Poinsettia Pull Apart Cookies

Submitted by Arlyn Osborne

"Dazzle at your next holiday party with this show-stopping cookie display! These buttery almond shortbread cookies are easy to whip up and surprisingly simple to arrange into a beautiful poinsettia."

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Ready In:: 2hrs 15mins
Ingredients:: 11
Serves:: 15

ingredients

1 cup unsalted butter, softened
6 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
6 tablespoons granulated sugar
¹⁄₂ tablespoon almond extract
2 ¹⁄₂ cups flour
gel food coloring, leaf green
gel food coloring, Christmas red
coarse sanding sugar, green
fine sanding sugar, red
decorating icing, yellow
sanding sugar, yellow

directions

Beat butter in standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment until creamy. Add confectioners’ sugar and beat. ?Add granulated sugar and beat. Scrape down sides. Add almond extract and beat. Add flour in two additions, beat until combined after each addition.
Transfer 2 tablespoons of dough to a small bowl.
Transfer ½ cup of dough to another bowl and color green with gel food coloring using a small spatula.
Add ¼ teaspoon of red gel coloring to remaining dough in stand mixer and beat on low until combined.
Roll out all the dough to about ¼ each thick between two sheets of parchment. Chill in refrigerator at least 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350 F and line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper.
Cut a 2-inch round from the plain uncolored dough. Transfer to prepared baking sheet.
Cut 6 leaves with a large leaf cutter from the green dough. Transfer to the same baking sheet as the 2-inch round. Top the green leaves with coarse green sanding sugar. ?Chill for at least 30 minutes.
Cut 17 leaves with a large cutter from the red dough. Transfer to prepared baking sheet. Make a crease in center with a skewer. Sprinkle 8 with fine red sanding sugar. Chill at least 30 minute.
Cut 5 leaves with a small leaf cutter from the remaining red dough, rolling out again if needed. Transfer to prepared baking sheet. Make a crease in center with a skewer. Chill at least 30 minutes.
Transfer chilled baking sheets to oven and bake for 13-15 minutes. Let cool completely.
Spread yellow decorating frosting over the uncolored round cookie with a small offset spatula. Dip in yellow sanding sugar to coat.
To arrange the cookies on a large platter, work from the outside inches First, place the green cookies evenly spaced around the border. Then place the large plain red leaves in between the green leaves. Next add the large red sugared cookies, slightly overlapping the layer of the plain red leaves. Add in the small red leaves slightly overlapping the layer of large red sugared leaves. Finally, add the round yellow cookie in the center.
Tools:
For large leaves: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B074P6BRKM/.
For small leaves: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B010L79FOI/ (use the largest of this set).
For the flower center: https://www.amazon.com/OUNONA-Circle-Cookie-Biscuit-Cutter/dp/B077RX5JXB/.

Questions & Replies

Where did you find the leaf cookie cutters used for the poinsettia cookie?

Judi S.
Can I use something other than almond extract?

lisa_dupuisx3
What is the size of the plate beneath the flower?

circekitty
What size are the leaf cutters?

Kate R.

Reviews

I really enjoyed making these cookies. Directions were right on! And the best part,,,delicious!

Anonymous

Tweaks

I made a smaller 1” cookie in the center that I placed on top of the 2” cookie. I decorated the lower cookie with green icing dipped in green sugar, then used it to secure and center the base layer. The snaller cookie was decorated with green icing, yellow sugar, and white pearls sprayed lightly with yellow. Then the whole center cookie was sprayed lightly with red
Britt B.