99 Teatime Holidays
Green Velvet
Sandwich Cookies
Makes 20¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3 tablespoons unsalted butter,
melted
3⁄8 teaspoon green gel food coloring
5 tablespoons unsalted butter,
softened
½ cup granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1¾ cups all-purpose fl our
1 large egg white
1 (4.7-ounce) container holiday
nonpareil sprinkles*
Cream Cheese Cookie Filling
(recipe follows)
- In a small bowl, whisk together
cocoa powder, melted butter, and
food coloring. Let cool slightly. - In a large bowl, beat together soft-
ened butter, sugar, and salt with
a mixer at medium speed until fl uff y,
3 to 4 minutes, stopping to scrape
sides of bowl. Add cocoa mixture,
beating until combined. Add egg and
vanilla extract, beating until well com-
bined. Add fl our, and beat until fully
incorporated and a smooth dough
forms. Shape dough into a disk, and
wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at
least 1 hour. - Preheat oven to 325°. Line 2 baking
sheets with parchment paper. - Turn out dough onto a lightly fl oured
surface. (If dough is too diffi cult to
work with, return to refrigerator for
another 30 minutes.) Using a roll-
ing pin, roll out dough to a 1⁄8-inch
thickness. Using a 3-inch tree-shaped
cutter, cut 40 shapes from dough,
rerolling scraps as necessary. Using an
off set spatula, place cookies ½ inch
apart on prepared baking sheets. Brush
with a thin layer of egg white. Sprinkle
20 cookies with nonpareils.- Bake until a slight indentation is left
when cookie is pressed with a fi nger,
approximately 10 minutes. Let cool
completely on pans. Store in an air-
tight container at room temperature
for up to 2 days. - Just before serving, place Cream
Cheese Cookie Filling in a pastry bag
fi tted with a small star tip (Wilton #27).
Pipe Cream Cheese Cookie Filling onto
fl at side of plain cookies. Place cookies
with sprinkles, fl at side down, on top
of fi lling.
*We used Wilton.Cream Cheese Cookie Filling
Makes approximately 1½ cups4 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons unsalted butter,
softened
2 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
¼ teaspoon vanilla bean paste- In a large bowl, beat together cream
cheese and butter with a mixer at
medium speed until creamy. Gradually
add confectioners’ sugar, beating until
smooth. Add vanilla bean paste, beat-
ing until well combined. Transfer fi lling
to an airtight container and refrigerate
until needed, up to 3 days.
“ Cardinals appear
when angels are near.”
—AUTHOR UNKNOWN