Christmas Tree Cookies

It's taken me a while to get in the Christmas baking spirit this year.  But it is time and I thought I would start off with a family favorite.  These delicious festive Sugar Cookies have been a tradition in our house for many years now and are a great project to do with the kids.

Cookie Dough

170g / 6oz sugar
170g / 6oz butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
400g / 14oz plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Coloured Cookie Dough for Decoration

55g / 2oz butter
55g / 2oz icing sugar
170g / 6oz plain flour
6 tblspoons milk
green, red and yellow food colouring

Method:

In a large bowl, combine sugar, butter vanilla and egg; beat until light and fluffy.  Add flour, baking powder and salt; mix until well blended.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.

While the Cookie Dough is in the refrigerator, in a small bowl, combine icing sugar and butter and mix well.  Add flour and milk and mix until blended.  Dough will need to be thin enough to be piped with a decorators bag so if it is too thick add a bit more milk.  Seperate dough and colour 1/2 of the dough green, 1/4 of the dough red and 1/4 of the dough yellow.  Spoon coloured dough into decorators bags fitted with a round piping nozzle.  I've used tip number 3 for mine.  If you don't have decorators bags you can use a resealable sandwhich bag and just snip a small hole in the tip to pipe the dough.

Heat oven to 175C /350F / Gas Mark 4

Roll dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/8" thick.  Cut with Tree Cookie Cutters.  Decorate with Coloured Cookie Dough.  Bake until Cookies start to turn lightly Golden.  I was using a large cookie cutter and this took about 10 - 12 minutes for mine.  For smaller cookies  it may take less time.  I would suggest you start to check them after 7 minutes.