12 Days of Christmas: Cherry Pie Cookies

It's the last day of my 12 Days of Christmas Food countdown!  

Today I am sharing a very cute cookie that fits perfectly into the Christmas color scheme:

Cherry Pie Cookies

These cookies are a simple shortbread thumbprint cookie that gets filled with cherry pie filling!  They are delicious and sweet!  If you didn't want to use cherry pie filling, you could also use any type of red jam!

Here's What You Need to Make the Cherry Pie Cookies:

• 2 sticks of butter (1 cup), softened
• 1 tsp almond extract 
• 3/4 cup of powdered sugar 
• 2 cups of all purpose flour 
• 1 can of cherry pie filling (you won't use the whole can)

Here's What You Need to Make the Glaze:

• 1/2 cup powdered sugar 
• 1-2 tsp milk 
• 1 drop almond extract 

Now Let's Make the Cherry Pie Cookies:

1. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees 
2. In a stand mixer, using a paddle attachment, cream together the butter and almond extract
3. Add the powdered sugar and beat until smooth
4. Add flour, 1 cup at a time, and beat until a dough forms 
5. Roll dough into 24 balls, approximately 1 inch in size, and place onto ungreased cookie sheets 
6. Use your thumb or the handle of a wooden spoon to make indentations in the center of each ball
7. Fill each indent with one or two cherries and some of the red gel
8. Bake in the oven for 13-15 minutes
9. Allow to cool for a few minutes on baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool 

Now Let's Make the Glaze

1. In a small bowl, mix together the powdered sugar, almond extract and 1-2 tsp of milk - you want it to be thin enough to pipe on cookies but thick enough that it will not run
2. Once desired consistency is reached, spoon icing into a ziploc bag
3. Snip off on corner of the bag and pipe icing over tops of cookies 
4. Allow glaze to harden before storing cookies in an airtight container