* 1 recipe Sugar Cookie Dough, at room temperature
* 6 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
* 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
* 1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar
* 1 tablespoon pomegranate juice
* Small red sugar hearts, for decorating
* Equipment: 2 1/4-inch round cookie cutter, 1 1/2-by-1-inch heart-shaped cookie cutter

Directions

Start with Alton’s Sugar Cookie dough recipe.

Prepare dough as directed and chill for 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Sprinkle a work surface and rolling pin with confectioner’s sugar and roll out dough to 1/8-inch thick. Move dough frequently to prevent it from sticking and add more confectioner’s sugar to the work surface and rolling pin as needed. With a 2 1/4-inch round cookie cutter, cut 72 dough rounds, re-rolling dough as needed. With a small heart-shaped cookie cutter (about 1 1/2-by-1-inch), cut hearts from the center of half the dough rounds. Place the rounds and cutouts about 1 inch apart on parchment -lined baking sheets. Bake until just set but not brown, about 6-8 minutes. Let cool on the pan slightly before transferring to a rack to cool completely.

Meanwhile, make the filling: In a small bowl, whisk together the cream cheese, butter, confectioner’s sugar, and pomegranate juice until smooth and fluffy. Spread about 1 teaspoon filling on each round cookie and top with a cut-out cookie. Place a red candy heart in the center of each. Leftover filling can be used to sandwich the small hearts together.