Ingredients
Scale
- FOR COOKIES:
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 (2 sticks) cup butter, softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 egg
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Additional flour for rolling
- FOR ICING AND DECORATING:
- 3 tablespoons Wilton Meringue Powder
- 4 cups (about 1 pound) confectioners sugar
- 6 tablespoons warm water
- 1 (10.1 ounce) package Mini M&M Milk Chocolate Candy
- 2 (0.67 ounce) tubes black decorating gel
Instructions
- TO MAKE COOKIES:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Whisk together dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, blend the butter and sugar until creamy and light. Add egg, almond extract, and vanilla extract. Mix well. Slowly add dry ingredients and mix until combined. Dough may be a little crumbly.
- Turn out the dough onto a surfaced sprinkled with flour. Press into a ball and then roll out to ½ inch thickness. Use cookie cutters to create shapes. Carefully lift shaped cookies to the baking sheet.
- Bake cookies for 7 to 9 minutes. Do not brown the cookies. Allow cookies to cool for at least 7 minutes on the baking sheet before carefully removing to a cooling rack. Cool completely before decorating.
- TO MAKE ICING AND DECORATE COOKIES:
- To make royal icing, place meringue powder, confectioners sugar, and warm water in a stand mixer. Beat on low until combined. Increase speed and beat until soft peaks form. Transfer royal icing to a decorating bag with a small round tip attached.
- Using the royal icing, trace the outline of the cookie about ⅛ inch from the edge. Immediately fill the outline with royal icing and allow the icing to settle. Fill any gaps while royal icing is wet. Set for about 2 minutes (depending on the humidity in your home) before decorating.
- Use black gel to create curving lines over cookies. Gently press mini M&Ms into the royal icing with the edge side down.
- Allow cookies to dry completely or serve immediately.
- COOK’S NOTES: Be mindful that the black gel will not harden completely. If you need to package these cookies, tint some of your royal icing black and use it to create the lines.