Stained Glass Cutouts Recipes

STAINED-GLASS SUGAR COOKIES

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar on medium-high until light and fluffy, 3 minutes. Add egg yolks and vanilla and beat to combine. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture and beat to combine. Form dough into 2 disks, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. Working with 1 disk at a time, roll out dough between floured parchment paper to 1/8-inch thickness. Stack dough in parchment on a baking sheet; refrigerate until firm, 30 minutes. With a 2 1/2-inch Christmas-ball-shaped cutter, cut out dough (reroll scraps, if desired). Place cookies, 1 inch apart, on two parchment-lined baking sheets. With a 1-inch star cutter, cut out dough in center of each cookie. Bake until cookies are pale but set, 8 to 10 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Remove sheets from oven; fill cutouts with crushed candy. Bake until cookies begin to brown at edges and candy is melted, 3 minutes. Let cool completely on sheets on wire racks.

STAINED GLASS COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with silicone baking mats.
• On a clean work surface, dust with flour and roll the sugar cookie dough to 1/4-inch to 1/2-inch thick.
• Using your large Christmas tree or snowflake cutter, cut out shapes and place onto a prepared baking sheet. Re-roll the excess dough to repeat this process until you have used all the dough.
• While on the silicone mat, use the smaller cookie cutters to cut out shapes from the centers of the cookies.
• Place the hard candies into resealable plastic bags and crush using a hammer or the rolling pin until they are almost a dust; you want the pieces to be small enough to fit in your cutouts.
• Sprinkle the crushed hard candy into the cutouts you made in the center of each cookie; be careful not to get any on the top of the cookie. Fill each hole two-thirds of the way.
• If you are planning to use these as ornaments, make a smaller hole towards the top of the cookie using a wooden skewer.
• Bake the cookies until just golden brown around the edges, 10 to 15 minutes; the candy should be melted and bubbling in the center. Allow to cool completely on the pan before attempting to move.
• While cooling, place your royal icing into a pastry bag with a coupler and a decorating tip. Decorate the tops of the cookies with the royal icing. Allow to dry completely before moving.