These Puff Pastry Christmas Trees filled with cookie butter are fun and festive holiday cookies on a stick! They only require 4 ingredients and simple prep. Perfect for cookie swaps, cookies for Santa, teacher gifts and are fun to make with kids.
Aren't these Italian-style cookies precious? They may look difficult to make but they aren't and I'll show you step by step how to make them.
Layered with sweet, spiced cookie butter and dusted with cinnamon sugar, these flaky and delicate Christmas tree "cookies" are a delicious way to celebrate the holiday season.
I'm all about making quick and easy treats for the holidays like my Oreo Mint Truffles and Shortcut Frosted Mini Brownie Cups!
I'm obsessed with Biscoff cookies and cookie butter, so I made these Christmas tree desserts for my 6th annual Holiday Cooking Show. They were a huge hit! I know you will love them too!
Shortcuts
- Using store bought puff pastry shaves hours off prep time.
Having to make your own puff pastry dough can be time consuming. That's why using store bought frozen puff pastry is an absolute life saver!
Ingredients
What you will need to make Cookie Butter Puff Pastry Trees:
Scroll down to printable recipe for exact ingredient quantities.
- Puff pastry
- Cookie butter - Biscoff is a well-known brand when it comes to cookie butter, but any brand will work.
- Cinnamon sugar - Either buy cinnamon sugar or make your own! See Pro Tip section below.
- Butter (Salted or unsalted)
Pair these puff pastry Christmas trees with my Little Debbie Christmas Tree Dip to add to a truly decadent dessert board!
How to make this Christmas Tree Dessert
Scroll down to the bottom for the printable recipe with detailed instructions.
- Roll out the thawed puff pastry into a rectangle.
- Spread one half with cookie butter, then fold the other half of the pastry over top.
- Using a knife or pizza cutter, slice the puff pastry into strips.
- Fold each strip into a Christmas tree shape.
- Stick a wooden skewer through each puff pastry ribbon to maintain its shape.
- Transfer the assembled puff pastry trees onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, then bake and enjoy!
If you want to make a star for each of them, use the last strip of filled dough and cut out tiny stars with a star cookie cutter and bake them separately. Then press them into the top of the stick after baking.
You can also top them with a marshmallow star or gummy star.
Pro Tips
To make your own cinnamon sugar, combine 3 tablespoons sugar with 1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon and mix well.
Substitutions & Variations
Trade "this" for "that" in this puff pastry Christmas tree recipe.
- Nutella Puff Pastry Christmas Tree - Substitute Nutella (or any chocolate hazelnut spread) for the cookie butter.
- Other fillings - Instead of or in addition to the cookie butter, try something like peanut butter or Sunbutter (sunflower butter).
- Star tree toppers - 1. Use one of the strips to make little stars using a star shaped cookie cutter. Place them at the top of each tree before baking. 2. Add candy stars or gummy stars to the top of each tree after baking.
- Sprinkles - Add some green sprinkles or green sanding sugar. Kids would love it!
Helpful Information
This delicate and layered pastry dough is a fantastic base for various pastries and other desserts. Made by layering and folding with butter, this sheet-like dough is available to purchase in stores (usually frozen) which means much less prep for you!
Made from a spiced cookie called speculoos, this thick and sweet spread combines cookie crumbs with some kind of fat (like butter or vegetable oil) and sugar. It has a taste similar to gingerbread with hints of caramel.
Storage Tips
- To Store. Store any leftover puff pastry trees in the refrigerator, covered or in an air tight container. They can be eaten cold, but I recommend letting them come up to room temperature again (or even popping them back in the oven for a minute or two!)
- To Freeze. You can also keep your puff pastry trees in the freezer for months at a time. Let it thaw in the fridge overnight before eating.
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If you make this recipe I'd love to see it! Tag me on social media with #gritsandgouda or @gritsandgouda. Leave a comment below the printable recipe if you have questions or tell me how you liked the recipe. Don't forget to rate it 5 stars if you love it!
Want more shortcut dessert recipes?
Cookie Butter Puff Pastry Christmas Trees
Equipment
- Star cookie cutter set optional
Ingredients
- 1 17.3 ounce package of two frozen puff pastry sheets thawed
- 2/3 cup cookie butter such as Biscoff
- 2 tablespoons salted butter melted
- 3 tablespoons cinnamon sugar*
Instructions
- Thaw frozen puff pastry according to package directions. I prefer the overnight in the fridge method.Keep the other sheet in the refrigerator until ready to use.
- Preheat oven to 375F degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Working with one sheet at a time, roll it out onto a clean, dry counter into a 15x10-inch rectangle. If you carefully lift the sheet as you roll it to keep it from sticking, you probably won’t need to lightly dust flour on the surface.
- Cut the rectangle in half lengthwise. Spread 1/3 cup cookie butter over one of the rectangle halves, all the way to the edges. Stack the other rectangle on top of the cookie butter-covered half, making sure the edges match up.
- Using a sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut 5 (1-inch) wide x 10-inch long strips.
- Start folding the strip accordion-style by making the bottom of the trees (wider end) first. The first fold will be about 3 inches wide. Continue folding the strip back and forth stacking it on top of the previous fold, reducing the size of the fold until you get to the top. The folded strip will resemble a tree.
- Push a wooden skewer through the center of the tree, starting at the bottom up to the top of the tree. Leave about 3/4 to 1 inch at the top of the skewer.
- Loosen the folds of the tree to allow the puff pastry room to expand while baking.
- Place each tree on a baking sheet in the refrigerator after making each one so the dough doesn’t get too warm.
- Repeat the procedure with the remaining pastry sheet and cookie butter.
- Brush the puff pastry trees with melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar
- Bake the Christmas tree cookies for 15 to 18 minutes or until very lightly browned on the edges. Let them cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes. Remove to cool completely on a wire rack.
Notes
- Make your own cinnamon sugar. Combine 3 tablespoons granulated sugar and 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon sugar.
- Use alternate fillings like peanut butter, Nutella, or sunflower butter.
- Decorate with candies like marshmallows or gummy stars, or add holiday sprinkles.
Nutrition
Nutrition analysis on GritsAndGouda.com recipes are mostly calculated on an online nutrition calculator. I am not a dietitian and nutritional information is an estimate and can vary based on products used.
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