Tropical Sugar Cookies
Recent travels to Hawaii inspired a new recipe for tropical sugar cookies infused with fresh passion fruit. The sugar cookies not only taste like a tropical paradise, but look the part too, decorated with piped royal icing plumeria flowers. Of all the tropical flowers we came across while in Oahu, plumeria were one of the most beautiful with a delicate shape and petals. I knew the blooms would look gorgeous atop sugar cookies, offering a sweet finishing touch to the tropical flavored cookie dough, sure to transport you to the island of your dreams! They are gorgeous, mouthwatering and delicious, full of tropical notes and texture from passion fruit seeds and indeed destined to be a new favorite!
Tropical Sugar Cookies
A delightful twist on classic sugar cookies, infused with fresh passion fruit nectar and seeds and decorated with piped royal icing plumeria. They’re perfect for beach and tropical themed gatherings with the ultimate tropical colors, floral design and flavor!
Tropical inspiration
We saw many native tropical flowers while traveling around Oahu, but truly loved the plumeria. The delicate and fragrant blossoms hovered above in trees, occasionally floating to the ground as the wind blew, thus offering the sweetest baking inspiration upon return from our travels.
The tropical sugar cookies represent our experience in Oahu, celebrating the beauty of the islands.
Cut out Tropical Sugar Cookies
These cookies are undoubtedly one of my favorite recipes to date! The tart and citrus-like flavor from the passion fruit, truly sets them apart from any other roll out cookie out there. The passion fruit seeds and icing plumeria are an added bonus.
I adapted our go-to sugar cookie recipe by removing one egg in place of the passion fruit nectar. I also increased the flour by 1/4 cup. It’s still no-chill and will come together and bake quickly! The dough is also easily adaptable with a dairy free option included!
How do you make roll out sugar cookies?
Making the sugar cookies takes under 30 minutes from start to bake. Simply mix all wet ingredients with a hand or stand mixer, then mix in the dry ingredients. Once the dough has formed, roll it out onto parchment cutting the shapes far enough apart that you can peel away the excess dough and transfer directly to the oven for baking. This will ensure that the cookies maintain their shape. Let cool fully before decorating.
How to make the Royal Icing
Royal icing is my favorite way to decorate cookies and this plumeria petal design is simple and an easy place to start. The icing mixes up quickly with meringue powder, powdered sugar, extract, food coloring and warm water. Since the passion fruit cookies already have so much flavor, this royal icing only calls for vanilla extract.
Start by whisking the meringue powder and water together in a stand mixer until it forms very soft peaks, then mix in the icing sugar and extract. Once fully combined, the icing becomes thick like toothpaste. Add a few drops of water for thinning, slightly so the icing it’s the perfect piping consistency for the plumeria.
Divide the icing. Transfer a small portion of icing into a bowl, coloring it with yellow food coloring. Mix until fully combined. Scoop out more of the white icing into a bowl, coloring it with pink food coloring and 1 drop of yellow, mixing until combined.
Decorating Supplies:
- 2 tip-less piping bags.
- 2″ parchment paper squares and flower nail.
- 2 piping bag fitted with petal tip 104 to pipe the plumeria flowers.
Two tone royal icing
To create the two tone icing for piping the plumeria, spread the yellow icing lengthwise along the back side of the piping bag, in line with the wide side of the petal piping tip. Then fill the bag with white icing to create the yellow centered blossoms/ white petals. Seal closed. Repeat these steps for the 2 tone pink plumeria, adding white to the piping bag first followed by pink. Seal and prepare for decorating.
Decorating the tropical sugar cookies
Attach a 2 inch square of parchment paper to a flower nail with royal icing.
How to pipe plumeria flowers with royal icing
Use the two-tone royal icing to pipe the 5 petal plumeria. The wide base of the petal tip should be down, and touching the parchment on an angle. Squeeze the icing and move your hand in a curved motion with the piping tip wide side down, close to the parchment to create your first petal. Pull away, then repeat this design motion, piping each new petal slightly beneath the last petal, until the entire plumeria is complete. For less rounded more pointy petals, use less arch when piping each petal.
(See Video)
Remove parchment from nail and set each transfer aside to dry. Continue piping plumeria icing transfers until there’s enough to add to the cookies.
Once all plumeria icing transfers have dried, use a food grade paint brush and dab the centers of each flower with orange gel food coloring.
Dust plumeria with edible glitter. They’re ready to attach to the cookies.
Tropical Sugar Cookies
- Prep Time: 60
- Cook Time: 15
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 2 dozen 1x
- Category: Baking
- Method: Tropical Cookies
- Cuisine: Dessert
Description
A delightful twist on classic sugar cookies, infused with fresh passion fruit nectar and seeds and decorated with royal icing plumeria. They’re perfect for beach and tropical themed gatherings with the ultimate tropical flavor!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 sticks based butter (or plant based)
- 1 cups granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 fresh passion fruit (juice, nectar, seeds) (approximately 1/4 cup juice)
- 1 tsp Vanilla
- 2 3/4 cups flour (+ extra, 1 tbsp at a time)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 4 cups confectioners sugar
- 1/4 cup meringue powder
- 1/4 cup + warm water
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Yellow orange & pink gel food coloring
- Tipless piping bags
- 2 petal piping tips: 104
- Edible glitter
Instructions
- Pour measured flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl and mix until combined. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer or with a hand mixer, mix butter and sugar together for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the edges of the bowl.
- Beat the egg, passion fruit and vanilla extract into the butter and sugars until smooth and fully combined.
- Pour dry flour mixture into the butter, egg and sugar on mixing medium.
- Mix until the the cookie dough forms and attaches to the paddle.
- If the dough is still slightly sticky add additional flour to the mixture 1 tbsp at a time continuing to mix.
- The mixing bowl should be mostly clean when the dough is ready to roll out.
- No chilling required.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Lightly flour a rolling pin and a sheet of parchment paper.
- Roll out the sugar cookie dough to about 1/4 ” thick.
- Cut the dough into circle shapes using a cookie or biscuit cutter, a glass will also work.
- Leave about 1″ between each cut cookie.
- Remove the excess dough surrounding each cut shape, then transfer the cookies on parchment to a baking sheet and place in the oven.
- Bake in the middle rack for just under 5 minutes. 6 minutes if you prefer a crisper cookie.
- Remove from oven and cool completely before decorating with royal icing.
- Repeat steps for remaining dough.
- Cookies are over-baked with the edges or bottoms are brown.
Royal Icing:
- Combine the water and meringue powder in the bowl of an electric or stand mixer.
- Whisk on medium high for about 2-3 minutes until the mixture becomes foamy and forms very soft peaks.
- Then switch to a paddle attachment and pour in the powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Mix on medium for another 1-2 minutes until the icing is thick like toothpaste. Add additional warm water a few drops at a time until the icing is a thick piping consistency and still holds its form.
- Scoop a small portion of the piping icing into a mixing bowl and color with 3-4 drops of yellow gel coloring. Stir until combined set aside.
- Take half of the remaining white icing and place it in a bowl and color with 3-4 drops of pink gel color and 1 drop of yellow. Stir until pink hue is achieved. You should now have 3 colors of icing, pink, yellow and white.
- To create the 2 tone icing design, spread a line of yellow icing along the inside of the bottom of the piping bag (lengthwise), placing the white icing on top of the yellow. The yellow icing should line up with the wider side of the piping tip. Seal closed.
- Repeat this 2 tone design for the pink and white piping bag adding the white icing to the bag first, followed by the pink, and seal closed.
Plumeria icing transfers:
- Attach a square of parchment paper to a flower nail with royal icing and use the two-tone royal icing to pipe the 5 petal plumeria.
- The wide base of the petal tip should be touching the parchment on an angle, with the thin side up.
- Squeeze the icing and move your hand in a curved/arched motion with the piping tip close to the parchment to create your first petal.
- Pull away, then repeat this design motion piping each new petal, slightly beneath the last petal until the entire plumeria is complete.
- Remove plumeria on piped parchment from nail and set aside to dry.
- Continue piping plumeria flowers in the varied colors until you have enough to top the cookies.
- Set aside to dry for 6-8 hours.
- Once all plumeria icing transfers have dried, use a food grade paint brush and dab the centers of each flower with orange gel food coloring.
- Dust with edible glitter. They’re ready to attach to the cookies.
- Once dry, pipe a line of icing onto the center of each cookie and attach the dried plumeria icing transfers.
- Repeat steps for all cookies.
- Serve immediately or store in an airtight container. They will keep for 3-6 months.
Enjoy these tropical plumeria cookies at your next beach, floral or tropical themed gathering!
The cookies would also make lovely treats for weddings, bridal and baby showers. Stop by my amazon shop for all the supplies needed to make a batch!
And be sure to check back soon for more inspiring treats and recipes!
This post titled Tropical Sugar Cookies was first seen on Posh Little Designs. All Rights Reserved. 2024
