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+ servings
A collage of Christmas cookies decorated for Santa including one with a kids wish list on a mug of milk.
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5 from 1 vote

Santa's Cookies Recipe

Kids write their wish list on decorated Christmas cookies with edible ink. This recipe for Santa's Cookies and Milk includes step-by-step instructions. Ho Ho Ho! *plan ahead, these take 2-3 days for the icing to dry before writing on the cookies.
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time10 minutes
Royal Icing Dry Time -before writing on cookies3 days
Total Time40 minutes
Course: Desserts & Sweets
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Christmas cookies, Easter sugar cookies, holiday baking, Santa's cookies, Santas Cookies and Milk
Servings: 36
Calories: 201kcal

Ingredients

Cookie Recipe

  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup butter softened
  • 1 large egg or EggBeaters work perfectly!
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 tablespoons orange juice freshly squeezed from an orange
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

Royal Icing Recipe

  • 2 pounds powdered sugar
  • 5 tablespoons meringue powder order online
  • dash vanilla clear preferred
  • 1 cup (scant) warm water
  • Icing Colors red and green

Instructions

Baking

  • In a large mixing bowl or with an electric hand mixer, or stand electric mixer, add sugar and softened butter. Mix until combined at low speed.
  • Next add egg, baking powder, orange juice, vanilla, and flour. Mix until all the dry ingredients are well combined.
  • Wrap dough in plastic food wrap and chill until firm 1-2 hours.
  • On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to ¼ thickness.
  • Use a square shape cutter (I used a top from a food container) cut out the square. Next, using an icing decorating tip, cut a small hole in the corner of the cookie for the straw. Place on a parchment-lined prepared baking sheet at least 1-2 inches apart.
  • Bake in preheated oven at 400 degrees f, and bake 10-12 minutes until edges are lightly browned.
  • Cool completely before decorating.

Royal Icing

  • Place all ingredients into the large bowl of a mixer and whip on slow for 10 minutes.
  • Keep finished icing covered with saran wrap or damp kitchen towel to keep from drying out.
  • Leftover icing can be frozen and used later.

Decorating

  • Fill a small pastry bag fitted with a small tip, and pipe a line around the edge of the cookie. Next, flood or fill in the center, and use a small thin skewer to fill in the icing.
  • PRO TIPS: At this point, let the cookies dry at least 2-3 days completely before writing the wish list on the cookies for Santa. Place on a sheet pan in the oven with only the light on.
  • Once cookies are dry and icing is rock hard, use colored edible markers and use a ruler to make the lines that look like a piece of paper, use a blue and red pens for this step. Do this part for small children, then let them write the wish list.
  • And now the best part, have children write their wish list to Santa on the cookies, place on a mug of milk, add a cute red and white straw and wait for Santa's visit!
  • Decorate other cookies with colored icing and sprinkles.

Notes

plan ahead

The royal icing takes 2-3 days for the icing to dry before writing on the cookies. 

supplies

  • Parchment paper
  • square cookie cutter (or food container top)
  • small icing tip
  • Wilton Edible Color Markers (craft stores/online - Edible ink pens are easy to find in local craft stores, they are designed to write on cookies!)
  • ruler
  • small skewer
  • plastic pastry bags
  • assorted sprinkles and food colors for decorating 
Royal Icing Top Drying Tips
PRO TIP: The best way to dry cookies is to place them on a parchment lined prepared cookie sheet in the oven with only the oven light on.
  • Or place them on a parchment-lined sheet pan on the kitchen counter.
  • Don't put them in the fridge, the icing won't dry, and they get too soft.
  • The royal icing actually helps keep the cookies the right soft texture as it dries.
  • Humidity plays a role in how fast the icing dries and will vary depending on where you live and the weather the day you bake.
  • Place a fan near the cookies to speed up the drying process
  • For the "wish list" cookie, use a blue and red marker to create a piece of paper list, then black to write the list.
  • Use red and white to create a peppermint candy swirl design, and top it with some clear sugar sparkling sprinkles.
  • Make little gift packages, add some cute dots, and a big red bow.
  • Draw alternating lines of red and green, and drag the skewer through to create a fun design that looks like connected hearts.
  • Create holly and berries with dots of red and make green holly leaves.

Nutrition

Calories: 201kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 18mg | Sodium: 55mg | Potassium: 31mg | Sugar: 30g | Vitamin A: 165IU | Vitamin C: 0.5mg | Calcium: 9mg | Iron: 0.5mg