Must-Make Holiday Confetti Cookies!

Don't they just scream holiday and happy? I've been working on these twinkling little sprinkle poofs for a few months and I'm SO excited to finally share them with you!

The past few weeks have been quite the whirlwind in Buttercream Blondie land. I just arrived home from a fabulous holiday cruise, where I was lucky enough to enjoy all the Christmas cookies my heart desired, all while sipping mai tais in the Caribbean, am prepping to bake up a storm in my mom's kitchen over the next few days, and am packing up once more to make my biggest move to date! The only thing I'm 100% sure of at this point are that these cookies are on the agenda this weekend :)

But these cookies, well these cookies deserve all the attention today. They're easy to make, easy on the eyes, and maybe a little too easy to eat!

The secret ingredient that makes these cookies all sorts of magical is the cream cheese. It lends a beautiful texture to the cookies, keeps them lush yet light at the same time, and makes them completely irresistible! The cookies are filled with vanilla beans and just the right amount of almond extract to make you smile upon that first bite. It's not knock you down almond, but a soft note that floats around adding that little extra sparkle.

Speaking of sparkles, these little gems get a generous coating of festive sprinkles before baking, which not only makes them Instagram worthy, but also adds a crunch that balances out the beautiful meltaway texture. They're definitely more than just a pretty face!

Sprinkle  cookie cheat sheet:

1. Make cookie dough tonight so you're ready to roll (literally) in the am.
2. Use a cookie scoop to yield even size cookies.
3. Fill a bowl with more nonpareils than you'll need for coating, as it makes life easier when you're not scrounging.
4. Under bake cookies by about 30 seconds because they will continue to firm up as they cool.
5. Store completely cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. They'll stay for about 5 days, but they usually don't make it past 2!
6. Cookies are even better the next day - just trust me 👍

I hope you guys love these! Thank you to all of you who've already made the Raspberry Almond Thumbprints, Homemade Milanos, and so many more! I'm so happy they've become part of your holiday traditions, and thank you for sharing your photos with me!

I want to wish you a very Merry Christmas! I hope you all have a beautiful holiday filled with lots of laughter, wonderful company, great food and even better dessert!

Happy baking! 

Must-Make Holiday Confetti Cookies

Yield: 4 dozen half ounce cookies

Ingredients:

• 6 ounces unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 4 ounces cream cheese
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla bean paste
• 1 tsp. almond extract
• 2 tbsp. Amaretto
• 2 and 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 cup holiday nonpareils

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter, sugar and cream cheese until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes.
3. Add egg, followed by vanilla, almond extract and Amaretto, and mix until combined.
4. Add flour, baking powder and salt, mixing until combined, making sure to scrape the bowl down once to ensure everything is mixed.
5. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours. 
6. Scoop tablespoons of dough (I use a small scoop yielding 1/2 ounce portions), roll in nonpareils, and place on parchment lined pan.
7. Bake cookies for about 12-13 minutes until just set. Allow cookies to cool on pan for about 5 minutes and then transfer to cooling rack.

Notes:

• I recommend baking 2-3 cookies off as a test run for time due to the fact that all ovens are not created equal.
• I recommend using a small cookie scoop so your cookies are all the same size and bake evenly.
• If you make larger cookies, you will have to adjust the bake time.