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Christmas Sugar Cookies are a soft, chewy sugar cookie decorated like a Christmas Tree. The simple design made with Vanilla Buttercream is beginner friendly. These Christmas Sugar Cookies will make everyone’s spirit bright!
Welcome to day SEVEN of the Christmas Cookies Series!
Christmas Sugar Cookies- The Quintessential Christmas Cookie!
A while ago I asked all of my followers over on Instagram what their favorite Christmas Cookie was- Soft Sugar Cookies were the fan favorite BY FAR!!
So today, I’m going to teach you how to decorate your sugar cookies to look like the cutest little Christmas Trees your eyes have ever seen!
This design is 100% beginner friendly! Kids could even make these! I make these every Christmas, I usually take them to my Dan’s work Christmas party. Whenever I make them, my kiddos always like to decorate one for themselves. I’m always impressed with how well their little trees turn out!
First, let’s start with the sugar cookie dough!
How to make the PERFECT Sugar Cookie
The cookie dough is made of butter, sugar, an egg, vanilla, flour and baking powder. Yup, that is it! Best news yet? No chilling required. Aaaand they keep shape while baking.
You’ll thank me later. Promise. ?
The dough should be soft and very easy to work with. The humidity in your climate has a lot to do with the consistency of the dough. If it is crumbly and dry, add small amount of water until it comes together. If the dough is too wet to roll out, add some more flour. This dough is very forgiving!
Roll out on a floured surface and use a Christmas Tree cookie cutter to cut the cookie dough. The cookies will not rise while baking, so roll the dough out as thick as you want your finished cookie to be.
Transfer to a cookie sheet and bake in the oven at 350° for 7-9 minutes or until the cookies are puffy and no longer glossy on top.
Pssst. Look at that photo below. See, they really do keep shape!!
Let cool for 5-10 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack.
How to Decorate Christmas Sugar Cookies like a Christmas Tree
Once cool, make up a batch of Vanilla Buttercream Frosting, AKA my favorite Sugar Cookie Frosting!
Tint about 3/4 of the frosting green. I like mine to be a more earthy green, so I add 1 drop of red to every 5 drops of green.
The other 1/4 of the frosting needs to be brown.. PRO TIP: use a small amount of cocoa to ‘dye’ your frosting brown.
Starting on the bottom of the tree, pipe with a small round tip in a zig zag motion across the bottom set of ‘branches’. Continue upward repeating the same motion in the center of the tree, finishing with the top of the tree. (see pictures below.)
Finish the tree up with the brown stump, zig zagging horizontally.
Let the cookies sit out on the counter for an hour or two until the frosting crusts. You’ll then be able to put them into plastic bags or cover with plastic wrap without ruining the frosting design!
Frequently Asked Questions about Sugar Cookies
Can Sugar Cookies be Frozen?
Yes! They freeze best without frosting. Freeze with parchment paper in between each cookie. When you want to defrost them, just pull them from the freezer about 2 hours before frosting them.
Can Sugar cookies be kept out on the counter overnight?
Yes! They can sit out on the counter for up to 3 days, frosted. Yes, the frosting is fine to sit out on the counter. The sugar in the frosting stabilizes the small amount of milk in the frosting and makes it shelf stable for 3-5 days.
Can the Sugar Cookie Dough be frozen for later use?
Yes, just wrap in plastic wrap and freeze. Let it sit covered at room temperature for about 2 hours to defrost. If the dough feels dry, knead in a little bit of water until the consistency is like play-doh.
Why is the Sugar Cookie Dough crumbly?
Add water a couple of teaspoons at a time until the dough comes together and is a play-doh like consistency.
Why is the Sugar Cookie Dough sticky?
Sounds like too much liquid was added. Add flour 1 tbsp at a time until the dough is a play-doh like consistency.
PRO TIP: After rolling and cutting the dough, wet your hands while you gather and knead the dough before rolling out again. The water on your hands will level out the added flour used when rolling the dough out.
3 DOZEN COOKIES
Christmas Sugar Cookies
(Printable Recipe Below)
Christmas Sugar Cookies are a soft, chewy sugar cookie decorated like a Christmas Tree. The simple design made with Vanilla Buttercream is beginner friendly. These Christmas Sugar Cookies will make everyone’s spirit bright!
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 egg
- 3 cups flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 batch Sugar Cookie Frosting
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°.
- Cream together the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer for a full 3 minutes.
- Scrape sides and add in vanilla and egg. Mix until combined.
- Add flour and baking powder to the bowl. Mix slowly at first gradually getting faster until the dough comes together. The texture should be like Playdoh. Add a little flour or water if needed to get it to a soft, pliable consistency.
- Turn out onto a floured surface. Use a rolling pin and roll until about 1/4 inch thick. (The cookies will not rise while baking, they will not get thinner while baking. Roll out to your desired FINISHED thickness.)
- Use cookie cutters and cut out desired shapes. Transfer the cookies to a silicone lined cookie sheet.
- Bake at 350° for 6-8 minutes or until the centers are puffy and no longer glossy. Pull the cookies out of the oven BEFORE they start turning brown. If they turn brown, the cookie will be dry and ‘crackery’ instead of soft and chewy.
- Frost with Sugar Cookie Frostingand Enjoy!
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Christmas Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (222g) salted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup (230g) granulated sugar
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 egg
- 3 cups (456g) all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
Sugar Cookie Frosting
- 1/4 cup (55.5g) salted butter, room temperature
- 1/4 cup (47.5g) vegetable shortening
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tsp clear vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 -3 tbsp milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C).
- Cream together the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer for a full 3 minutes.
- Scrape sides and add in vanilla and egg. Mix until combined.
- Add flour and baking powder to the bowl. Mix slowly at first, gradually getting faster until the dough comes together. The texture should be like Playdoh. Add a little flour or water if needed to get it to a soft, pliable consistency.
- Turn out onto a floured surface. Use a rolling pin and roll until about 1/4 inch thick. (The cookies will not rise while baking, they will not get thinner while baking. Roll out to your desired FINISHED thickness.)
- Use cookie cutters and cut out desired shapes. Transfer the cookies to a silicone lined cookie sheet.
- Bake at 350°F (180°C) for 6-8 minutes or until the centers are puffy and no longer glossy. Pull the cookies out of the oven BEFORE they start turning brown. If they turn brown, the cookie will be dry and ‘crackery’ instead of soft and chewy.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the pan while making the frosting.
- To make the frosting, cream together the butter and shortening until smooth.
- Alternate adding 1 cup of powdered sugar and a little bit of milk to bring the powdered sugar together with the butter mixture.
- Repeat until all powdered sugar has been incorporated.
- Mix in the vanilla extract thoroughly.
- You can now adjust the thickness of the frosting by adding more milk, if needed.
- Color the frosting with food coloring, if desired, and then decorate the cooled sugar cookies.
- Store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Enjoy!
The best sugar cookie recipe, easy and deliciously satisfying. Cookies don’t spread and you don’t even have to refrigerate before baking. It’s amazing!
Great recipe! Cookies stay soft and don’t dry out!
Made 160 of them today for cookie decorating tomorrow. They are the best recipe. They did exactly what you said and they don’t spread. So easy to make. Thank you