There’s something truly magical about building edible decorations, and this Festive Cookie Christmas Tree Recipe is just the cozy, sweet centerpiece your holiday needs. The crunchy spiced cookies stacked like a mini tree bring joy not just to your taste buds but to your festive table decor too.
Jump to:
Why You'll Love This Recipe
I absolutely adore how this Festive Cookie Christmas Tree Recipe doubles as both a delicious treat and a charming holiday decoration. It’s hands-on, creative, and perfect for sharing a little festive fun with friends or family.
- Beautiful and Edible: You get a stunning cookie tree that’s not just for looks — it’s packed with warm holiday spices.
- Fun to Assemble: Building the tree is a creative activity that anyone can enjoy, and it’s especially great with kids.
- Customizable Decoration: You can get as fancy (or as simple) as you want with the royal icing and garnishes.
- Perfect Holiday Gift or Centerpiece: It makes a thoughtful homemade gift or a show-stopping addition to your dessert table.
Ingredients & Why They Work
The ingredients for these cookies come together to create that perfect balance of tender, flaky texture and cozy holiday flavor. Plus, the royal icing options are flexible for whichever you prefer to work with.
- Unsalted butter: The base for rich, tender cookies without added salt interfering with the spice blend.
- Granulated sugar: Sweetness is balanced just right without overpowering the spices.
- Egg: Adds moisture and binding, helping the cookies hold their shape.
- Vanilla extract: Enhances flavor with a warm, familiar note.
- Ginger powder, cinnamon, ground cloves: Classic Christmas spices that fill the kitchen with holiday spirit.
- Salt: Sharpens the flavors and balances the sweetness.
- Baking powder: A small lift to keep the cookies tender but firm enough to stack.
- All-purpose flour: Provides structure and just the right chewiness.
- Royal icing ingredients (egg whites or meringue powder, icing sugar, water): Used to decorate and glue the cookies together for your edible tree.
Make It Your Way
I like to switch up the decoration style depending on my mood or who’s joining me for the baking party. Feel free to customize the spices or experiment with different colored icings to make the tree truly your own.
- Spice Variation: Once, I swapped out cloves for nutmeg and added orange zest for a citrus twist — it turned out amazing and fresh.
- Gluten-Free Option: Subbing the all-purpose flour for a gluten-free blend worked well when I had an allergy-aware group over.
- Royal Icing Flavors: Adding a tiny bit of peppermint extract to the icing spices things up delightfully.
- Simplified Decoration: A light dusting of powdered sugar instead of icing cuts prep time if you’re short on time but still want festive flair.
Step-by-Step: How I Make Festive Cookie Christmas Tree Recipe
Step 1: Whip Up the Spiced Cookie Dough
The first thing I do is cream the softened butter, sugar, and salt with a whisk until it’s smooth and fluffy — your patience here pays off with tender cookies. Next, crack in the egg and beat it until it’s fully incorporated. Add in the vanilla extract along with the aromatic spices: ginger, cinnamon, and cloves. Then, gradually fold in the flour and baking powder using a spatula. When things get too thick, I gently knead the dough by hand until everything comes together. The dough hugs your fingers and smells like Christmas heaven at this point.
Step 2: Chill and Roll Out the Dough
After wrapping the dough, I pop it in the fridge for a solid 30 minutes. This rest is key — it makes the dough easier to roll and helps the cookies keep their shape in the oven. When it’s ready, lightly flour your surface and roll the dough to about 2-3mm thick. This thinness ensures a crisp bite while still being sturdy enough to support your cookie tree.
Step 3: Cut Shapes and Bake
I use a set of cookie cutters sized from big to small (13 cm down to 4 cm) to cut out several cookies for each size — usually three per size for a full tree. That smaller tip cookie? It’s the cherry on top! Use a thin spatula to carefully transfer your cookies onto a lined or non-stick baking sheet. Bake them at 180°C (350°F) for 8-12 minutes until the edges just start to turn golden — watch carefully so they don’t overbake and dry out.
Step 4: Prepare and Adjust Your Royal Icing
While the cookies cool completely, it’s time to mix the royal icing. I’ve tried both egg white and meringue powder methods — both produce that glossy, firm finish perfect for crisp designs and gluing the cookies together. I always sieve the icing sugar and slowly add water to get just the right consistency: thick but smooth, like soft toothpaste. Pro tip: test by making a line on a plate — it should hold shape but still be easy to pipe.
Step 5: Decorate and Assemble the Tree
I pipe a neat outline about 3mm from the edge of each cookie, then wait five minutes for it to set before adding delicate dots for a festive pattern. This layering stops the icing from bleeding together. When the decorations are dry enough, I use small dabs of royal icing to stack the cookies from largest to smallest, carefully centering each one. Let the whole tree dry for at least 30 minutes before moving it — patience truly pays when building structure. For that finishing touch, a dusting of icing sugar looks like freshly fallen snow.
Top Tip
I’ve learned a few tricks after making this recipe a handful of times that really help the Festive Cookie Christmas Tree Recipe come together flawlessly — and I want you to have the same success!
- Don’t Skip Chilling: The dough is delicate, and chilling it keeps the cookies crisp and prevents spreading.
- Use a Thin Spatula for Transfer: It helps avoid breaking those delicate cookie edges when moving to the baking tray.
- Adjust Icing Consistency Slowly: A little water goes a long way — add it drop by drop to avoid runny icing.
- Let Icing Set Between Steps: Waiting between piping the outline and dots prevents colors from running and keeps designs crisp.
How to Serve Festive Cookie Christmas Tree Recipe
Garnishes
I love adding tiny edible pearls or colorful sugar crystals on top of the royal icing dots — it adds just the right bit of sparkle. Sometimes a sprinkle of finely crushed peppermint candies on the base cookies gives a refreshing pop that guests always comment on.
Side Dishes
This cookie tree pairs beautifully with a cozy cup of hot cocoa or spiced mulled wine. I’ve also served it alongside my favorite holiday fruitcake or gingerbread latte for a festive snack plate that impresses every time.
Creative Ways to Present
For festive gatherings, I arrange the cookie tree on a mirror plate surrounded by holly leaves and mini fairy lights — it makes the whole table glow. Another favorite is building several smaller trees and placing them in clear glass jars as edible gifts that double as decor.
Make Ahead and Storage
Storing Leftovers
Any leftover cookie pieces or assembled trees keep well stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week. I recommend layering the cookies with parchment paper to prevent sticking and preserve decoration details.
Freezing
I’ve frozen undecorated cookie dough wrapped tightly in plastic wrap for up to two months. When thawed, you can roll and bake as usual, which makes this perfect for getting ahead of holiday prep stress. However, decorated trees don’t freeze well — the icing texture suffers.
Reheating
Since these cookies are best enjoyed crisp, I don’t recommend reheating the decorated tree. But if your cookies get a little soft, a quick 5-minute warm-up in a 150°C (300°F) oven brings back their bite—just skip the icing department to keep it perfect.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Yes! Store-bought royal icing can save time and works perfectly for decorating and assembling the cookie tree. Just ensure it has a similar consistency to homemade icing so your decorations hold well.
The key is to let each layer dry completely before stacking the next one. Use just enough royal icing as glue and center each layer carefully. Patience during assembly really helps for a stable structure.
Absolutely! It’s a fantastic kid-friendly activity—from rolling and cutting the cookies to decorating with icing. Just supervise the use of sharp tools and hot oven. Kids especially love assembling the tree and adding colorful decorations.
Royal icing typically takes about 30 minutes to an hour to dry enough for handling between steps, but for full drying and hardening, allowing it to sit overnight is best. This drying time ensures your decorated cookie tree stays intact.
Final Thoughts
This Festive Cookie Christmas Tree Recipe has become one of my favorite holiday traditions because it’s both a craft and a treat wrapped into one. There’s nothing quite like the scent of spiced cookies wafting through the kitchen while you build your little edible tree — it just brings a smile to everyone’s face. I hope you get to try this recipe and make some joyful memories with it this season!
Print
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: European
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
This Cookie Christmas Tree recipe combines spicy, aromatic cookies with smooth royal icing to create a festive and edible holiday decoration. The ginger and cinnamon-infused cookies are baked to a delicate crisp and then decorated with classic royal icing for an elegant snowy effect. Perfect for holiday parties or as a charming gift.
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
- Mix butter and sugar: Use a whisk to beat the butter, sugar and salt together until you have a creamy consistency.
- Add egg: Add the egg and mix it in until fully incorporated.
- Add vanilla and spices: Add the vanilla extract, ginger powder, cinnamon, and ground cloves and mix once again.
- Incorporate dry ingredients: Add the all-purpose flour and baking powder; mix using a spatula. When the spatula no longer helps, gently knead the dough with your hands until smooth.
- Chill the dough: Cover the dough and place in the fridge for 30 minutes to firm up.
- Prepare for rolling: After chilling, allow the dough to come to room temperature briefly if too firm to roll to prevent cracking.
- Roll and cut cookies: Roll out the dough on a floured surface to 2-3 mm thickness. Use cookie cutters sized 13, 11, 9, 7, 5, and 4 cm to cut shapes, making three cookies per size and a few extra smaller ones for the top tip and snacking.
- Transfer to baking tray: Use a thin metal spatula to lift cookies and place on a non-stick baking tray or one lined with baking paper or silpat.
- Bake cookies: Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C (350°F) for 12 minutes or until slightly golden around the edges.
- Cool completely: Let the cookies cool fully before decorating to prevent the icing from melting.
- Prepare royal icing option 1: Place egg whites in a bowl, sieve icing sugar over, beat until combined, then adjust consistency with water or lemon juice to a pipeable but non-spreading texture.
- Prepare royal icing option 2: Mix icing sugar with meringue powder, add water gradually to form a thick paste. Adjust texture as needed so it holds shape when piped but isn't too stiff or runny.
- Maintain icing moisture: Cover the surface of the royal icing with two layers of wet kitchen paper if not using immediately to prevent drying.
- Color and fill piping bag: Add food coloring if desired (note it will thin the icing) and fill a piping bag fitted with a small nozzle.
- Decorate cookies: Pipe slow, consistent lines approximately 3 mm above the cookie surface to create outlines and dots. Allow the outline to dry 5 minutes to prevent dot lines from merging. Use a toothpick to correct and smooth details. Avoid over-decorating to keep the focus on the cookie tips.
- Dry and assemble tree: Let decorated cookies dry 10 minutes before stacking them with small dollops of royal icing as glue between layers. Allow the fully assembled tree to dry for 30 minutes before handling.
- Add snowy effect: Dust the finished cookie tree lightly with icing sugar for a festive, snowy look.
Notes
- Use softened butter at room temperature for easier mixing and better cookie texture.
- Chilling the dough helps maintain cookie shapes during baking.
- If dough cracks while rolling, let it warm slightly and roll gently on a dusted surface.
- Ensure cookies are completely cool before applying royal icing to avoid melting.
- Adjust royal icing consistency carefully for piping precision.
- Wet kitchen paper layers prevent icing crusting when waiting to decorate.
- Use a small nozzle on the piping bag for detailed decoration control.
- Allow piped icing lines to dry before adding dots to keep decorations crisp.
- Stack cookies carefully and allow drying to maintain the tree's stability.
- For a longer-lasting tree, avoid excessive moisture or humidity exposure.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie Christmas tree
- Calories: 450 kcal
- Sugar: 40 g
- Sodium: 250 mg
- Fat: 20 g
- Saturated Fat: 12 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 6 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 60 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Cholesterol: 55 mg
Leave a Reply