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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.
These were easy to make and delicious! The decorating was pretty easy too. People thought they were so cute!
Thanks so much Kailey! Love to hear that these were enjoyed and thanks for making them! xT
Easy and effective. Love the tip about using a sandwich bag with a tiny snip at the corner as an icing bag, so much easier!
Hey Carole,
Happy Monday!!☃️ I truly appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your review, so glad it was enjoyed! xT
These cookies are amazing! My husband has been a fan of my sugar cookies for a LOT of years and he said these are so much better! Love the look of your cute trees. You should do a pdf pattern so we can all copy. Merry Christmas!
Hey Laura,
Happy Monday!!☃️ I truly appreciate you making this recipe and sharing your review, so glad it was enjoyed! xT
Do the shapes end up spreading if you do not chill the dough before baking? I am so excited to try these and want the trees to look like trees after they’re baked!
Hey Lauren,
Yes, the key for cut outs is to chill the dough which you are doing in step 4. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
These are delicious! I’m a fan of brown butter and it works so well here. The hint of salt from using salted butter gives such a nice balance to the sweet cookie & icing. So good! I just made a half batch of the icing and gave a pretty drizzle to the cookie. Not nearly as cute as yours but I’m happy with them. Thanks for a great recipe!
Hey Jessie,
Awesome!! Thanks so much for making this recipe and sharing your review! Love to hear that it was enjoyed! Happy Sunday!🎄
Do you have any recs for making this a gluten-free recipe?
Hi Kimberly,
I would try using an equal amount of gluten free flour, that should work well for you! Please let me know if you give this recipe a try, I hope it turns out well for you! xx
Tieghan, we made these. Just a Christmas tree 🎄 shape. They are the best-tasting sugar cookie I’ve ever had! And you got me hip to brown butter. I will be making brown butter frosting soon! Thank you !
Hey Liisa,
Fantastic!! Thanks a lot for trying this recipe and your comment, I love to hear that it was tasty! Have a great weekend:)
Making a batch now but would like to save half dough to make with my daughter. Can the dough be frozen?
Hey Nancy,
Yes, you can freeze the dough for up to 3 months. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xx
Can I make the dough ahead of time, keep in fridge and cut out the next day?
Hey Suzanne,
You bet, that will work well for you! Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love these cookies! xT
Amazing and so easy! These turned out so beautiful. We had a lot of cookie cutters so we did trees, stars, houses, and sleighs. Definitely adding to the holiday cookie rotation!
Hey Ashley,
Happy Wednesday!! I truly appreciate you giving this recipe a try and sharing your review, so glad to hear it was a hit:)
Hi Tiegan!
Love your recipes!!
Queston for you: Do you think these cookies would freeze well?
Thanks!
Thanks so much Tracey!! Yes, I would just freeze without the icing:) I hope you love the recipe!! xx
Excited to make these! Do you think I could sub the hazelnut liqueur with Kahlua? That’s what I’ve got in the cabinet.
Hey Meg,
I would just omit the hazelnut liqueur since it’s optional:) I hope you love these cookies, let me know how they turn out! xx
How long does the white icing have to dry before you drizzle the chocolate on and add the m&M’s?
Hey there,
Just a few minutes:) Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope this recipe turns out well for you! xx
Hi.
Love the cookies, recipe and design. Where did you find your tree cookie cutter? I like how the branches turn up. 🎄
Thanks!
Thanks so much Carin! I drew a stencil for the Christmas tree:) Let me know if you give the recipe a try! xx
Thanks for letting me know. I will try it!
Hello, I am going to make these soon and am wondering what the vanilla sugar for decorating is…where is this used? I don’t see it in the instructions and am not sure if it is an ingredient I can purchase. Thank you in advance! I cannot wait to make these 🙂
Hey Alysa,
I just mix sugar with vanilla bean powder, but you can skip it:) Let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xx
Made these tonight and they are so good! I made the icing and was worried it was going to be so sweet but the cookie balanced the sweetness. Delicious!!
Hey Kelsey,
Awesome!! Thanks so much for making these cookies and sharing your review, so glad to hear that they were enjoyed! xx