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 mins
Cook Time10 minutes mins
Royal Icing Dry Time -before writing on cookies3 days d
Total Time40 minutes mins
Course: Desserts & Sweets
Cuisine: American
Keyword: Christmas cookies, Easter sugar cookies, holiday baking, Santa's cookies, Santas Cookies and Milk
Servings: 36
Calories: 201kcal
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
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.
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
Christmas Cookie Design Ideas
- 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.
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