18 - 20candiescinnamon or red mini candy-coated chocolate
1/2cupmini marshmallows
Instructions
In a large mixing bowl, mix powdered sugar, butter, vanilla extract, almond extract and egg. Stir flour and baking powder together and add to wet ingredients. Mix until just combined then flatten the dough into a disc. Wrap the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Unwrap the dough and roll out on a lightly floured surface about ¼" thick.
Cut as many stars as possible from the dough, dipping the cookie cutter in flour before cutting each cookie. Remove the scraps then transfer the stars onto prepared cookie sheets. Shape the scraps into a cohesive ball, add more dough then continue to roll and cut until no dough remains.
Prior to baking, bend one tip of each star over slightly to form Santa’s hat. Bake each batch of cookies 7–8 minutes then allow them to cool completely before decorating.
To decorate, coat the top of each cookie completely in white icing. Don’t worry about making it smooth—the more swoops and swirls the better! Sprinkle or dip the ‘hat’ in red sugar crystals, being careful not to get any on other areas. Use a butter knife to scrape the icing from a small area under the hat for Santa’s face.
Place 2 small dots of black gel icing in the area where the icing has been removed then place a red candy on the face to form a nose. Add a small dab of white icing to one side of a mini marshmallow and place it on the end of the hat to make a pom-pom. Repeat with all remaining cookies. Enjoy!
Notes
After you make the dough, allow it to chill in the fridge before you cut out your cookies!