Christmas Tree Stack Cookies

5 from 1 vote

Make these adorable Christmas Tree Stack cookies with a simple and delicious shortbread recipe and a homemade buttercream frosting!

Prep Time15

Cook Time25

Cooling Time20

Total Time1

Servings:

Calories: 401kcal

Ingredients

Cookies

1 cup salted butter softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder

Icing

3 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup salted butter softened
3 tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp food coloring green
1/2 cup sprinkles

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
In a medium bowl, beat together butter, sugar, egg and vanilla until fluffy.
In a separate bowl, whisk together flour and baking powder. Then add this mixture to the butter mixture and beat until well blended.
Next, we will shape the dough into 3 different sizes of cookies. (Each cookie will be rolled into a ball.)Use a rounded 1 teaspoon of dough to make 1 small ball. Then you will use 2 rounded teaspoons of dough to make a middle size ball. And 3 rounded teaspoons of dough to make a large ball. You want to have the same number of each size of ball. You should be able to make at least 15 balls of each size.
Place the small balls onto 1 parchment paper lined baking sheet. Use a glass to gently flatten them a little. Place the medium size balls on another sheet and again press them down gently. And place the large balls on a separate sheet and press them down slightly. (The different sizes of cookies should bake on different sheets as they will not bake at the same rate.)
Bake until the bottoms are just golden. Small cookies will take 4-6 minutes. Medium will take 6-8 minutes. Large will take 8-10 minutes.
Remove the cookies from the baking sheets and allow them to cool completely on wire racks.
Prepare the frosting while the cookies are cooling.
In a medium bowl, beat together powdered sugar, and butter. When this is well creamed together, beat in the milk and vanilla (and food coloring if desired).
Use the frosting to “glue” together the 3 cookies (largest on the bottom, then middle sized, then the smallest on top) to make a christmas tree or snowman. Pipe (or spread) icing onto the top of the largest size cookie and place the middle size cookie on top. Pipe (or spread) icing on the top of the middle size cookie and place the small size cookie on top. Then continue decorating with the icing.

Notes

Storage Instructions:

You may store these in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week. Or, they will freeze for up to 3 months.

Other FAQ suggestions:

I don’t have vanilla extract - what else will work? I find that almond extract tastes delicious in these cookies as well.
I find the cookies really dry - did I do something wrong? Please be careful how you measure your flour. Spoon the flour into the measuring cup and then use a flat edge like a knife to scrape the top and make it level. If you scoop the flour with your measuring cup you may get too much flour.
My frosting is too thick/thin - how can I fix it? The easiest way to fix too-thick buttercream is to add milk, just a teaspoon at a time until you’ve reached the desired consistency. If your buttercream is too thin, add powdered sugar, 1 Tablespoon at a time.
Can these cookies be made ahead of time? Yes. I would recommend that you make all of the cookies and freeze them in freezer bags. Then, when you are ready to serve them, allow the cookies to come to room temperature and then assemble them with the buttercream. This way your decorations will still look fresh.
I seem to remember cookies like this but they had nuts in them - will that work? Yes, you could add up to ¼ cup of finely chopped pecans or walnuts to the batter.

Nutrition