Cookie cutters are a staple in any bakery during December. Standard cookies transform into fun shapes with the cookie cutters, which may bring a smile from both young and old. Many different cookie cutters create icon cookie shapes like gingerbread men and stockings. 

While they come in many shapes, some shapes are more manageable for beginners, like hearts and rectangles. If you are an advanced baker or want to challenge yourself more, shapes like Reindeer and a Waving Santa will be this challenge with their thin antlers that many get stuck in the mold and the small hands that run the possibility of breaking or bending when put on a new tray.     

Decorating Christmas cookies is a well-known tradition and can be fun for those who like to bake and are artistic and creative. It can also be a fun activity to do with friends and spend time together, whether it’s for fun or, if you’re competitive, hold a little decorating competition. With practice, you might surprise yourself with how well your cookies come out. It’s really not as difficult as it seems and really requires patience. There are multiple videos on YouTube that explain the process very simply. 

Sugar Cookie Recipe

1 cup butter

1 cup sugar 

3 cups flour 

1 tablespoon baking powder 

1 large egg

1 tablespoon vanilla extract 

½ teaspoon almond extract 

¼ teaspoon salt

1. Preheat the oven to 370 degrees
2. In a large bowl, mix butter, sugar, egg, and vanilla extract 
3. In a medium bowl, mix dry ingredients and whisk thoroughly 
4. Pour dry ingredients into the butter mixture and mix them into the dough
5. Lightly flour the cutting board and cookie cutter, and cut the dough 
6. Bake for 7-9 minutes. Check after 7 minutes. They should appear light on top and slightly brown on the bottom 
7. Remove from the cookie sheet and allow to cool 

Icing

1 bag of powdered sugar

3 tablespoons meringue powder 

⅔ cups water 

¼ cup corn syrup 

1 tablespoon butter 

1 tablespoon vanilla extract 

1. In a mixing bowl, add powder sugar and meringue and mix.
2. Once combined, add half the water, corn syrup, butter, and vanilla and mix. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl. If the icing is dry and thick, add a little more water until the icing is light and fluffy. Be careful not to overmix, or it can be crumbly when dry. If it’s too thick, add a little more water. If it’s too soft, add tablespoons of powdered sugar and mix until it holds steady. 
3. Get separate bowls for different icing colors. Make a border around the cookie where you want it to be a specific color. For example, if you’re making a snowman with a hat, create a border around the hat in the color you want. Next, fill it in. Remember, the frosting can overflow, so do it slowly. You don’t have to fill it, at least mostly, and gently shake the cookie so the frosting evens out. When you’re done, there might be small open spots, but you can fix that by going over it with a toothpick. Remember to be patient and let the icing dry before adding icing to the rest of the cookie, because the icing can blend if not fully dry. At the very end, when the cookie is fully dry, you can add the final details. Again, the snowman, for example, you would wait until the hat is fully dry before adding any decorations to it.
4. This is a simpl,e easy way of decorating a cookie. There are a lot of really cool designs you can learn to do on YouTube. It’s really not as difficult as it seems. It just requires patience and practice.