Christmas Slice And Bake Cookies Recipes

Steps:

• For the cookie dough: Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl.
• Add the butter and granulated sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed, scraping down the bowl at least once, until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the vanilla and 1 egg and beat to combine. Add the dry ingredients and beat on low speed until incorporated. Scrape down the bowl and continue to beat for 30 seconds.
• Remove 1/3 cup of the dough to a small bowl. Add about 1/4 teaspoon black food coloring and stir to combine. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until slightly firm, about 30 minutes.
• Add about 1/2 teaspoon red food coloring to the dough remaining in the bowl of the stand mixer. Mix on medium speed until combined, about 1 minute, scraping down the bowl at least once. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until slightly firm, about 30 minutes.
• Place the red dough on a lightly floured clean work surface and roll it into a 7-inch log with a 2-inch diameter. Wrap with plastic wrap and place back in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
• Place the black dough on a lightly floured clean work surface and roll or flatten it into a 7-by-2-inch rectangle, 1/4-inch thick. Wrap with plastic wrap and place on a baking sheet and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
• Whisk together the remaining egg with 1 tablespoon water in a small bowl for the egg wash.
• Remove both doughs from the refrigerator. Slice the red log in half lengthwise. Lightly brush the flat end of one half with egg wash. Place the black dough onto it to adhere. Lightly brush the flat end of the other red half with egg wash and place it on top of the black dough. (If the dough softens and becomes difficult to work with, simply place it in the refrigerator for 10 minutes.) Wrap the log with plastic wrap and lightly roll it back and forth to round out the sides. Refrigerate the log for 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Trim about 1/4 inch from each end of the log to reveal an even and flat Santa. Cut the log into 24 equal slices that are about 1/4-inch thick. Make sure to clean the knife after each slice for a clean cut so the colors won't bleed on each other. (If the log softens and becomes difficult to work with, simply place it in the refrigerator for 10 minutes.)
• Arrange 12 cookies evenly on each prepared baking sheet. Bake until the edges are lightly golden, rotating the baking sheet halfway through, 14 to 17 minutes. Let cool completely on the baking sheets.
• For the royal icing: Add the confectioners' sugar, meringue powder and 1 tablespoon water to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat on high for 1 minute, scraping down the sides as needed. If the icing is too thick, add 1 more teaspoon of water and beat until combined. Transfer to a small pastry bag fitted with a small round tip (size 4).
• Pipe a white collar on the top half of the cookie. Sprinkle it with white sprinkles. Pipe buttons on the red coat and the black belt. Pipe a square buckle in the middle of the black belt.

Steps:

• Make the cookies: Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Beat in 1 egg and the vanilla until incorporated. Reduce the mixer speed to low; add the flour mixture and beat until just combined.
• Turn out all but 1/4 cup of the dough onto a floured surface. Add 3 drops orange food coloring to the dough left in the bowl and mix on low until evenly colored a vibrant orange. Flatten the orange dough into a disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate until just firm, about 20 minutes.
• Wipe the mixing bowl and paddle clean and add 3/4 cup of the remaining uncolored dough back into the bowl. Add 4 drops black food coloring and mix on low until evenly colored a deep black. Form the black dough into a rectangle, wrap in plastic and refrigerate until just firm, about 20 minutes.
• Make the penguin's body: Roll the remaining uncolored dough into a cylinder 9- to 10-inches long and about 1 1/2-inches wide. Wrap in plastic and set aside at room temperature.
• Divide the orange dough into 3 equal pieces (these will be the feet and the nose). Roll into 3 ropes, 9- to 10-inches long and about 1/3-inch wide. Press one rope into a triangle shape by flattening the sides (a ruler is helpful for this). Wrap the orange pieces separately in plastic and freeze until hard, about 15 minutes.
• Slice through the uncolored cylinder lengthwise to make 2 long half-moons. Brush both halves on the cut side with the egg wash. Press the orange triangle rope down the center of the cut side of one of the halves. Cover with the other half and press together to seal and re-form into a cylinder.
• Make the black part of the penguin's body: On a floured surface, use a rolling pin to roll the black dough into a 1/4-inch thick 9-by-4-inch rectangle, with the long side facing you. Use the rolling pin to flatten each of the long sides out 1 inch more so that the edges are thinner and the rectangle mounds in the center. The rectangle should be 9 by 6 inches. Brush the black rectangle with the egg wash then wrap it around the uncolored cylinder, pushing with your hands to adhere the doughs. There will be a thicker layer of black dough on top of the cylinder (the penguin's head) and a thinner layer on the bottom.
• Adhere the feet: Brush the thinner, bottom part of the black dough with egg wash and press the 2 thin orange ropes along the length of the dough about 1/4 inch apart (these will be the feet). Wrap in plastic and use the heels of your hands to form the log into an egg shape; the head should be the narrow end. Freeze until solid, about 2 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment.
• Cut 1/4 inch off each end of the cylinder with a very sharp knife to reveal the penguin face. Slice the cylinder into about 1/4-inch-thick cookies. Arrange the slices about 1 1/2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake, rotating the pans halfway through, until crisp and just starting to turn brown on the bottom, 10 to 12 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.
• Line another baking sheet with parchment. Melt the red candy melts in a small glass bowl in the microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring in between, until completely melted and smooth. Dip the top of each penguin's head in the red candy melts to make a hat; dip the heads slightly off-center for a jaunty look. Put the cookies on the prepared baking sheet. Stick a marshmallow on the center of each hat for a pompom and let the candy melts harden, about 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, melt the white candy melts in a glass bowl in the microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring in between each, until completely melted and smooth. Transfer to a small resealable plastic bag and seal. Cut a very small hole in one of the corners of the bag and decorate the hat as desired. Use the white candy melts to attach 2 mini chips for the eyes. Let the candy melts harden completely before serving, about 15 minutes.

Steps:

• In medium bowl, beat butter, sugar, vanilla and egg with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Stir in flour and salt until dough forms.
• Divide dough into 3 parts. Into 1 part of dough, mix chocolate and walnuts. Mix cherries into another part of dough. Into remaining part of dough, mix poppy seed.
• Line 9x5-inch loaf pan with plastic wrap, leaving 1 inch of plastic wrap overhanging at 2 opposite sides of pan. Spread poppy seed dough evenly in bottom of pan. Spread chocolate-walnut dough over poppy seed dough. Spread cherry dough over chocolate-walnut dough. Cover; refrigerate at least 2 hours until chilled.
• Heat oven to 375°F. Using plastic wrap, lift dough from pan. Cut dough lengthwise in half. Cut crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices. On ungreased cookie sheets, place slices 1 inch apart.
• Bake about 10 minutes or until light brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks.