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Officially kicking off the holiday season with these easy Easy Vanilla Bean Christmas Lights Cookies. Made with nutty brown butter, double the vanilla, and a little bit of chocolate. These cookies are soft, buttery, and perfectly sweet with the best vanilla flavor. They’re generously glazed with a sweet, thick, and creamy vanilla bean glaze. And decorated with sweet chocolate and delicious holiday M&M’s for truly some of the best sugar cookies around. The secret is all in the combination of brown butter and real vanilla beans, which keep these cookies incredibly flavorful. Fun to bake, delicious to eat. These make for a great homemade gift, and a festive addition to your holiday cookie box!
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This is the year I’m focusing on ALL of the Christmas cookies. I have so many ideas and not enough days to share…picking the best cookies has been hard!
These were an easy choice though. They actually started out a little differently, but as soon as I had the idea to do Christmas lights, I was excited.
My goal this year is fun holiday desserts – but easy. Nothing too time-consuming and no big scary decorating projects. Just delicious, easy, cute, and extra festive. These cookies are all of those things.
My hang-up with basic sugar cookies is that they’re often flavorless and the frosting is even worse. They just taste like sugar, and I’m definitely not into that.
With these cookies, I wanted to add flavor with brown butter and real vanilla bean. The chocolate on top, just makes them even better.
Ingredients
- salted butter, at room temperature
- granulated sugar
- vanilla bean powder or vanilla extract
- hazelnut liquor (optional)
- 1 egg
- all-purpose flour, plus an additional 2-4 tablespoons, if needed
- baking soda
- kosher salt
VANILLA ICING
- powdered sugar
- maple syrup
- vanilla extract
- chocolate chips, melted
- mini holiday M&M’s and vanilla sugar for decorating
The details
Brown the butter, then let it cool off in the freezer a bit. Once it’s cooled (you only need 15 minutes), you can start mixing and baking.
Beat the butter with the sugar and vanilla bean powder. You’ll want to beat for at least a minute to really infuse the butter with the vanilla flavor. Next, add an egg and all the dry ingredients, then roll, cut, and bake. There’s absolutely nothing fancy here.
Whenever I make any kind of cut-out cookie, I always like to roll out the dough, cut the cookies, and then freeze the cut cookies on a baking sheet for a few minutes. This ensures that the cookies hold their shape. To cut my cookies, I used a simple circle cookie cutter and a holiday tree.
If you want to skip the rolling – simply slice n’ bake
I LOVE slice-n-bake cookies, and you can easily slice-n-bake with this dough!
Just divide the dough in half as directed, then roll each piece of dough into a log and chill in the fridge until totally solid.
If you have an almost empty roll of wrapping paper around, cut the roll and fit it around each log, this will prevent the dough from forming a straight edge in the fridge!
And when ready to bake, simply slice-n-bake!
Decorating is easy
I kept the icing simple, since I wanted the color to remain white but still have a nice flavor for these vanilla bean sugar cookies. I added a small amount of maple syrup and lots of vanilla.
It’s simple, but with the chocolate on top, perfect!
When it comes to cookies, I try to keep the decorating as easy as can be, and this is EASY. I used melted chocolate to draw on the cords for the lights, then used mini holiday M&M’s for the lights.
Doesn’t get easier, but looks so cute once finished!
Asher wasn’t around when I made these, so I can’t wait to make these again soon with her. She’s going to love them! They’re the perfect Christmas cookie to make with kids and for your next Christmas cookie exchange.
Looking for other Christmas cookies? Here are my favorites:
Vanilla Ginger Shortbread Wreaths
Lastly, if you make these Easy Vanilla Bean Christmas Lights Cookies, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Easy Vanilla Bean Christmas Lights Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) salted butter, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean powder, or 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon hazelnut liquor , (optional)
- 1 egg, at room temperature
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus an additional 2-4 tablespoons, if needed
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Vanilla Icing
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips, melted
- mini holiday M&M’s and vanilla sugar for decorating
Instructions
- 1. Add 6 tablespoons butter to a small saucepan set over medium heat, cooking until the butter begins to brown, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from the heat and transfer to a heatproof bowl. Stick in the freezer to chill, 10 minutes, but no longer.2. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.3. In a mixing bowl, beat together the remaining 6 tablespoons butter, the cooled browned butter, sugar, and vanilla bean powder until combined. Add the egg and mix until combined. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt, beat until combined and the dough forms a ball. If the dough feels too wet to roll out, add 2-4 tablespoons additional flour.4. Divide the dough in half. Roll out the dough on a floured piece of parchment paper to 1/4 inch thickness. Make sure you're using enough flour or your dough will stick. Cut out the cookies using circle and Christmas tree cutters. Transfer the cookies to a parchment-lined baking sheet. I recommend using a floured spatula to lift the cookies. Cover the baking sheet and place in the freezer until firm, 15 minutes. Roll out the leftover scraps, and repeat with the remaining dough.5. Bake the cookies on the middle rack of the oven for 8-10 minutes or until just lightly golden. Let cool. 6. Meanwhile, make the icing. In a medium bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, maple syrup, vanilla, and 1 tablespoon water until smooth and drizzly. If needed, thin the glaze by adding water – 1 tablespoon at a time, until drizzly. 7. Spoon the icing onto each cookie, spreading it to the edges. Let sit to dry. Add the melted chocolate to a sandwich bag and cut a small portion of the corner off. Draw 2 lines onto each round cookie and then a squiggly line up the trees. Press mini M&Ms into the chocolate as "lights" (look through the photos for examples).
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
Is this the same vanilla bean powder you used that was linked? In your videos on IG it looked like a normal dark brown bean powder.
Hey Kayla,
Here is the link for another vanilla bean powder that I enjoy:
https://shopstyle.it/l/bmfhk
Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Could I swap the flour to. Gluten free flower without changing the rest of the recipe?
Any chance these can be frozen after decorating?
Hey Rita,
I would recommend just freezing the dough for best results. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
Hey there,
Yes, that should work well for you, I would use an equal amount of GF flour. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
L
Could you please share where you bought the Christmas tree cookie cutter? I love the shape!
Hi, Gail. She didn’t use a cookie cutter for the Christmas tree. She cut out a stencil and used that.??
Hi Gail,
Sorry, no link for the cutter, I drew the stencil for the tree. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Hi Tieghan! I’m so excited to try these cookies, they look delicious and so cute!! I have a fresh vanilla bean pod but I haven’t used them for baking before, should I scrape a whole bean or just a half bean as a substitute for the 1 tsp powder in the dough? Thanks!
Hey Carolyn,
I would use the whole bean:) I hope you enjoy this recipe, please let me know how they turn out! xTieghan
Which brand of vanilla bean powder do you use?
Hey Jackie,
Here is the link for the vanilla bean powder:
https://shopstyle.it/l/bmfhk
Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
These look amazing! Where do you get these cookie cutters? I love that Christmas tree cutter!!!
Hi Rebecca,
Sorry, I drew the stencil for the tree, so I do not have a link for that. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try! xTieghan
Hi Tieghan, have you considered selling your own cookie cutters?? The tree is so unique in its shape and movement, I have not seen any like it. I would totally purchase one! What a great job, you are a very talented lady!
Hey Donna,
I haven’t, but thanks so much for your kind message! xTieghan
These are so cute! I’m so excited to try these. Whenever I make cutout cookies I have trouble with the cookie keeping it’s shape when I move it from the floured surface to the try. Do you have any tips?
Hey there,
Try popping the dough in the fridge for a bit so it’s not so warm, this should help! I hope you love the recipe, let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
Where and I buy the Christmas tree cookies cutter
Hi Christine,
Sorry, I drew the stencil for my tree, I do not have a link:) Let me know if you give the recipe a try! xTieghan
How cute are these?! Love that they are easy too, so they can be made when time is tight xx
Thanks so much Kelly-Jane! xTieghan
What about using vanilla bean paste? How much would you substitute? Thanks. Laura
Hi Laura,
I would use 1 teaspoons of vanilla bean paste. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
I have used chocolate covered sunflower seeds for lights they are oval in shape & look awesome & taste great
Fantastic! I hope you love the recipe Sharon! xTieghan
These look amazing, but any suggestions on how to transport them to a family event?
Hi Lori,
Just pop them in an airtight container:) I hope you love the recipe! xTieghan
Adorable! And the recipe reads really yummy. Will definitely add to my cookie list this year:) Also sounds like you need to partner with someone to manufacture that tree as a cookie cutter. We all want one! I know I would order it right now;)
Thanks so much Amy! I hope you love the recipe! xTieghan
Are the chocolate chips in the icing supposed to be white chocolate chips?
Darrien, I just got done making these cookies, they are absolutely delicious. You melt the chocolate chips to make the “lines” on the tree or wreath that will hold your mini m&m’s in place, the chocolate chips are not in the icing for the cookies. Good luck and enjoy!
Hey Marge,
Wonderful! It’s so great to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks for making it! xTieghan
Hey Marge! Did you use vanilla bean powder?! If so what brand did you use.
Hi Darrien,
Nope, I melt the chocolate to use as the “string” for the lights, please see photos for reference. I hope you enjoy the recipe, please let me know if you give them a try! xTieghan