Sugar Cookie Christmas Tree (Vegan)
Nothing captures the holiday spirit quite like a cookie Christmas tree. This one features soft, buttery sugar cookies with a touch of almond extract, topped with light, fluffy buttercream infused with even more almond flavor. Finished with dye-free sprinkles from Supernatural, it makes the perfect centerpiece for any dessert table. Though it takes a little time to create, it’s surprisingly simple, incredibly delicious, and brimming with festive cheer. From mixing the dough to adding the final touches, it’s a fully plant-based treat sure to impress and satisfy any sweet tooth.
What you will need:
This is an easy roll-and-cut sugar cookie recipe topped with simple piped buttercream. The decorating part is all up to you! I used a mix of Supernatural Jingle Pop! sprinkles and Supernatural Christmas Softies, but feel free to choose your favorite holiday sprinkles. The sprinkles can be ordered online from Amazon and the Supernatural website. All the other ingredients are pantry staples.
Ingredients:
Sugar Cookie
- all-purpose flour
- plant based butter with salt
- cane sugar
- plant based yogurt
- vanilla extract
- almond extract
Buttercream
- powdered sugar
- plant based butter with salt
- vanilla extract
- almond extract
- plant based heavy cream
Decorations
- Supernatural sprinkles – Jingle Pop!
- Supernatural sprinkles – Christmas Softies
How to:
This is a super simple cut-and-roll sugar cookie recipe, so let’s dive-in. I used a 10-piece star cutter set gifted to me by my mother, which you can find on Amazon, and there’s a picture of it in the recipe card. When I mention the cutters, I refer to them from smallest to largest, numbered 1 through 10 (see notes below the recipe card).
To make the cookie dough, begin by creaming the butter and sugar with a handheld mixer on high speed for about 2 minutes. Add the yogurt, almond extract, and vanilla extract to the mixture, then blend at medium-high speed for 1 minute. Mix in half the flour on medium speed for around 30 seconds, then add the remaining flour and continue mixing until fully incorporated.
Split the dough into three equal portions, shape each one into a disc, and wrap them in plastic wrap. Chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour, or leave them overnight if preferred.
When you’re ready to cut out the cookies, line 3 to 4 cookie sheets with parchment paper. The size of the cookie sheets will determine how many you will need. Take one portion of dough from the fridge at a time and place it on a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough out to a 1/4-inch thickness and begin cutting out the cookies. Reroll the dough as needed but try to avoid handling it too much. If it gets too warm or soft, just pop it back in the fridge to firm up before continuing.
Place the cut cookies on the prepared pans, and once they’re all ready, chill them in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. The cookie cutter set includes 10 cutters, and the tree will be assembled using 16 cookies. I made extra cookies with certain cutters to create a larger tree, but the size is entirely up to you. I cut 3 cookies with cutter #1, 2 cookies each with cutters #3, #5, #7, and #9, and 1 cookie each with cutters #2, #4, #6, #8, and #10 (see notes under the recipe card).
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Once it’s ready, start baking the cookies. I baked them in three batches, with sizes #1 and #2 together for about 9 to 11 minutes. They’re done when they just start to brown. The smaller cookies will finish sooner than the larger ones, so take them out when ready and keep baking the rest.
I baked cookie sizes #3, #4, #5, and #6 together on a second cookie sheet, and they took about 13 to 15 minutes to bake. The smaller cookies bake faster than the larger ones, so keep an eye on them and take out the ones that are done, letting the rest bake until they’re a light golden brown.
On the third and last tray, I baked cookie sizes #7, #8, #9, and #10. These cookies needed 19 to 21 minutes to bake. Watch for browning and remove those that are done, allowing the rest to finish baking.
Allow all the cookies to cool to room temperature before decorating them. The cookies can be baked on one day, cooled to room temperature, stored in an airtight container overnight and decorated the next day.
Note: I had a bit of dough left after cutting out all the cookies for the tree, so I managed to make about 10 more in sizes #1, #2, and #3. There’s also plenty of buttercream left to decorate the extra cookies.
To make the buttercream, place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer. With the balloon whisk attachment, whip the butter on high speed until it’s light, fluffy, and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the powdered sugar and mix on medium speed until fully incorporated. Pour in the heavy cream, vanilla extract, and almond extract, then continue whipping on high speed for another 3 minutes.
When you’re ready to decorate the cookies, fill a piping bag with buttercream and fit it with your preferred piping tip. I used two tips: Wilton #18 for cookie sizes #1 and #2, and Wilton #21 for the rest. Arrange all 16 cookies, then pipe buttercream across the tops of each one. Once they’re all frosted, add your favorite holiday sprinkles—I went with Supernatural Jolly Pop! sprinkles and Supernatural Christmas Softies sprinkles.
Before you assemble the cookie Christmas tree, make sure the buttercream has dried and hardened. I stored my decorated cookies in a single layer in an airtight container (you can also wrap them in plastic wrap) overnight in the refrigerator and assembled the cookie tree the next day.
To put together the cookie Christmas tree, arrange all 16 cookies in front of you. Start with the largest one, placing it on a plate, cake stand, or serving dish. Stack the cookies from largest to smallest, rotating every other one so the star points don’t align. Finish by placing the final tiny star cookie right at the top, making it the star of your festive tree.
Store the cookie tree in the refrigerator if you want the buttercream to stay firm.
Alright, let’s get started. Please make, bake and enjoy!
Sugar Cookie Christmas Tree (Vegan)
Ingredients
Sugar Cookies
- 280 grams (2½ sticks) plant based butter with salt – cooler side of room temperature
- 250 grams (1¼ cups) cane sugar
- 450 grams (3¾ cup) all-purpose flour
- 75 grams (5 tbsp) plant based yogurt – cooler side of room temperature
- 2½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1¼ tsp almond extract
Buttercream
- 600 grams (5 cups) powdered sugar
- 280 grams (2½ sticks) plant based butter with salt – room temperature
- ½ + ⅛ tsp almond extract
- 1¼ tsp vanilla extract
- 5 tbsp dairy free heavy cream – cold from the refrigerator
Decorations
- Supernatural Christmas Softies sprinkles
- Supernatural Jingle Pop sprinkles
Instructions
Sugar Cookies
- This is the star cutter I used. Please see the notes section for how many cookies per cutter you will need for the cookie tree.
- Place the butter and sugar in a medium bowl. Using a handheld mixer, blend the butter and sugar together at medium-high speed until light and creamy – about 2 minutes.
- Add the yogurt, vanilla extract and almond extract to the butter mixture. Continue with the handheld mixer, blending at medium speed for about 1 minute.
- Add half of the flour to the wet ingredients, blending at medium speed for 30 seconds, add the rest of the flour and blend at medium speed until all of the flour is incorporated.
- Divide the dough into 3 portions, form each portion into a disc and wrap each disc in plastic wrap. Place the wrapped dough in the refrigerator for at least one hour or up to overnight.
- Line 3 to 4 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- Remove one portion of dough from the refrigerator at a time. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and roll it out to a ¼ inch thickness. Begin cutting out the star shaped cookies. Reroll the dough as many times as you need to; use as much of the dough as you can but try to handle the dough as little as possible. Place the cut-out cookies on the lined baking sheets.
- Cover and place the cut cookies in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Once the oven has reached the desired temperature begin baking the cookies.***I place the cookies come out of the refrigerator, on a new room temperature tray, I do not bake them on the cold tray.
- The 2 smallest size cookies – cutters 1 and 2 – should bake 9 to 11 minutes – I had to remove the smallest cookies at 9 minutes and let the larger cookie bake a little longer. Once the edges begin to brown, they are done.***see notes section for more on cutter numbers and sizes
- The middle size cookies – cookie cutter sizes 3, 4, 5, and 6 – should bake 13 to 15 minutes. Remember the smaller ones will be ready before the larger ones, remove them as they start browning.
- The larger cookies – cookie cutter sizes 7, 8, 9, and 10 – should bake 19 to 21 minutes. The smaller ones will start browning before the larger ones, remove them as they become ready.
- Allow the cookies to cool completely before decorating them. ***The cookies can be baked on one day, stored in an airtight container and decorated the next day.
- I had enough dough left over after cutting out all of the cookies needed for the tree to cut a few more of sizes 1, 2, and 3 – about 10.
Buttercream
- Add the butter to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a balloon whisk attachment. Whip the butter on high for 3 minutes.
- Add the powdered sugar and blend on medium speed until all of the powdered sugar is incorporated – about a minute.
- Add the vanilla extract, almond extract and dairy free heavy cream to the bowl. Blend on high for 3 minutes.
Decorating
- Remember not to start decorating until the cookies are room temperature. Lay out all the cookies, making sure you have all of your cookies – I laid mine out 10 to 1 – you should have 16 cookies.***See the notes section for cookie sizes and how many of each cookie you will need.
- Add the buttercream to a piping bag fitted with the piping top of your choice. I used Wilton #18 for the 2 small size cookies (cutters 1 and 2) and Wilton #21 on the rest of the cookies.
- Cover the tops of each cookie with piped buttercream. Decorate the cookies with your favorite festive sprinkles – I used Supernatural Jolly Pop! and Christmas Softies. I stored the decorated cookies in an airtight container in a single layer overnight in the refrigerator and assembled the tree the next day.***Make sure the frosting has dried and hardened before assembling the tree.
Assembly
- Lay out all of your decorated cookies. Place the largest cookie on a plate, cake stand or serving dish and begin stacking the cookies working from largest to smallest. Make sure to rotate every other cookie so the star points don't line up Once done, the stack of cookies should take the shape of a tree. Place the last tiny star upright on top.
- The cookie Christmas tree is ready to be displayed or served. I suggest storing the tree in the refrigerator to keep the buttercream firm.
Notes
- I used a Wilton #18 and #21 piping tips
- Make sure the butter and yogurt are on the cooler side of room temperature
- The cutters from small to larger are numbered 1 – 10
This festive cookie creation is stunning, scrumptious, and FUN to make! It’s a surefire delight for any crowd. Thank you, Tiffany!
Thank you so much Wendy. This was a fun one, I hope you get a chance to try it. Happy Holidays!!!!!