beautiful home-baked cookies this year.
📖 Recipe
Plate of Vanilla Sugar Cookie Trees with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Total Time: 2 hours 42 minutes
- Yield: 24 cookies
Description
The simple sugar cookie base starts with a double dose of vanilla, then the cookies get dressed in their holiday best with a festive flourish of wintergreen frosting in a dazzling mini star design.
Ingredients
VANILLA SUGAR COOKIE TREES
- 1 cup unsalted butter (- at room temperature)
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- 1 whole vanilla bean (split lengthwise, seeds scraped and reserved)
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 ⅓ cup all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe follows)
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1 cup cream cheese (softened)
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter (- at room temperature)
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 3 ½ cups powdered sugar (- sifted)
- Green and blue natural food coloring
Instructions
VANILLA SUGAR COOKIE TREES
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter, sugar, and and reserved vanilla seeds at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 5 to 7 minutes, stopping to scrape sides of bowl. With mixer on medium-low speed, add vanilla, beating to combine.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour and sea salt. With mixer on low speed, gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture, beating until incorporated. Turn out dough onto a floured surface, and divide in half. Shape each half into a disk, and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Let dough stand at room temperature until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Roll dough to about 1⁄4-inch thickness. Using a3- to 4-inch tree-shaped cutter, cut dough, rerolling scraps as necessary. Line baking sheets with parchment paper, and place cookies 1 to 2 inches apart on prepared pans. Freeze or refrigerate for at least 1 to 2 hours.
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Bake until cookies just start to turn golden brown around the edges, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool on pans or wire racks.
- Divide Cream Cheese Frosting among 3 small bowls. For light green color, add 1 drop of green food coloring to first bowl, and stir until combined. For medium green color, add 3 drops green food coloring to second bowl. Stir until combined. For minty blue color, add 3 drops green food coloring and 1 drop blue coloring the third bowl. Stir until combined.
- Place one-third of each frosting in a piping bag fitted with a small open star tip (Wilton No. 16 or No. 18). Refrigerate in piping bags for at least 20 minutes. (Cover remaining frosting in bowls with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to use.)
- To decorate cookies, hold frosting bag straight up, with tip just slightly above surface. Squeeze bag, and use light pressure to form a small star; add more pressure to make a bigger star. Stop squeezing before pulling tip away. Using one color at a time, cover cookie with stars; fill in with other colors. Repeat with remaining cookies and remaining frosting. (If frosting gets too warm, the stars will not hold their shape. You may need to place the piping bags in the refrigerator for a few minutes to chill the frosting a few times throughout the decorating process.)
- Alternatively, skip the tips and smear thick swirls of frosting on each cookie with an offset spatula. Then add festive sprinkles if you'd like!
- Store decorated cookies in refrigerator. Remove from refrigerator 1 to 2 hours before serving.
Cream Cheese Frosting
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat cream cheese, butter, and vanilla at medium speed, 1 to 2 minutes, until smooth. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating until thick and creamy. Use immediately.
Notes
*Get a jump start on your holiday baking by making the dough ahead of time. You can mix up the dough, roll out and cut your trees, then store them in the freezer, in an airtight baggie for up to 2 months. Bake straight from the freezer on decorating day. When baking from frozen, cookies may need an additional minute or two to fully bake.
*Don't worry if you don't have a vanilla bean, you can double down on the vanilla extract.
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
[…] 3 festive recipes for the 2019 Holiday Cookies issue of Bake From Scratch magazine. Along with my Vanilla Sugar Cookie Trees with Cream Cheese Frosting and my Salted Hazelnut Chocolate Maple Rum Bars! They are inspired by the nostalgic Iced Oatmeal […]