A few friends decided to get together this week and give out our favorite Christmas Cookie recipes. I decided to share my stained glass cookie recipe.
The great thing about these cookies is they’re simple rolled sugar cookies, so if you have a favorite sugar cookie recipe you can use that. These are both beautiful and tasty. I hope you enjoy them.
Stained Glass Christmas Cookies
1/2 cup shortening
1/4 cup butter
1 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup milk
40 fruit flavored hard candies
Direction:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease cookie sheets.
Take clear fruit candies (I like to use Lifesavors) and divide them into flavors and crush them separate. I do it this way so I can control what flavors and colors make up each stained glass. I find putting them in a baggie and taking a wooden mallet to them works great.
In a large bowl, cream together the butter, shortening and sugar. Stir in vanilla and eggs.
In another bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt; add to egg mixture alternating with milk.
On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out 1/4 inch thick. With favorite *large cookie cutters cut out your designs and place on greased cookie sheet. With sharp pairing knife cut out small decorative strips in Christmas trees for garland, or the centers out of stars. Add crushed candies into empty spots. Make sure you keep the candy/dough ratio about the same on each cookie to prevent some from cooking faster than others.
Bake for about 6 minutes, or until candy is just melted. Cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes until candy is hard and carefully lift cookies off cookie sheet.
And you’re done. 
*I suggest using large cookie cutters to give yourself more room to play, but taking average round cutters and using a small pill bottle lid to cut out the centers works just fine too.
My friend have posted some of their favorite cookie recipes. Feel free to have a look.
Jeannene Walker’s Chocolate Mice | Annie Nicholas’ Famous Shortbread | Keri Ford Cake Batter Cookies | Jeanette Murray’s Seven Layers Cookies | Babette James’ Russian Teacakes | Voirey Linger’s Thumbprint Cookies
