INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
11/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup vanilla frosting
6 to 8 drops green food coloring
1/2 pkg (9.9 oz pkg) M&M’S Holiday variety
DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Using electric mixer, beat butter with sugar for about 3 minutes or until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. In separate bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt; gradually beat into butter mixture until just combined.
2. Transfer to lightly floured work surface; knead gently until dough comes together and is smooth. Divide dough into 2 discs.
3. Roll out each disc to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut out 24 medium-size stars and 24 small-size stars. Arrange each size of cutouts on separate parchment paper–lined baking sheet.
4. Bake medium-size stars for 7 to 8 minutes and small-size stars for 6 to 7 minutes or until bottoms are lightly golden brown. Let cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes. Transfer to racks; let cool completely.
5. Stir frosting with food coloring until desired color is achieved; spread over each cookie. Stack 1 small and 1 medium cookie together, offsetting star points to resemble a Christmas tree.
6. Decorate with M&M’S to resemble ornaments. Store in airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Tips:
• Don’t add too much food coloring to the frosting, as this will cause the frosting to thin out and won’t allow it to spread or set well.
• Keep dough cutouts refrigerated on trays while waiting to go in the oven to bake; this will ensure that the cookies don’t spread too much or lose their shape.
