Transforming your cookies into works of art doesn't require Martha-level decorating skills. And when you have the right baking tools,(Opens in a new window) it's easier to get your cookies to look their best. With options to use festive frostings, sprinkles, crushed peppermint, and more, our beginner guide will have you decorating cookies like a professional in no time.
Start with a Basic Cookie Recipe
No need to get fancy here. The cookie itself can be simple to let the decorations shine. Try our butter cookie recipe(Opens in a new window). This is a crowd-pleaser-cookie (hello three sticks of butter!) and makes for a great cookie base for decorations.
Make Fun Shapes With a Cookie Press
If you’re shaping holiday cookies with a cookie press(Opens in a new window), you can use the butter cookie or another favorite spritz cookie recipe(Opens in a new window). Spritz cookies are basically just buttery, simple cookies that hold their shape well when they go through a cookie press. The name comes from the German word spritzen, or “squirt,” because the soft dough squirts through the press. Here are a couple cookie press pro-tips: use a cold, ungreased cookie sheet(Opens in a new window) (if it’s warm, it’ll cause the cookies to spread and lose their shape). The dough should be at room temperature and soft so it can easily “squirt” through the press.
Go Natural With Frosting Dyes
Instead of using artificial food coloring, use beet juice to mix up a red dye, turmeric powder for a yellow dye, and matcha powder for green. From there, you can blend other colors: mix the turmeric with matcha to make blue, or the turmeric and beet to make orange. Start with a simple buttercream frosting(Opens in a new window) and add as much of the dyeing agent as you need to get the color you want.
Use Sprinkles to Hide Mistakes
Everything’s more fun when sprinkles are involved. Plus, they’ll hide any frosting blemishes or browned cookie edges. They also add a festive punch of color to otherwise neutral-colored butter cookies. We like to store sprinkles in clear containers to easily see what you have on hand.
Let It Snow
OXO's Baker's Dusting Wand(Opens in a new window) is amazing to have on hand when decorating, especially for tree-shaped or snowflake-shaped cookies. It adds a little flurry of snow to each cookie(Opens in a new window) (and, once again, covers up any decorating mishaps). This duster is also really satisfying to use—it’s kind of like shaking a snow globe except sugar falls on delicious cookies.
Get Creative With Sandwich Cookies
Because the only thing better than one cookie is two! Make a sandwich cookie by piping frosting with the Baker's 8 Piece Silicone Decorating Bottle Kit(Opens in a new window) between two cookies. Roll the frosted sides in sprinkles or crushed peppermint.
Invest in a Decorating Bottle
Go beyond the typical knife-slathering frosting technique and invest in a decorating bottle(Opens in a new window). It’s seriously easy to use and it’s small so it won’t take up much drawer space. All you have to do is load the bottle with frosting and start squeezing to your heart’s content. The six different stainless steel tips make it easy to experiment with different frosting designs and shapes. This little tool makes your cookies go from amateur hour to professional-looking.
Add more color to your desserts with these recipes for tie dye sugar cookies(Opens in a new window), multi-colored cookies(Opens in a new window) and watercolor cookies(Opens in a new window).
