Holiday Cut-Out Cookies
Buttery and light cut-out cookies. Coconut oil is an ingredient that sets them apart. The oil helps the cookies hold their shape, so the baked cut-outs mimic what your cookie cutter was, and keeps the cookies from spreading so much. ?
Servings 5 dozen
Ingredients
COOKIES
- 4 cups [568 g] all-purpose flour plus more for dusting
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ cups [3 sticks or 339 g] unsalted butter at room temperature
- 3 tablespoons refined coconut oil at room temperature
- 1 ¾ cups [350 g] granulated sugar
- 1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
SIMPLE GLAZE
- 2 cups [240 g] confectioners’ sugar
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter melted
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- 3 to 6 tablespoons [45 to 80 g] water
- Food coloring optional
FREEZE-DRIED SUGAR COATING
- 1 cup [200 g] granulated sugar
- 1 to 2 cups [32 to 64 g] freeze-dried berries such as strawberries or raspberries (add more or less depending on how much flavor and vibrant color you want)
Instructions
FOR THE COOKIES
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, mix the butter on medium speed until creamy.
- Add the coconut oil and mix again on medium speed until smooth. Add the granulated sugar and mix again on medium until light and creamy, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the egg, yolk, and vanilla and mix again on low speed until combined. Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until completely combined. Use a spatula to fold in any dry pieces of dough that may be lingering on the bottom of the bowl. Divide the dough in half; it can be used immediately or wrapped in plastic and refrigerated for up to 4 days (let the dough come to room temperature before rolling).
- Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and preheat the oven to 350ºF [180ºC]. Line several sheet pans with parchment paper.
- On a floured surface, roll out the dough somewhere between 1/8 in [4 mm] and ¼ in [6 mm] thick (the thinner the cookie, the crisper it will be, so this will depend on your preference). Use cookie cutters to cut out shapes, then slide a spatula underneath the dough and transfer the shapes to the sheet pans, leaving 1 in [2.5 cm] of space between the cookies. Chill the pans of cookies in the refrigerator for 15 minutes before baking. Dough scraps can be re-rolled and cut out again.
- Bake the cookies, one pan at a time, until cooked through, 12 to 16 minutes. For a softer cookie, bake for 12 minutes; for a crisper cookie, bake longer, until light golden brown around the edges. Place the baking pans on a wire rack and let the cookies cool completely on the pans before icing. Repeat with the remaining cookies.
FOR THE SIMPLE GLAZE
- Place the confectioners’ sugar in a medium bowl. Add the melted butter, vanilla, salt, and 3 tablespoons of water and stir to combine. Add food coloring, if using. If the mixture is very thick, add 1 tablespoon of water at a time until the desired consistency is reached. Spread the glaze over the cooled cookies. Once the glaze is set, cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
FOR THE FREEZE-DRIED SUGAR COATING
- Place the freeze-dried berries and granulated sugar in a food processor, and process until the berries are finely ground and the sugar and berries are combined, about 30 seconds. Sprinkle the tops of the just warm cookies (after baking) with the berry-sugar mixture, gently rubbing it into the surface, and shaking off any excess. The sugar-coated cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Notes
Reprinted from Baking for the Holidays: 50+ Treats for a Festive Season by Sarah Kieffer with permission from Chronicle Books, 2021. Photographs © Sarah Kieffer.
*Throughout my recipes posted on this website, 1 cup of flour equals 142g. Please note that 1 cup of flour can range anywhere from 120g to 142g, depending on the baker or website. I found that after weighting many cups of flour and averaging the total, mine always ended up around this number. If I am posting a recipe from another cookbook, I will use whatever gram measure of flour used in that book, which is why you may see a few posts with a different cup measurement. Different brands of flour have varying levels of protein, ranging from low to high, which can result in very different outcomes when baking. I’ve found Gold Medal all-purpose unbleached flour to be the best option for many of my recipes; I use it in all the baked goods that don’t use yeast. For yeasted doughs that call for all-purpose flour, I like to use King Arthur Brand. If you are using White Lily flour, please note that it is a low protein flour and doesn’t absorb liquid the same as regular all-purpose flours. Check the back of the flour bag for instructions on substituting it for regular all-purpose flours.