Make a Christmas Cookie Tree
A Holiday Gift Guide for Making a 3D Christmas Tree from Cookies
One new Christmas tradition that I'd like to start with my family is making a Christmas Cookie Tree or an edible tree made from series of stacked cookie stars.
I discovered the cookie tree while working on cookie recipe lenses for the Great Christmas Cookie Recipe Challenge and making my lens for Piparkakut - The Best Gingerbread Recipe Ever.
Making a 3 dimensional Christmas trees from cookie stars (or snowflakes) is very simple, but you end up with a stunning effect. You just need a series of graduated star cookie cutter patterns or a collection of star shaped cookie cutters to cut out the cookies from your favorite holiday cookie recipe.
There are Christmas Cookie Tree kits with all of the cookie cutters and decorating tools and some kits that even come with the cookies already pre-baked.
Read on to discover how to start your own new Christmas tradition by making cookie trees for decorations and to give as gifts. Get a set of graduated star cookie cutters and start making your own 3D cookie trees.
Cookie Christmas Trees by Brie79 under Creative Commons License.
Christmas Cookie Trees Make Yummy Gifts
Making a Christmas Cooking Tree Video
Michgold09 shows how his family makes a Christmas Cookie Tree. It looks like a fun family tradition.
This is my Mom's Finnish Gingerbread Recipe for Piparkakut.
If you need it doubled (enough dough to make a decent gingerbread house) check the recipe on the Finnish Gingerbread Houses lens.
Ingredients
- 7 cups flour
- 3 teaspoons ginger
- 3 teaspoons cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamon
- 1 cup margarine
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups molasses
- 4 teaspoons grated orange rind
Instructions
- Sift Together in a separate bowl: Flour, spices, salt and soda.
- Cream well in a large bowl:Margarine with sugar
- Mix Together: Alternating dry ingredients with eggs, molasses and orange rind. Mix until recipe is well-blended.
- Chill: Refrigerate overnight (Dough can keep up to 1 week)
- Roll out:1/8 inch thickness and cut into desired shapes.
- Transfer: Carefully place cookies on ungreased baking sheet.
- Bake: 375 ° for 8 to 10 minutes. Be careful not to burn.
- Yield: 7-8 dozen cookies (depending on the size of the cookie cutters)
- Image Gingerbread Star by Matt Turner
Decorated Cookie Trees
Cookie Christmas Trees by Brie79 under Creative Commons License.
Swedish Sugar Cookies Recipe
This is a basic sugar cookie recipe that I have in my recipe file.
Ingredients
- 3 3/4 cups flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1 1/8 cup butter or shortening (at least part butter)
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 1/2 teaspoons of pure vanilla
Instructions
- Mix Together: Shortening, sugar, eggs and vanilla. Combine with the dry ingredients with the other ingredients, gradually until the recipe is well-blended.
- Chill: Refrigerate at least one hour.
- Roll out:1/8 inch thickness and cut into desired shapes
- Transfer: Carefully place cookies on ungreased baking sheet.
- Bake: 400 ° F for 6 to 8 minutes. Be careful not to burn.
- Yield: 6 dozen cookies (depending on the size of the cookie cutters)
- Image Making Sugar Cookies by Tubagooba.
More Christmas Cookie Tree Recipes
These recipes for Christmas Cookie Trees use different cookie recipes as their base, but most are either gingerbread or sugar cookies.
- Gingerbread Tree Recipe
One good idea often leads to another. That's certainly the case with this tasty craft that began with a favorite cookie at Pat's house. Pat's delightful gingerbread recipe came across our Test Kitchen's desk not long ago. We knew it was a "winner"-bu - Gingerbread Star Tree Recipe
Our home economists created this impressive, tasty cookie tree for the 2008 Holiday & Celebrations Cookbook. Guests can nibble on the gingerbread cookies as they talk and mingle at your festive gathering. - Gingerbread Christmas Tree Recipe - Food.com - 148611
An easy gingerbread Christmas Tree recipe with pictures. - Gingerbread Tree Recipe - Taste.com.au
Gingerbread tree recipe - Preheat oven to 180C. Sift flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, spices and a pinch of salt into a bowl. - The Creative Cake Maker: Cookie Christmas Tree
On one of her shopping excursions, she found a "Cookie Tree Kit" produced by Wilton. It was a set of 10 plastic star-shaped cookie cutters in graduated sizes from small to large, along with two decorating tips, 2 plastic piping bags and a booklet of - Christmas Tree Cookies Recipe | Christmas Desserts | Reader's Digest
These 3-D cookie trees are as delicious as they're beautiful! - TLC Cooking "Christmas Cookie Tree"
Make the best Christmas Cookie Tree with this easy recipe using refrigerator cookie dough.
Cut out the Star Cookies
Baking Cookies by Rachel Pics.
6-Piece Graduated Star Cookie Cutter Set
Star Cookie Cutter Sets
Wilton Cookie Tree Kit
Make a Cookie Tree with the Kids
A fun activity for the kids from Matthew Ingram.
Snowflake Cookie Cutters
A fun variation on the star cookie tree, a cookie tree made from snowflake cookies.
How to Decorate a Gingerbread Cookie Tree
In this video clip from Wilton Cake Decorating you will learn how to decorate gingerbread for all seasons. Includes instructions for decorating a gingerbread house, gingerbread tree and Easter gingerbread house.
Christmas Cookie Tree Set
Assembling the Christmas Cookie Tree with Royal Icing
Once the graduated star or snowflake cookies have been cut, baked and cooled they need to be carefully assembled to complete the cookie tree.
The trick is to be able to look at all of the cookies, especially if several sizes have been used and determine the sizes of the cookies from smallest to largest. Lining the cookies up first make make it easier to accurately assemble the tree.
To assemble, simply glue each layer with royal icing in sequence from the largest cookie at the bottom to the smallest cookie at the top.
Finish decorating the cookie tree with a dusting of powdered sugar and other assorted decorations (like M&M's) as desired.
Royal Icing Recipe
- Ingredients:
- * 3 tablespoons powdered egg whites or meringue powder
- * 1 pound (4 cups) sifted confectioners' sugar
- * 1/3 cup water (6 tablespoons)
- Directions:
- 1. Combine powered egg white or meringue powder with sugar. Add water a bit at a time.
- 2. Beat all ingredients with a mixer until stiff peaks form. This may take 7 to 10 minutes.
- 3. Keep icing covered until ready to use.
- Makes 2 1/2 cups of icing.
Image by Matthew Ingram.
Wilton Cookie Tree Cutter Kit
Cookie Tree Kits on Amazon
If you don't want to make your own cookie dough, you can order one of the pre-baked gingerbread kits and still make a cookie tree.
How to Make a Christmas Cookie Tree
- How to Make a Christmas Cookie Tree | eHow.com
How to Make a Christmas Cookie Tree. Baking Christmas cookies can be fun when you get the whole family involved. Make a Christmas cookie tree for an added treat. Make several and set them out as a centerpiece for your next Christmas party. - Nifty 3D Christmas Tree Cookies, great to eat or give!
A fabulous way to turn sugar cookies into gorgeous Christmas Tree gifts. They look fabulous, taste great, and are fun and easy to make. - Star Chrismas Tree Cookies
A recipe using a cake mix from the Old Recipe Book website. - How to Make a Cookie Christmas Tree | eHow.com
How to Make a Cookie Christmas Tree. Christmas cookies are a tradition. While cookie platters are beautiful, there are several other ways to make your cookies look beautiful, decorative and delicious. - How to make a gingerbread Christmas cookie tree | CakeJournal | How to make beautiful cakes, sweet c
This is a tutorial for the gingerbread Christmas cookie tree that I made last year. I used my Christmas cookie tree as a centerpiece on our buffet. - TLC Cooking "Christmas Cookie Tree"
Make the best Christmas Cookie Tree with this easy recipe. Find thousands of free, expert-tested, printable recipes on HowStuffWorks.com - Things I Like To Make: Christmas Cookie Tree
For Christmas gifts for my daughter's preschool teachers I thought it would be fun to find a neat way to share some of our favorite Christmas cookie trees with them. - Gingerbread-Cookie Trees - Martha Stewart Recipes
A variation on the cookie tree from Martha Stewart.
Decorated Gingerbread Cookie Tree
Decorated Christmas Cookie Tree by Xajondee.
The Chef's Kitchen with a Holiday Cookie Tree
As part of the Philadelphia Magazine Guide to Holiday Entertaining, Chef John Gallagher of the Restaurant School at Walnut Hill College shows us how make a traditional Holiday Cookie Tree.
Make a Norwegian Kransekake - Almond Ring Cake
As seen in the video clip above with Chef John Gallagher, another version of a cookie tree is the Almond Ring Cake, Kransekake or Norwegian Wedding Cake.
In this cookie tree, the almond paste cookie or rings are made from a basic recipe of almond flour, sugar and egg whites in the traditional recipe, so Kransekake can be made as a gluten free recipe.
The dough is then piped into special Kransekake rings or forms, baked and then carefully assembled and decorated with small Norwegian flags, marzipan fruit and wrapped candy to make the traditional 18 layer cake.
As noted by Chef Gallagher, the cake is often assembled around a bottle of wine which is drunk after the cake is eaten.
If you are making your own Christmas cookie tree, you may do like Chef Gallagher and decorate the rings differently, in Christmas colors.
Image Kransekake by hfb.
Norwegian Wedding Cake Pans on Amazon
Kransekake Recipes
- Search Results for 'kransekake' - CookEatShare
A selection of Kransekake recipes from CookEatShare. - Norwegian Wedding Cake
Recipe for Norwegian wedding cake on the Taste of Home Community Forum. - Norwegian Kransekake, Almond Ring Cake - A Basic Norwegian Recipe for Kransekake, Almond Ring Cake
Kransekake, or "Ring Cake," is the signature cake of Norway, earning pride of place on wedding, birthday, graduation, and holiday banquet tables. Traditionally made from almonds, confectioner's sugar, and egg whites, it is a splendid flourless, glute - Norwegian Almond Cake
A light almond cake with a rich custard topping. Not a pretty cake, but never met a person who didn't like it. However, be careful - not all the ingredients are good for the waistline. - Axis of Evil » Ring Toss
A tower of almond rings popular in parts of Scandinavia for weddings, New Year's and other celebrations. - Kransekake
With a set of 6 forms you can make the 18 rings of a Norwegian Wedding Cake, the Kransekake. Recipe and instructions are included.
Give Christmas Tree Cookie Cutter
Cookie Tree for Stocking Stuffers on eBay
A collection of Cookie Trees that can be used as stocking stuffers on eBay.
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History of the Cookie Tree Lens
Squidoo's Holiday Gift Guide
This lens started as part of Squidoo's Holiday Gift Guide where you can find some of the best recommendation for holiday gifts.
Look for the Holiday Elf and know you can find a unique gift recommendation for everyone on your shopping list.
Have you ever made a Cookie Christmas Tree?
Does this look like a fun idea for Christmas?
