I know cutout cookies can be a real pain, but since these are simply cut into large rounds that are then cut in half, they go very fast. Frosting sugar cookies is usually the worst – but these take about 10 minutes for the entire batch. In fact, my teenage daughter frosted these cookies for the picture; she’d never done it before, and they came out great. A real timesaver for cutout cookies is to use a pastry cloth and rolling pin cover which eliminates sticking and makes rolling much easier.
If you don’t want to make your dough from scratch, you can use a sugar cookie mix or even use store-bought dough. You can also stir food coloring into canned white frosting and microwave for a few seconds to make it the right consistency to dip the cookies in. I like to use paste food coloring to get the best bright watermelon colors; it is available at craft stores and restaurant supply stores.
I’ve included one of my favorite sugar cookie recipes; it is made with real butter, so besides being cute, these cookies actually taste good.
Watermelon Slice Cookies
Makes about 4 dozen cookiesCookies
3 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 cup butter
3 eggs
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla
Red Paste Food Coloring
1 cup (about) miniature semi-sweet chocolate chips
Glaze
3 cups powdered sugar
2 to 4 tablespoons milk
green paste food coloring
Cookies: Sift dry ingredients in bowl; cut in the butter until it looks like cornmeal. Mix in the eggs, flavorings, and red food coloring to make the dough a deep pink.
Roll out on a floured pastry cloth 1/4" to 1/3" thick and cut with a 4" round cutter. Cut each round in half and place on a parchment-lined or greased baking sheet.
Press a few chocolate chips in each cookie for seeds.
Bake at 350° for 8 to 10 minutes or until the edges barely begin to brown. Remove to cooling racks.
Glaze: Mix the powdered sugar and milk until the consistency of pancake batter; add enough green paste color to make a bright green. Place in a wide, shallow bowl. Dip the rounded edge of each cookie in the glaze to resemble watermelon rind. Let set up on parchment or waxed paper.
Nutrition Information:
Amount Per Serving
Calories 138 Calories from Fat 50
Percent Total Calories From:
Fat 36% Protein 4% Carb. 60%
Nutrient Amount per % Daily
Serving Value
Total Fat 6 g 8%
Saturated Fat 3 g 16%
Cholesterol 24 mg 8%
Sodium 63 mg 3%
Total Carbohydrate 21 g 7%
Dietary Fiber 0 g 0%
Sugars 0 g
Protein 1 g
Vitamin A 3% Vitamin C 0% Calcium 0% Iron 1%