Happy Christmas Eve! I’ve been finishing my Christmas baking and decorations and I’m excited to share this fun edible centerpiece! Inspired by a traditional Christmas tree, Mickey’s Christmas Cookie Tree is made out of vanilla sugar cookies and is decorated with fluffy buttercream frosting and sprinkles. Of course, there’s a few hidden Mickeys in there too!
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The base of this cookie tree is my favorite vanilla sugar cookies. To make these cookies, start by combining the flour, salt, and baking soda in a medium bowl. Set aside. In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and the eggs and beat until combined. Add in the flour mixture and beat until you have a smooth dough. Divide the dough in half. Wrap each half in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
On a floured surface, roll out the dough, one half at a time, to about 1/4-inch thickness. To cut out the stars, I used a cookie cutter set from Wilton. Aim to cut out 2 cookies of each size, but if you miss a couple, it’ll be okay! Place the cut-out cookies on baking sheets lined with parchment paper and chill in the refrigerator for 15 minutes. This will help the cookies keep their shape when baking. Bake the cookies for 8-10 minutes or until the edges are just starting to brown. Let cool for 2-3 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the frosting, first beat the butter until smooth. Add in the vanilla and beat until combined. On low speed, gradually beat in the powdered sugar until combined. Then, beat on high speed until fluffy. Reserve a small amount of white frosting. Beat in a few drops of green gel food coloring. I used the green from Wilton’s primary color set. Transfer the the frosting to a piping bag fitted with a star tip.
To decorate the cookies, pipe a combination of small stars, swirls, and hidden Mickeys onto each star cookie. You don’t need to fully decorate each cookie as the center will be covered by the cookie on top of it. Add sprinkles before the icing dries. For my tree, I used a combination of holiday sprinkles from Wilton and Mickey shaped sprinkles that I had leftover from a gingerbread house making kit. Spread some of the leftover white frosting onto one of the smallest stars and then sprinkle with yellow sanding sugar. Let the cookies dry until the frosting is set, about a couple of hours.
To assemble the cookie tree, place the largest cookie on a flat plate or other flat surface. Stack the cookies on top of each other, largest to smallest, twisting them so they are offset. Place a bit of frosting in the center of each cookie to secure them together.
Have a wonderful Christmas! Enjoy this fun and festive Mickey’s Christmas Cookie Tree!
Mickey’s Christmas Cookie Tree
Inspired by a traditional Christmas tree, Mickey's Christmas Cookie Tree is made out of vanilla sugar cookies and is decorated with fluffy buttercream frosting and sprinkles. Of course, there's a few hidden Mickeys in there too!
Ingredients
Vanilla Sugar Cookies
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Buttercream Frosting
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 tablespoons milk
- green gel food coloring
Decorations
- yellow sanding sugar
- Mickey sprinkles
Equipment
- star cookie cutters of various sizes
- piping bags
- star piping tip
Instructions
Cookies
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In a medium bowl, combine flour, salt, and baking soda. Set aside.
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In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, and vanilla and beat until combined.
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Add the flour to the butter mixture and beat until smooth. Divide the dough in half and wrap each half in plastic wrap. Chill in the refrigerator for an hour.
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After the dough has chilled, preheat the oven to 350 F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
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Remove half of the chilled dough from the refrigerator. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough to about ¼ inch thickness.
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Use star cutters to cut out 2 of each size of star. Place cookies onto the prepared baking sheets.
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Place the baking sheets with the unbaked cookies into the refrigerator for 15 mins. This helps the cookies keep their shape when they are baked.
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Bake the cookies for 8-10 minutes or until the edges are just starting to brown. Let them cool on the baking sheet for 2-3 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Frosting
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In a medium bowl, beat butter until smooth. Beat in vanilla extract.
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On low speed, gradually beat in powdered sugar, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed.
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Add the milk and beat until combined.
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Turn to high speed and beat frosting until fluffy, about 5 minutes.
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Save a small amount of white frosting. Add a few drops of green food coloring to the rest of the frosting and beat until combined.
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Transfer the green frosting to a piping bag fitted with a star tip.
Decoration and Assembly
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Pipe a mixture of stars, swirls, and hidden Mickeys onto each star cookie. Save some frosting to secure cookies during assembly. The centers of the cookies will be covered, so you don’t need to decorate them completely.
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Spread a thin layer of white frosting onto the smallest star cookie. Cover it with yellow sanding sugar. Gently shake off excess sugar and set aside.
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Add desired sprinkles to the green star cookies and let rest uncovered for a couple hours until the frosting has set.
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Place the largest star cookie on a flat plate or cake stand. Stack the star cookies on top of it, from largest to smallest, twisting them so that they’re offset from each other. Place a small bit of frosting in the center of each cookie to secure them.
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Place the small star with yellow sanding sugar on the top of the cookie tree, standing up. Use a bit of frosting to secure, if needed.