Ingredients
Method
- Beat butter, sugar, egg, vanilla, and almond extract for 2 minutes until pale.
- Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt; mix into butter mixture until just combined. Divide dough, flatten into discs, wrap, and chill 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Roll dough to 1/4 inch, cut shapes, and bake on parchment-lined sheets 9-11 minutes. Cool completely.
- Sift powdered sugar and meringue powder; beat with 4 tbsp water to stiff peaks. Adjust water a few drops at a time.
- Divide and tint icing. Reserve one-third stiff for outlining, thin the rest to 10-second flood consistency with water.
- Outline cookies, flood with matching color, and dry 1 hour. Pipe details with stiff icing and dry 4 hours before stacking.
Notes
Chilling time and icing drying time are not included in the prep or cook estimates; plan for at least 1 hour of dough chill plus 4 hours for the icing to set hard before stacking. If you only have one baking sheet, cool it completely between batches so the dough doesn’t melt on contact.
