The process is easy enough for children to participate in, making it a fun, hands-on activity for the whole family.

Translation | Amaryllis Tsegou

A lovely idea for Christmas cookies starring the ever-popular Rudolph the reindeer. They’re simple, easy, and perfect for making - and decorating - with children.

It’s a fun activity to share with your kids or, if you’re like me and don’t have any, with your friends - trust me, they’ll absolutely love the whole process. After all, at Christmastime everyone loves feeling like a kid again.

Ingredients

(for ~20–30 cookies)

  • 150 g cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
  • 130 g granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 1 egg
  • 20 g corn starch
  • 60 g cocoa powder
  • 300–350 g all-purpose flour

For decoration:

  • 250g plain chocolate, finely chopped
  • mini red candies (for Rudolf’s nose)
  • mini marshmallows (for the eyes)
  • salty crackers or pretzels (for the antlers)

Method

Prepare the dough

  1. In a mixer bowl or a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer, cream the butter, sugar, and salt for ~3 minutes until smooth.
  2. Add the egg and continue mixing on medium speed until incorporated.
  3. Add the cornstarch, half of the flour, and cocoa powder and mix until combined.
  4. Gradually add more flour until the dough forms a ball and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. You may not need all the flour.
  5. Divide the dough into two portions. Flatten slightly, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for ~15 minutes.

Shape and bake

  1. Preheat the oven to 175°C conventional and line a baking tray with parchment paper.
  2. Remove the dough from the oven and roll it between two sheets of parchment to ~1 cm thickness. If the dough is too stiff, let it soften at room temperature for a few minutes.
  3. Use a round cookie cutter to cut the cookies. Place them on the prepared baking tray.
  4. Bake for 10-12 minutes.
  5. Let cookies cool completely. After ~5 minutes, carefully transfer them to a cooling rack. Handle gently, as they are fragile when warm.

Decorate the cookies

  1. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler or microwave.
  2. Dip each cookie into the melted chocolate. Place on parchment paper.
  3. While the chocolate is still wet, use pretzels or crackers to form antlers. Place a red candy for the nose. Add mini marshmallows for the eyes. Use a small amount of chocolate for pupils or details on the face.
  4. Let the chocolate set completely before serving.
More Christmas recipes to try: