Being the patron saint of Christmas is no small order. Just ask a certain Pumpkin King (aka Sandy Claws) who once tried the jolly old elf’s hat on for size. While Jack is now apt to leave official holiday business to the real Santa, he’s still game to take part in a cookie swap or two. Check out the delicious recipe from DisneyFamily below, along with a helpful how-to video!
Jack Skellington’s Sandy Claws Cookies
Prep 1 Hr, 15 Min / Cook 12 Min
Ingredients:
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
- 2 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 3 cups flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup confectioner’s sugar
- 2 teaspoons milk
- 2 teaspoons light corn syrup
- Red food coloring
- Flaked coconut
- Round white candies
- Black edible food marker (found at your local craft store)
- Wax paper
- Round cookie cutter (2.25-inch or so in diameter)
- Disposable food preparation gloves (for kneading food coloring into the dough)
Directions:
- In a large bowl mix the flour, baking powder, and salt.
- In a second bowl combine the butter, cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, lemon zest and egg. Beat with a mixer for several minutes. Add flour mixture a little bit at a time.
- Wrap the dough in cling wrap, and refrigerate for at least one hour.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Divide the dough in half. Working on a flour-dusted sheet of wax paper, roll out one half of the dough, 1/4-inch thick. Use a round cookie cutter to cut out as many circles as you can. These circles will be Jack’s head.
- Take the other half of the dough and put in a bowl. Squeeze several drops of red food coloring into it, and knead in, wearing gloves. Roll this dough out onto flour-dusted wax paper and cut out several long triangles. These will be Jack’s Santa hat.
- Use the cookie cutter to cut a curved notch in the base of each hat, or shape the dough with your fingers to create your own hat.
- Place your round cookies onto a greased cookie sheet, being sure to leave enough room above each circle for a hat.
- Place the triangle hats on top of the round cookies and fold each down.
- Bake cookies for 8 to 12 minutes, depending on thickness. Let cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet, then transfer to a wire rack. Let cookies cool before decorating.
- To prepare the icing, combine confectioner’s sugar, milk and corn syrup in a bowl and stir.
- Spread icing evenly onto face of each cookie. Set aside two hours to allow icing to harden.
- Spread a thin line of icing on the gap between Jack’s face and hat. Then sprinkle with shredded coconut to give his hat a fleecy brim.
- Take a bowl of round mints and stick them to the point of Jack’s hat using a small dab of frosting.
- Draw Jack Skellington’s face onto the cookie using a black edible marker.
Source: DisneyFamily