Cactus Cookies
These Cactus Cookies are yummy, fun to make, and will definitely be a hit at any party!
Servings 12
Calories 364kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 1½ cups powdered sugar icing sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 egg
- 3 cups all-purpose plain flour
- 1 tsp baking soda bicarbonate of soda
- 1 tsp cream of tartar
For the Royal Icing
- 4 egg whites
- ½ tsp cream of tartar
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 4½ cups powdered sugar icing sugar
- Neon/Bright Green Food Coloring Gel
- Leaf Green Food Coloring Gel
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set it aside.
- Using an electric handheld or stand mixer, cream together the butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and egg until combined and creamy.
- Sift or whisk the flour, baking soda, and cream of tartar in a large bowl.
- At low speed, gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients until just combined.
- Then use your hands to mix to a dough.
- Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Dust your surface with flour and knead the cookie dough a couple of times before rolling to about ½"/1cm thick.
- Cut out 12 cactus with a cactus-shaped cookie cutter and place them onto a cookie sheet.
- Bake for 8 minutes or until lightly golden brown.
- Leave cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely before decorating.
- To make the royal icing, use an electric handheld or stand mixer to combine the egg whites, cream of tartar, vanilla, and powdered sugar until stiff peaks form.
- Scoop out 1 cup of icing into a bowl and add a few drops of neon green gel coloring. Mix to the desired shade of green. This will be used to pipe the lines on the cactus.
- Place the neon green icing into a piping bag fitted with a round no.2 piping tip.
- Add a few drops of leaf green to the remaining icing and mix to the desired shade of green. This will be used to cover the base of the cactus cookies.
- Scoop about ¼ cup of the leaf green icing into a piping bag fitted with a round no.2 piping tip.
- Add 2-4 teaspoons of water into the remaining leaf green icing bowl and mix to thin the icing and make it slightly runnier. Pour the icing into a squeeze bottle.
- Using the leaf green piping bag, outline each of the cookies.
- Using the thinned icing, fill in the cactus outline.
- Leave the cookies in a cool, dry place to dry for 24 hours.
- Using the neon green piping bag, pipe a line around the main section of the cactus, and then around the arms.
- Pipe broken lines down the centers of the cactus body and arms.
- Pipe little hearts on some of the broken lines.
- Allow the icing to dry for 2 hours before enjoying!
Nutrition
Serving: 1 | Calories: 364kcal | Carbohydrates: 55g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 56mg | Sodium: 132mg | Sugar: 54g