Sugar cookie Christmas tree cutouts are one of those nostalgic holiday staples that just feel like Christmas. There’s something incredibly heartwarming about rolling out dough, cutting festive shapes, and decorating with colorful sprinkles or icing while holiday music plays in the background. These cookies are soft but hold their shape beautifully, and the gentle vanilla-butter flavor is perfect for all your decorating ambitions. Whether you're baking with kids or prepping a tray of holiday desserts for a party, these sugar cookie Christmas tree cutouts are the kind of treat that brings out the joy in everyone—and they’re as fun to make as they are to eat.
Whimsical Sugar Cookie Christmas Tree Cutouts
Prep Time 20 minutes mins
Cook Time 10 minutes mins
Chilling and Decorating 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins
Total Time 2 hours hrs
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 36 cookies (depending on size of your cutouts)
Stand mixer or hand mixer A stand mixer makes creaming the butter and sugar effortless, but a hand mixer will do just fine.
Mixing bowls One large and one medium.
Rolling Pin A wooden or silicone rolling pin works best. If you don’t have one, a clean wine bottle makes a decent substitute.
Christmas tree cookie cutters If you don’t have a tree shape, stars or circles also work well. You can even cut freehand with a knife for a rustic look.
Baking sheets Two to three standard-sized baking sheets lined with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
Cooling racks Essential for allowing cookies to cool evenly.
Piping bags or squeeze bottles For icing, though you can also use zip-top bags with the corners snipped off.
Toothpicks or skewers Helpful for fine details in decorating.
For the Cookies
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour plus more for rolling
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 cup 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract optional but highly recommended for depth
For the Royal Icing (Optional for Decorating)
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons meringue powder
- 5 –6 tablespoons water adjust for consistency
- Gel food coloring green, red, white, gold are great Christmas choices
- Sprinkles edible glitter, small candies, and more for decoration
Prepare the Dough
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl or stand mixer, beat the softened butter and sugar together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy—about 2–3 minutes. Add in the egg, vanilla extract, and almond extract if using, and beat until fully incorporated.
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet, mixing on low speed until a soft dough forms. If the dough feels too sticky, add a tablespoon of flour at a time until it's workable.
Chill the Dough
Divide the dough in half, shape into disks, and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour. This step is key for clean-cut cookies that don’t spread too much in the oven.
Roll and Cut
Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Line your baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out one disk of dough to about ¼ inch thick. Use your Christmas tree cookie cutter to cut out shapes, then place them onto the prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 1 inch apart.
Gather the scraps, reroll, and continue cutting until all dough is used. Repeat with the second disk.
Bake the Cookies
Bake in the preheated oven for 9–10 minutes, or until the edges are just starting to turn golden. Do not overbake—they should be soft and pale with firm edges.
Allow the cookies to cool on the sheet for 2–3 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Make and Color the Icing
While the cookies cool, prepare your royal icing. In a large bowl, combine powdered sugar and meringue powder. Add water gradually, mixing until the icing reaches your desired consistency. For outlining, the icing should be thick; for flooding, it should flow easily but not too runny.
Divide into bowls and color as desired with gel food coloring. Christmas green, snowy white, and candy cane red are all great choices. Fill piping bags or squeeze bottles.
Decorate!
This is the fun part—get creative! Outline your Christmas tree cutouts with stiff icing, let it dry slightly, then flood the center with thinned icing. Use sprinkles, mini M&Ms, sugar pearls, or edible glitter to decorate your holiday cookies recipes in festive style.
Let cookies dry completely before stacking or storing—this may take several hours, depending on the thickness of the icing.
Pairings
These sugar cookie Christmas tree cutouts go perfectly with cozy, wintery drinks. Here are a few pairing ideas:
- Hot cocoa with whipped cream: The buttery sweetness of the cookies complements rich, creamy cocoa beautifully.
- Spiced chai latte: The warming spices add contrast to the simple vanilla base of the cookies.
- Mulled wine or cider: Great for adult gatherings—these drinks enhance the festive flair of your christmas treats recipes.
- Milk (classic, oat, or almond): You can't go wrong with a tall glass of milk to balance these sweet bites.
If you’re creating a dessert platter, pair these with other holiday desserts like peppermint bark, chocolate fudge, or thumbprint jam cookies for a well-rounded Christmas dessert spread.
FAQs
1. Can I use salted butter instead of unsalted?
Yes, but if you do, reduce the added salt in the recipe to ¼ teaspoon to balance the flavor.
2. Do I have to chill the dough?
Absolutely. Chilling the dough prevents the cookies from spreading too much during baking and helps retain those clean Christmas tree edges.
3. Can I freeze the dough or baked cookies?
Yes. The dough can be frozen for up to 3 months—just thaw in the refrigerator overnight before rolling. Baked cookies (undecorated or decorated) can be frozen for 1–2 months in an airtight container.
4. Should I use royal icing or buttercream for decorating?
Royal icing is best if you want that crisp, detailed look often seen in Christmas cookies decorated professionally. Buttercream is softer and easier to work with, especially for kids.
5. What type of cookie cutter works best for this recipe?
Metal cookie cutters tend to give the cleanest edges, but plastic ones work just fine. Just make sure the edges are sharp enough to cut cleanly through the chilled dough.
