Cinnamon Sugar Leaf Cookies

Five ingredients. Ten minutes in the oven. Pie crust cookies are one of the simplest baking projects a kid can make, and these cinnamon sugar leaf shapes turn a fall afternoon into something that smells (and tastes) incredible.

Use a leaf template to cut nature-inspired shapes from store-bought pie dough, brush with butter, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, and bake until golden. That’s the whole recipe.

Leaf Pattern

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Servings: About 10-12 cookies (from one pie crust)

Difficulty Level: Easy

Ingredients

• 1 pre-made refrigerated pie crust (one round)
• 2 tablespoons butter (or margarine), melted
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• A pinch of flour for rolling

Allergy notes: Contains gluten (pie crust) and dairy (butter). Check your pie crust package for specific allergens, as some contain eggs or soy.

Substitutions:

• Dairy-free: Use melted coconut oil or dairy-free margarine instead of butter.
• Make your own cinnamon sugar: Just mix the sugar and cinnamon together in a small bowl. Done.
• No pie crust? Puff pastry sheets work too, and they puff up into flaky, puffy leaves.

Steps

Grownup help needed for steps 1, 4, and 5.

1. Preheat the oven. Set it to 350°F (175°C). Lightly grease a cookie sheet or line it with parchment paper.
2. Mix the topping. In a small bowl, stir together the sugar and cinnamon.
3. Roll out the dough. Unroll the pie crust on a lightly floured surface. If it cracked when unrolling, just press it back together with your fingers.
4. Cut the leaf shapes. Use leaf-shaped cookie cutters, or download and print the leaf pattern template (above), lay it on the dough, and trace around it with a butter knife or plastic knife. Gather the scraps, re-roll, and cut more leaves until the dough is used up.
5. Place on the sheet. Set the leaves on the prepared cookie sheet, leaving about an inch between each one.
6. Brush with butter. Use a pastry brush (or your finger) to lightly coat the top of each leaf with melted butter.
7. Add the cinnamon sugar. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture over the buttered leaves. Be generous.
8. Add leaf veins (optional). Use a butter knife to gently press lines into each leaf: one line down the center and a few diagonal lines branching off each side, just like real leaf veins. This doesn’t change the taste but makes them look amazing.
9. Bake. Put the cookie sheet in the oven for 8 to 10 minutes, until the edges are golden brown.
10. Cool and eat. Let the cookies cool on the sheet for a few minutes (they’ll be soft when they first come out but crisp up as they cool). Then enjoy.