Make Adorable Santa Cookies in EASY Steps! 🎅🏼 (Buttery Shortbread Cookies) - Christmas Treats

Leave butter at room temperature to soften completely.

In a bowl, add butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract, and mix until well combined without whipping.

Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula to incorporate all ingredients.

Add cornstarch, all-purpose flour, and salt, and mix until well combined, scraping the bowl again.

Check the dough by hand to ensure it's even and well mixed.

Take about a quarter of the dough for the Santa face and color the rest with red food coloring, adjusting the amount for desired color intensity.

Roll out the dough to a thickness of about 4 mm (less than 1/4 inch).

Chill the rolled dough in the fridge to make cutting easier.

Once chilled, peel off the parchment paper and cut rectangle shapes, adjusting size as desired, keeping a 1:1.5 ratio for best results.

If the dough becomes too soft, return it to the fridge to firm up before cutting.

Cut the rectangles in half and use remaining dough to make red noses for Santas.

Make a big Santa and little Santas using the remaining dough, and squish plain dough between spaces to match thickness of red dough.

Push the bottom part of the dough to shape the eyes and use black food coloring with a toothpick to attach the nose.

Prepare marshmallows by slicing circles off both sides and cutting them thinly for better adhesion.

Apply a thin layer of cornstarch to prevent marshmallows from sticking to the counter.

Cut pom poms and fluffs for Santa hats, connecting pieces if needed or squishing to adjust length.

Attach marshmallows to the hot cookies immediately after baking, pushing edges to ensure they stick.

Bake cookies again for 30 seconds to 1 minute to fully adhere marshmallows, being careful not to overbake.

If marshmallows are too sticky, allow cookies to cool before adjusting shapes.

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Allergens