PERFECT SHORTCRUST for CHRISTMAS COOKIES
Perfect to serve during the holiday season, to gift or hang on the tree, Christmas cookies are a must in our home!!
Tasty and delicious, they are made with a shortcrust base then cut with classic Christmas cookie cutters: stamps, stars, reindeer, gift boxes, gingerbread men, snowmen, and so on.
Once baked, you can decide to simply dust them with powdered sugar or devour them with royal icing, food coloring, or chocolate glaze.
If you want to make them at home too, after various attempts, I found the recipe for the Perfect Shortcrust for Christmas Cookies!
You’ll bake fantastic cookies, crumbly, fragrant, that no one will resist, just like those from the bakery!
The dough is very simple and does not require any special kitchen tools but is made by hand. As for the cookie cutters, you can use the ones you already have or buy new ones in specialized stores or online (I bought these from Decora).
The small tips for obtaining a perfect shortcrust for Christmas cookies are: let the dough rest in the fridge before cutting to have well-defined shapes even after baking; let them cool completely after baking before decorating. I used red food coloring, but you can use multiple colors. Another important tip is to use thick royal icing and not too runny (I admit mine was a bit because I was in a hurry…).
Follow the recipe, and you’ll be amazed at the result: try them, and you won’t be able to help but love them.
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- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 40 Minutes
- Portions: 50 cookies
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Christmas
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 7 oz butter
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 4 tbsp egg yolks
- 2 tbsp potato starch
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp egg whites
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- food coloring
Tools
- Bowl
- Cookie Cutter
- Baking Sheet
STEPS
In a bowl, mix butter, sugar, and a pinch of salt without overworking the mixture. Add the egg yolks one at a time and mix until absorbed into the dough; finally, add the sifted flour with the starch and knead until you get a smooth and homogeneous mixture. Form a dough ball, wrap it in cling film and let it rest in the fridge for at least 1 hour so the shortcrust hardens.
After the resting time, take the dough ball and knead it quickly to make it elastic again. Using a rolling pin, roll it out to a thickness of about 1/5 inch. Cut the dough with the cookie cutters you have chosen to use and place them on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Bake in a static oven at 350°F for about 10 – 12 minutes. Remove from the oven and let them cool.
In the meantime, prepare the royal icing: mix sugar, egg white, and lemon drops in a bowl trying not to leave lumps. It should thicken a bit; if it’s too runny, add a pinch of powdered sugar otherwise if it’s too thick, just a drop of lemon juice is enough. At this point, you can decide whether to use it white or color it; in the latter case, just add a few drops of food coloring and mix.
Decorate the Christmas cookies. I advise using a pastry bag or preparing cones with parchment paper to decorate more neatly. To decorate the cookies, place them on a spacious workspace and let your creativity run wild. If you are not skilled manually, I suggest using cutters that leave a sort of groove on the cookies and follow the design. Allow the chocolate used for decoration to harden and then place them on a serving plate or in a classic cookie tin, perhaps even with cupcake liners!
NOTES
The butter should not be too soft; remove it from the fridge 10 minutes before kneading.
If you’re short on time and want to quickly rest and cool the shortcrust, divide it into rectangular dough pieces already at the right thickness and then put them in the fridge; they will absorb the cold faster and harden in no time.
For more fragrant and aromatic Christmas cookies, you can add grated lemon or orange zest to the dough.
When decorating Christmas cookies, if you decide to use different colors, I recommend starting with white, let it dry completely (about 45/60 minutes), then add new colored elements.
FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
Why let the shortcrust rest?
It needs to rest in the refrigerator after mixing because this way it stabilizes and prevents breaking or irregular edges during baking.
How long can shortcrust pastry be kept in the fridge?
Shortcrust pastry can be stored in the refrigerator for 3-4 days. Alternatively, it can be frozen for up to 1 month.
How to roll out shortcrust pastry evenly?
To roll out the shortcrust pastry evenly, use rolling pin spacers.
How long can homemade cookies be stored?
Homemade cookies, if stored in a cool and dry place, last up to 3 weeks when kept in airtight glass or tin containers.
