Description
Festive Christmas Santa Suit Sugar Cookies bring holiday cheer to your cookie plate with playful red and white decorations. Sweet sugar cookie base becomes a delightful canvas for jolly santa outfit designs that capture winter magic.
Ingredients
Scale
Main Ingredients:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
Flavor Enhancers:
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
Decorating Ingredients:
- 3 cups powdered sugar (for Royal Icing)
- 2–3 tablespoons meringue powder
- 4–5 tablespoons water (adjust as needed)
- Red gel food coloring
- Red sanding sugar
- White sanding sugar
- Pink & black nonpareils (for cheeks & eyes)
- Small red candies or mini M&Ms (Santa’s nose)
- Piping bags with small round tips
Instructions
- Whip softened butter and granulated sugar in a large mixing bowl until the mixture becomes airy and pale, approximately 2-3 minutes using an electric mixer.
- Incorporate the egg, along with vanilla and almond extracts, blending until thoroughly integrated.
- In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt, creating a uniform dry mixture.
- Gradually fold the dry ingredients into the butter mixture, mixing until a cohesive dough forms without overmixing.
- Divide the dough into two equal portions, wrap each tightly in plastic film, and refrigerate for a minimum of 60 minutes to firm up.
- Heat the oven to 350°F and prepare baking sheets with parchment paper for easy cookie removal.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out the chilled dough to a quarter-inch thickness, ensuring even distribution.
- Use Santa-themed cookie cutters to shape the dough, transferring delicate cutouts carefully onto prepared baking sheets.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes until cookie edges develop a subtle golden hue, watching carefully to prevent over-browning.
- Transfer cookies to a wire cooling rack, allowing them to reach room temperature completely.
- Prepare royal icing by whisking powdered sugar, meringue powder, and water until achieving a smooth, spreadable consistency.
- Separate icing into portions and tint one section vibrant red for Santa’s hat decoration.
- Fill piping bags with colored icings, preparing for precise cookie embellishment.
- Outline and fill Santa’s hat area with red icing, immediately sprinkling with red sanding sugar for textural effect.
- Create beard and hat trim using white icing, enhancing with white sanding sugar for dimension.
- Strategically place pink and black nonpareils to represent cheeks and eyes, adding a small red candy as Santa’s nose.
- Optional: Add a delicate white icing smile to complete the festive character.
- Allow decorated cookies to dry completely at room temperature, ensuring icing sets firmly before storing or serving.
Notes
- Chill Dough Thoroughly to prevent spreading and maintain crisp cookie shapes during baking.
- Use Precise Measurements for consistent texture, especially when working with delicate sugar cookie cutouts.
- Rotate Baking Sheets halfway through cooking to ensure even golden edges and prevent uneven browning.
- Adapt Decorating Techniques by using different piping tips for more intricate Santa facial details and smoother icing application.
- Prep Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Desserts, Snacks
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 24
- Calories: 150 kcal
- Sugar: 14 g
- Sodium: 45 mg
- Fat: 8 g
- Saturated Fat: 5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3 g
- Trans Fat: 0.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 20 g
- Fiber: 0.4 g
- Protein: 1.5 g
- Cholesterol: 20 mg