Name: Slice-and-Bake Christmas Tree Cookies
Cook time: P0Y0M0DT2H30M0.000S
Total time: P0Y0M0DT4H30M0.000S
Yield: 24 to 28 cookies
Ingredients: 3 cups all-purpose flour (see Cook’s Note); 2 teaspoons baking powder; 1/4 teaspoon fine salt; 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature; 1 cup granulated sugar; 1 large egg, lightly beaten; 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste; Forest green gel food coloring; 1/2 cup pink candy melting wafers; 1/2 cup light-green candy melting wafers; 1/2 cup brown candy melting wafers; 24 to 28 small gold star sprinkles

Directions

Special equipment:

a 1-inch triangle cookie cutter; 3 disposable piping bags

For the cookie dough: Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a medium bowl and set aside. Cream the butter and granulated sugar together with an electric mixer until creamy and slightly lighter in color, about 3 minutes. Gradually add the beaten egg, followed by the vanilla, mixing well and scraping down the sides of the bowl to ensure everything is incorporated. Slowly add the dry ingredients and mix until the dough just comes together. Avoid overmixing.
Remove two-thirds of the dough, wrap in plastic and set aside. To the remaining dough in the bowl, mix in a few drops of the forest green gel until you have an even Christmas-tree color throughout.
Roll the green dough out between layers of parchment paper until it is about 1/2-inch thick. Use a 1-inch triangle cookie cutter to cut out as many triangles as you can. Stack the triangles neatly on top of each other to make 2 logs, each approximately 7 to 8 inches long; gently press the triangles together so there are no gaps between each.
Place the triangle stacks onto a parchment-lined baking tray, lightly cover with plastic wrap and freeze for 30 minutes. (Chilling the stacks helps them hold their shape when they’re rolled with the other dough.) Meanwhile, leave the uncolored dough at room temperature so it stays soft and is easier to wrap around the chilled logs.
Cut the plain dough into 4 equal pieces. Place a piece of the plain dough between 2 sheets of parchment and roll out to a rectangle about 1/4-inch thick and approximately the same length as a triangle log and wide enough to wrap around it. Trim the edges for a straight finish.
Place one chilled triangle log along one long edge of the rectangle (keep the other green triangle log in the freezer). Using the parchment paper to help lift the dough, gently roll it around the triangle, pressing lightly so the dough sticks together and seals the seam. Smooth the seam with your fingers.
Roll a second rectangle of plain dough, slightly larger than the first, and wrap it around the log again. (Wrapping the triangles twice provides enough plain dough so the slices bake into a nice round cookie with the tree sitting neatly in the center.) Gently roll the log on your work surface until it’s smooth and seamless. The aim is to have an even thickness of plain dough surrounding the triangles on all sides. Repeat with the remaining green triangle stack and remaining uncolored dough.
Wrap each log tightly in plastic wrap and gently roll once more to help keep it nice and round.
Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight. (See Cook’s Note.)
When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
If the logs have flattened slightly while chilling, gently roll them on a work surface before slicing to make them perfectly round again. Slice the logs into 1/2-inch-thick rounds and arrange them on the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 1 inch between each cookie. Bake one sheet at a time until the bottoms are just lightly golden and the tops are no longer shiny, 12 to 14 minutes. (The cookies will be more buttery and tender if not overbaked.)
As soon as the cookies come out of the oven, place a large round cookie cutter that's slightly bigger than the cookie over one and gently swirl it in a circular motion; this is called cookie scooting and helps tidy the edges and gives you perfectly round cookies. Repeat for all the cookies. Leave the cookies on the baking tray for 2 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining pan of cookies.
For decorating: Melt the pink, light-green and brown candy melting wafers separately according to the package instructions. Transfer each color to a disposable piping bag and snip a very small opening of about 2 millimeters (a little more than 1/16 inch) into the tip of each.
Pipe diagonal pink stripes across each green tree, leaving a small gap between each stripe.
Fill the gaps with light-green stripes to create a garland effect. Pipe a small brown rectangle at the bottom of each tree for the trunk. To finish, pipe a small dot of light-green candy onto the very top of each tree and immediately press a gold star sprinkle into the candy. Allow the decorations to harden completely before serving or storing. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Cook’s Note

When measuring flour, we spoon it into a dry measuring cup and level off excess. (Scooping directly from the bag compacts the flour, resulting in dry baked goods.) The cookie logs can be made up to 3 days in advance and kept in the refrigerator, or frozen for up to 3 months. You can slice and bake straight from frozen, adding an extra 1 to 2 minutes to the baking time.