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Bring a touch of Whoville magic to your holiday baking with these Grinch heart cookies. Each one has a stained glass window center made from melted candies that look just like the Grinch’s glowing heart. The buttery dough has a crisp edge, soft bite and a glossy heart that shines right through. They’re festive, colorful and perfect for sharing at cookie swaps or serving as a whimsical addition to your Christmas dessert table.
Grinch heart cookies are buttery with stained glass candy centers that sparkle red like the Grinch’s heart. They’re festive and lots of fun for holiday baking.
For more festive treats, consider pink peppermint jello shots or stained glass Christmas cookies. And why not make yourself a mistletoe headband?
Why You’ll Love It
Festive look: The candy center makes each cookie sparkle with holiday cheer.
Kid appeal: These cookies are fun to make with little helpers.
Customizable: Use different candy colors for any occasion.
Tasty texture: Buttery dough pairs perfectly with the crisp candy heart.
Grinch Heart Cookie Ingredients
A complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Unsalted butter: Adds richness and helps create a soft bite.
Granulated sugar: Sweetens the dough and helps achieve a light texture.
Eggs: Bind the dough and give structure.
Vanilla extract: Brings warm flavor to balance the sweetness.
Food coloring: Creates the signature Grinch green shade.
All-purpose flour: Provides structure to the cookies.
Hard candies: Melt into shiny stained glass centers for the heart detail.
How to Make Grinch Green Heart Cookies
For more detailed instructions with weights and measurements, jump to the printable recipe card.
Cream butter and sugar: Beat with salt until smooth and fluffy.
Mix in eggs and vanilla: Blend until combined.
Add flour and coloring: Gradually incorporate flour and add food coloring until green.
Chill dough: Wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Roll and cut: Roll dough, cut out cookie shapes and remove inner hearts.
Fill with candy: Place crushed candies in the heart cutouts.
Bake: Bake until edges are golden and candies are melted.
Substitutions and Variations
Food coloring: Swap leaf green gel for another shade if you want variety.
Candies: Try Jolly Ranchers or Life Savers for the stained glass effect.
Gluten free option: Use a 1:1 gluten free flour blend in place of all-purpose flour.
Flavor twist: Add peppermint or almond extract instead of vanilla.
Serving Suggestions
Appetizers: Start your Christmas meal with this cute antipasto Christmas tree.
Main course: Next, serve pineapple glazed ham with green bean casserole, loaded mashed potato casserole and roasted acorn squash.
Dessert: Bring out these Grinch heart cookies for dessert and perhaps whip up some white Christmas punch to go with them!
How to Store Grinch Heart Cookies
Store: The best way to store them is in an airtight container at room temperature. Stack them carefully with parchment or wax paper between layers so the stained glass centers don’t stick together. They’ll stay fresh for about 4 to 5 days.
Freeze: Freeze the baked cookies for up to 2 months or freeze the unbaked dough for up to 3 months.
Thaw: Defrost at room temperature.
Top Tips
Chill the dough: Cold dough makes rolling and cutting easier.
Use parchment: Prevent sticking and help candies spread evenly.
Don’t overfill cutouts: Too much candy can bubble over the edges.
Cool fully: Let cookies cool on the sheet so the candy sets firm.
Grinch Heart Cookies FAQs
Yes, the dough can be chilled for up to 2 days before rolling and baking. You can also freeze it for up to 3 months and then thaw it out and use it to make red and green Christmas cookies or in fact any kind of cookies you want. If you still have it by Valentine’s Day you can make heart-shaped cookies! If you already dyed it green just save it for St Patrick’s Day baking!
Gel coloring gives a brighter color without altering dough texture, so it’s recommended.
Place candies in a sealed bag and crush them with a rolling pin until small chunks form.
Grinch Heart Cookies Recipe
Grinch Heart Cookies
Equipment
- Stand Mixer with Paddle Attachment
- Round Cookie Cutter Large
Ingredients
- ¾ Cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- ¾ Cup granulated sugar
- ¼ Teaspoon sea salt
- 2 eggs, at room temperature and beaten
- 1 ½ Teaspoons vanilla extract
- food coloring gel, leaf green color
- 2 ¾ Cups all-purpose flour,
- 2 Cups Jolly Ranchers, or similar red candies, crushed into small chunks
Instructions
- Using a stand mixer and paddle attachment cream together softened butter, granulated sugar and sea salt until smooth and creamy (about 3 minutes). Scrape down sides as needed and continue to mix.
- Add in beaten eggs and vanilla and mix until combined (about 1 minute or so).
- Gradually add in the flour (2 ½ cups) and mix on medium-low until well combined. As you are adding in the flour, add a few drops of food coloring until you get the desired shade of green.
- Tightly wrap your dough ball in plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours. You can separate it into 2 balls if you prefer to work with smaller batches.
- Preheat oven to 350°F and prepare a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Take your dough out of the fridge.
- Use some of the extra ¼ cup of flour to sprinkle on a clean countertop and turn the dough out onto it.
- Sprinkle the dough ball with flour and use a rolling pin to roll the dough out to about ¼ inch thick. Use more of the extra flour as needed to keep the dough from sticking to the counter or rolling.
- Use a large cookie cutter to cut out “panes” of cookie dough and transfer them to the prepared cookie sheet.
- Use a smaller cookie cutter out of the panes and remove them, adding them to the extra dough that you will roll out for more cookies or use them for smaller mini cookies.
- Place crushed hard candies in the cutout of the cookie dough panes. You want to fill it nearly full with the hard candy crumbs and be sure it is in an even layer, not piled up in the center.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until the edges of the cookies just begin to brown and the candies are completely melted.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on the baking sheet before removing.
Notes
Use parchment: Prevent sticking and help candies spread evenly.
Don’t overfill cutouts: Too much candy can bubble over the edges.
Cool fully: Let cookies cool on the sheet so the candy sets firm.
Nutrition
Bright and whimsical, these Grinch heart cookies with heart shaped stained glass windows are a fun way to celebrate the holidays. The buttery dough pairs with the crisp candy center for a playful mix of flavor and texture. Their cheerful design will stand out at any gathering and add a touch of storybook magic to your Christmas baking. Try them once and they may just become a yearly tradition.
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Bella Bucchiotti
Bella Bucchiotti is a Canadian-based syndicated food, travel, and lifestyle writer, photographer, and creator at xoxoBella. She founded xoxoBella in 2015, where she shares her love for food, dogs, sustainability, fitness, crafts, outdoor adventures, travel, and philanthropy to encourage others to run the extra mile, try new recipes, visit unfamiliar places, and stand for a cause. Bella creates stress-free and family-friendly recipes for weeknight dinners and festive feasts.
These Grinch heart cookies are absolutely adorable! 🎄💚 The stained glass window effect adds such a festive touch, and I can already imagine the joy they’ll bring to holiday gatherings. Can’t wait to try making these and spread some Grinchy cheer! Thanks for sharing this delightful recipe. 🍪✨
These Grinch Heart Cookies are tasty and lovely. I adore how joyful and imaginative they are. These cookies are the ideal way to get into the Christmas mood when baking and decorating them. I appreciate you sharing this. 🍪🎄
Oh my goodness! These stained glass cookies look so delightful, I’m inspired to give it a try even though I never had success making them before.
How cute! I love the stained glass look I have never seen that before
First of all I love the Grinch, but these are great since they have two treat in one basically.
These are adorable! I would never have thought to melt some hard candy to take shape. Very creative!
OMG these are so cute!! I have never been able to successfully make stained glass cookies, going to give these a try!
oh my, these cookies are so cute!! Great recipe
These are adorable!