Best Easter Egg Puzzle Cookies Recipes

Easter Egg Puzzle Cookies image

Provided by Martha Stewart

Yield Makes about 3 dozen

Number Of Ingredients 9

4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for surface
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Royal Icing for Easter Egg Puzzle Cookies
Sanding sugar, for sprinkling (optional)

Steps:

Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
Beat butter and granulated sugar with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time. Reduce speed to low; add flour mixture, and beat until combined. Add vanilla. Wrap dough in plastic, and refrigerate for 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Roll out dough to 1/8-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Cut out egg shapes with a 2 1/2-inch oval cutter. Transfer cookies to parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing about 1 inch apart. Refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes. Bake until edges are golden, 8 to 10 minutes. Upon removing from oven, cut into pieces with a sharp knife (if they're cool, it will be difficult to create clean edges). Let cool. Using a pastry bag fitted with a 1/8-inch tip and filled with royal icing, decorate as desired. Sprinkle with sanding sugar while icing is wet. If adding dots or stripes, let base layer dry first.

Royal Icing for Easter Egg Puzzle Cookies image

Provided by Martha Stewart

Yield Makes 2 1/2 cups

Number Of Ingredients 4

1 pound confectioners sugar
1/4 cup meringue powder
1/2 cup water, plus more if needed
Gel-paste food coloring in colors such as violet, lemon yellow, soft pink, or leaf green (sugarcraft.com), for tinting

Steps:

Combine sugar, meringue powder, and water in the bowl of a mixer. Beat on medium speed until smooth, about 4 minutes. (If icing is too thick, add more water, 1 teaspoon at a time.)
Divide icing into batches, and mix in a different shade of food coloring to each to tint.