Christmas tree gingerbread cut-outs with piped garlands and tiny icing ornaments, made with molasses, ginger and cinnamon.
Pipe a zigzag white garland from the top down, leaving visible cookie between lines. Add small icing dots as ornaments and a small star at the top.
Prepared icing consistency and drying time vary by brand. The amount allows simple piped details; elaborate flood icing requires more icing and decorating time. These are flat edible cookies, not structural gingerbread.
Gingerbread Christmas Tree Cookies
Per tray: 8–12 minutes · About 3 trays, one at a time; cutter shape changes yield
Allow 165 minutes: 55 hands-on, 60 chilling, 30 for all baking trays, 20 cooling. Cooling includes the pan rest. Optional decoration, ingredient warm-up and extra trays add time.
Kitchen tools you’ll need
- US measuring cups/spoons and digital kitchen scale
- Large saucepan, mixing bowl and whisk
- Rolling pin and parchment
- 3-inch Christmas tree cutter
- Two 13 × 18-inch baking sheets
- Wire cooling rack
- Small piping bags with fine round tips
Christmas tree gingerbread cut-outs with piped garlands and tiny icing ornaments, made with molasses, ginger and cinnamon.
Ingredients
Scale ingredients and US equivalents, including eggs. Keep cookie size, thickness, oven temperature and baking time per tray unchanged. More trays add time; weigh beaten egg for fractional batches.
Cookie dough
Spice blend
Decoration
Instructions
A · Prepare & mix
- Melt & seasonGently melt butter over low heat. Remove from the heat and stir in sugar, molasses, salt and spices until evenly combined. Let cool until lukewarm before beating in the egg.
- CombineWhisk flour with baking powder and baking soda, then mix into the wet ingredients until no dry flour remains. Dough will be sticky; do not add more flour.
B · Chill
- Firm the doughDivide into two flattened rectangles, wrap tightly and refrigerate at least 60 minutes, until cold and firm enough to roll. Chilling firms the butter and lets the flour hydrate.
C · Roll & cut
- ShapeHeat oven to 350°F (175°C) conventional, or 320°F (160°C) fan. Roll one cold portion 1/4 inch thick on lightly floured parchment. Cut 3-inch Christmas tree shapes, lifting them with a thin spatula. Space 1 inch apart. Gather scraps gently and keep unused dough cold.
D · Bake
- Check donenessPlace on parchment-lined pans about 1 inch (2.5 cm) apart. Bake one tray at a time for 8–12 minutes. Check at 8 minutes, especially with fan: edges should darken slightly and surfaces look set. Smaller shapes finish sooner.
E · Cool & finish
- Cool before icingLeave on the pan 5 minutes, then cool on a rack about 15 minutes until completely cold. Pipe a zigzag white garland from the top down, leaving visible cookie between lines. Add small icing dots as ornaments and a small star at the top. Let icing dry according to its packaging before stacking; drying time is additional.
Chef’s Science & Pro Tips
Clean outlines
Roll dough to an even 1/4 inch and keep narrow details cold. Avoid stretching cut-outs during transfer.
Piping control
Pipe a zigzag white garland from the top down, leaving visible cookie between lines. Add small icing dots as ornaments and a small star at the top.
A tidy finish
Decorate completely cooled cookies. Practice the line thickness on parchment before piping the batch.
Storage & Make-Ahead
| Method | How long | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Room temperature | Up to 5 days | Store fully cooled cookies airtight in a cool, dry place. Let icing dry, then separate layers with parchment; follow any icing storage instructions. |
| Refrigeration | Dough: up to 48 hours | Keep dough tightly wrapped. Let it soften just enough to roll while remaining cool. Plain baked cookies do not need refrigeration. |
| Freeze raw dough | Up to 2 months at 0°F (−18°C) | Wrap flattened dough portions tightly, then bag. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and roll while cool. |
| Freeze baked cookies | Up to 2 months at 0°F (−18°C) | For best appearance, freeze undecorated, cooled cookies airtight. Thaw covered at room temperature before icing. |
| Refresh | Before decorating | For crisper edges, warm plain cookies at 300°F (150°C) conventional for 3–5 minutes. Cool on a rack. Do not reheat iced cookies. |
Notes
- Prepared icing consistency and drying time vary by brand. The amount allows simple piped details; elaborate flood icing requires more icing and decorating time. These are flat edible cookies, not structural gingerbread.
Nutrition
Estimated per stated serving from generic ingredient weights and yield. Includes listed icing, fillings, candy and toppings; excludes optional extras. Prepared icing is modeled as sugar-based cookie icing. Brands, coating left over, cutter sizes and yield change the estimate.
RECIPE REVIEWEDGINGERBREADGINGERBREAD COOKIES
Frequently Asked Questions
A few helpful answers before you bake.
How do I stop the tree tip breaking?
Keep the dough cold and lift the entire tree with a wide spatula. Cool on the pan before moving.
Should I use green icing?
White icing looks snowy; green prepared cookie icing is an optional color choice with the same technique.
Can trees and rounds share a tray?
Bake shapes of similar size together. Thin tree tips brown sooner than broad rounds.
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