There’s something magically delightful about assembling a cookie creation you can eat piece by piece, and this Festive Cookie Christmas Tree Recipe is no exception. Imagine the warm spice aroma filling your kitchen while you build a charming, edible Christmas tree that’s as fun to decorate as it is to eat!
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
From the moment I made this cookie Christmas tree, I was hooked. It’s not just a cookie—it’s a delightful holiday centerpiece that doubles as a batch of snacks. Plus, the decorating part gets everyone around the kitchen table smiling!
- Perfect Holiday Activity: Baking and decorating these cookies turns the kitchen into a festive workshop, great for kids and adults alike.
- Spiced and So Aromatic: The ginger, cinnamon, and cloves fill your space with cozy, traditional Christmas scents.
- Customizable Decoration: You can get creative with royal icing and toppings, making each tree uniquely yours.
- Lovely Presentation and Tasting: Not only does it look like holiday magic, but every cookie also tastes buttery and just the right amount of spiced.
Ingredients & Why They Work
These ingredients come together beautifully, balancing buttery softness with a fragrant spice blend that’s classic for Christmas cookies. Using room temperature butter ensures the dough comes together with ease, while the spices are the real star, making each cookie smell like a holiday memory.
- Unsalted butter: Soft, room temperature butter helps your cookie dough turn out tender and easy to roll.
- Granulated sugar: Adds sweetness and contributes to the cookie’s slight crisp edge.
- Egg: Binds everything nicely, giving structure to the cookies.
- Vanilla extract: Gives a subtle depth and warmth that enhances the spices.
- Ginger powder, Cinnamon, Ground cloves: These spices bring the unmistakable cozy, festive flavor we all love for Christmas treats.
- Salt: Balances the sweetness and spices perfectly.
- Baking powder: Helps the cookies puff up slightly, keeping them light, not flat.
- All-purpose flour: The base for your dough, firming it up so your cookies hold their shape well for cutting and stacking.
- Icing sugar: Essential for smooth royal icing to decorate and glue the cookies.
- Egg white or meringue powder: Key to crafting that perfect, pipeable royal icing that hardens just right.
- Water: Used sparingly to get your icing to the perfect consistency.
Make It Your Way
I often like to add a touch of orange zest to the dough for an extra festive zing, or mix in tiny chocolate chips for a surprise in each cookie layer. You can also swap out the spices—maybe try all cinnamon or add cardamom if you want something unique. The royal icing is where you can go wild with colors and textures, from classic white snow to multicolored festive dots or even glittery sprinkles.
- Variation: One year, I made mine peppermint-flavored by adding crushed candy canes to the icing—super festive and a crowd-pleaser!
Step-by-Step: How I Make Festive Cookie Christmas Tree Recipe
Step 1: Whip Up Your Dough
Start by creaming together the softened butter, sugar, and salt using a whisk until it’s creamy and dreamy—this usually takes about 2-3 minutes. Then add the egg, mixing it fully before stirring in vanilla and all those warm spices that make this recipe sing. Next, fold in the flour and baking powder with a spatula until it’s mostly combined; you’ll want to finish kneading gently with your hands just a bit. Wrap the dough and chill it in the fridge for half an hour—this step helps with rolling out cleanly and prevents sticking.
Step 2: Roll, Cut, and Chill
Once cooled, let the dough warm up for a few minutes if it’s too stiff; this makes rolling easier and reduces breakage. Dust your surface well with flour and roll your dough to about 2-3mm thickness. I like to cut out three cookies each of sizes from 13cm to 4cm for a tree that stacks beautifully. Carefully transfer the shapes using a thin spatula to your baking tray—lined with parchment or non-stick for easy cleanup.
Step 3: Bake and Cool
Bake your cookies in a preheated oven at 180°C (350°F) for 8 to 12 minutes, or until their edges just start to turn golden. Keep a close eye—they can go from perfect to overdone quickly. Once baked, let them cool completely before icing because warm cookies can melt your royal icing and make decorating tricky.
Step 4: Mix Your Royal Icing
For royal icing, you’ve got two options: using fresh egg whites or meringue powder. Whisk your egg whites with icing sugar until it thickens, adjusting water slowly to get a smooth yet pipeable consistency. You want it just right so it holds shape but isn’t stiff to squeeze. If using meringue powder, mix it with icing sugar and add water little by little for that perfect paste. When adding color, remember that food coloring thins the icing, so adjust sugar or water to keep it pipe-friendly.
Step 5: Decorate and Assemble
Use a piping bag with a fine nozzle for precision. I like to outline each cookie with a thin line of icing, letting it dry a few minutes before adding dotted patterns around the edges. Keep decorations simple since most will be hidden when stacked. Once decorated, let the cookies dry for about 10 minutes before assembling your tree by stacking cookies with small dollops of icing as glue. Let the whole tree dry thoroughly for 30 minutes to set strong. For that snowy magic, a light dusting of icing sugar on top finishes it off beautifully.
Top Tip
My best tips come from the many times I’ve frosted too-lumpy icing or broken cookies mid-assembly. Learning from those moments makes you a pro faster than you think!
- Consistent Icing Texture: Always test your icing consistency by making a small line on a surface. This little test saves you from runny or hard-to-pipe icing issues later.
- Temper Your Dough: If your dough feels super cold and stiff after chilling, let it sit for 5 minutes before rolling—this prevents cracks and breakage.
- Use Quality Spices: Fresh, good-quality ground spices elevate the aroma and flavor far beyond the basics.
- Gentle Handling: Lift your cookies carefully using a thin spatula to keep shapes intact—especially the smaller cookie pieces!
How to Serve Festive Cookie Christmas Tree Recipe
Garnishes
I love adding tiny edible silver pearls or sparkling sugar crystals on the icing dots for a bit of festive shimmer. Sometimes I sprinkle edible glitter for that wow factor—kids especially love the sparkly effect, which looks just like holiday magic dust.
Side Dishes
Serve your cookie tree alongside a mug of warm spiced cider, hot chocolate, or even peppermint tea. These cozy drinks complement the spicy cookie flavors and really round out the festive vibe.
Creative Ways to Present
Once your cookie tree is assembled, place it on a small cake stand or platter lined with festive paper. You can circle it with fresh pine needles or holly sprigs for a wintery touch. I’ve also wrapped mine in clear cellophane tied with a red ribbon as a gift—that surprise always brightens someone’s day!
Make Ahead and Storage
Storing Leftovers
If you have leftover decorated cookies, store them in an airtight container between layers of parchment paper to protect the icing. They’ll stay fresh and maintain their crisp edges for several days at room temperature.
Freezing
I’ve frozen undecorated cookie dough wrapped tightly in plastic wrap for up to a month—just thaw it overnight in the fridge before rolling out. While I don’t recommend freezing decorated cookies (icing texture changes), the dough freezes beautifully and lets you prep ahead for busy holiday days.
Reheating
Since this is a no-oven treat once baked and decorated, you don't need to reheat. If you want to revive dough, leave it to come to room temperature before rolling. For leftover cookies, just enjoy them fresh at room temperature to keep their crunch and flavor intact.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Absolutely! You can substitute the all-purpose flour with a gluten-free blend designed for baking. Just make sure the blend contains xanthan gum or another binding agent for best structure.
It’s best to let the royal icing dry for at least 10 minutes after decorating before you start stacking the cookies. Once assembled, give it about 30 minutes to fully set so the tree stays sturdy.
You can use a zip-top plastic bag and snip a very small corner off to pipe the icing, but the control won’t be as precise. Investing in a reusable piping bag and small round tips will make decorating much easier and more fun.
Yes! You can bake the cookies one day ahead and store them in an airtight container. Decorate and assemble the next day for the freshest look and best icing texture.
Final Thoughts
Making the Festive Cookie Christmas Tree Recipe is one of those holiday joys that fills your heart with warmth and the room with festive cheer. It’s more than just a recipe—it’s a tradition in the making that turns cookie time into a celebration. Give it a go, and I promise you’ll enjoy every bite and every smile it brings around your kitchen table.
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Festive Cookie Christmas Tree Recipe
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Total Time: 37 minutes
- Yield: 1 cookie christmas tree
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Western
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
This Cookie Christmas Tree recipe is a delightful holiday treat featuring spiced cookies decorated with royal icing to resemble a festive tree. Perfect for holiday gatherings, this recipe guides you through making soft, flavorful cookies layered and decorated to create a charming edible centerpiece.
Ingredients
For the cookies
- 110 g unsalted butter soft, at room temperature
- 150 g granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ginger powder
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 250 g all-purpose flour + more to dust the surface for rolling
For the royal icing (option 1)
- 1 egg white or 30 g pasteurized egg white
- 200 g icing sugar
- Water as needed
For the royal icing (option 2)
- 150 g icing sugar
- 1 tablespoon meringue powder
- Water as needed
Instructions
- Prepare the dough: Use a whisk to beat the butter, sugar, and salt together until creamy. Add the egg and mix until fully incorporated. Add vanilla extract and spices, mixing again.
- Add dry ingredients: Stir in the flour and baking powder using a spatula until mostly combined, then knead slightly with your hands to form a dough. Cover and chill for 30 minutes in the fridge.
- Roll and cut cookies: Remove dough from fridge and allow it to come to room temperature if needed. Roll out dough on a floured surface until 2-3 mm thick. Use cookie cutters to cut shapes in sizes 13, 11, 9, 7, 5, and 4 cm (from point to point), cutting 3 cookies per size plus extra small ones for the tip and snacking.
- Prepare for baking: Use a thin metal spatula to transfer cookies to a non-stick baking tray or one lined with parchment paper or silpat.
- Bake the cookies: Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C (350°F) for 12 minutes or until edges are slightly golden. Let them cool completely before decorating.
- Make royal icing option 1: Place egg whites in a bowl and sift in icing sugar. Beat until combined and adjust texture by adding small amounts of water or lemon juice if too thick or thin.
- Make royal icing option 2: Mix icing sugar with meringue powder, then add water gradually until a thick, pipeable paste forms. Adjust texture as needed by adding more sugar or water.
- Prepare icing for decorating: Cover icing surface with two layers of wet kitchen paper if not using immediately. When ready, reload piping bag fitted with a small nozzle and check consistency, thinning with food coloring if desired.
- Decorate cookies: Pipe a border line about 3 mm inside the cookie edge and let dry 5 minutes. Add decorative dots around the border allowing lines to dry to prevent blending. Use a toothpick to adjust and smooth designs.
- Assemble the tree: Allow decorated cookies to dry for 10 minutes, then stack them with small dollops of royal icing between layers to form a tree. Let the assembled tree dry for 30 minutes before moving.
- Add finishing touch: Dust the assembled tree lightly with icing sugar for a snowy effect.
Notes
- If dough is too hard after refrigeration, let it sit at room temperature a few minutes to prevent cracking during rolling.
- You can choose between two royal icing recipes; both yield good results but differ in ingredients.
- Use a small nozzle on piping bag for precise icing lines and details.
- Allow icing lines to dry between decorating steps to avoid blending.
- Extra small cookies can be used for tree tips or as tasty treats.
- Ensure cookies are completely cooled before icing to prevent melting.
- Store decorated cookies in an airtight container if not consumed immediately to keep them fresh.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie christmas tree
- Calories: 450 kcal
- Sugar: 30 g
- Sodium: 250 mg
- Fat: 20 g
- Saturated Fat: 12 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 55 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Cholesterol: 60 mg
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