Celebrate the holidays with these festive Christmas Tree Sugar Cookies. Soft, buttery, and topped with colorful icing and sprinkles for a cheerful treat everyone will love.
These Christmas Tree Sugar Cookies are a festive holiday treat that are as fun to decorate as they are to eat. Soft, buttery, and slightly sweet, they hold their shape perfectly for decorating with colorful icing, sprinkles, and other festive toppings.
This recipe is simple to make and perfect for holiday baking with family or friends. You can get creative with decorations, making them a cheerful addition to cookie exchanges, parties, or dessert tables.
Everyone will love these delicious little Christmas trees. We also make Meringue Christmas Trees and Christmas Tree Cupcake Cake.
What's in this post: Christmas Tree Sugar Cookies Recipe
Why We Love This Recipe
- Festive and Fun: Perfect for holiday decorating with kids or friends, making baking a joyful activity.
- Soft and Buttery: The cookies stay tender while holding their shape, ideal for detailed icing designs.
- Customizable: Decorate with icing, sprinkles, or edible glitter to match any holiday theme.
- Great for Sharing: Perfect for cookie exchanges, parties, or gifting to loved ones.
- Simple Ingredients: Made with pantry staples, making them easy to whip up anytime during the season.
Ingredients
Cookies
- All-Purpose Flour: Spoon into the measuring cup to avoid packing too much flour, which can make the cookies dense.
- Unsalted Butter: Softened to room temperature for easy mixing and a tender, buttery texture.
- Sugar: Regular granulated sugar adds sweetness and helps create a slightly crisp edge.
- Eggs: Large eggs at room temperature help bind the dough and provide structure.
- Vanilla Extract: Pure vanilla extract enhances the overall flavor and aroma of the cookies.
Frosting
- Cream Cheese: Softened at room temperature for a smooth and creamy frosting that spreads easily.
- Powdered Sugar: Sifted to remove lumps, ensuring a silky, even frosting.
- Green Gel Food Coloring: Gel coloring provides vibrant, long-lasting color without thinning the frosting.
- Sprinkles: Adds a festive touch and fun texture for decorating the cookies.
Skip to the bottom for the complete ingredient list and recipe instructions.
Variations
- Royal Icing: Swap the cream cheese frosting for royal icing if you prefer a firmer, glossy finish that hardens for stacking or gifting.
- Different Frostings: Sugar cookies pair well with many types of frosting, including chocolate, buttercream, or flavored cream cheese.
- Store-Bought Dough: For a quicker option, use pre-made sugar cookie dough. Roll it out and cut into tree shapes just like homemade dough.
- Sprinkle Options: Use any colors or types of sprinkles to match your holiday theme, from classic red and green to rainbow or metallic.
- Creative Icing Colors: While green is traditional for trees, feel free to decorate with white, blue, or even multi-colored icing for a unique look.
- Flavor Boost: Add a splash of lemon extract, almond extract, or orange zest to the cookie dough for a subtle but festive flavor twist.
- Toppings: Try edible glitter, mini chocolate chips, or crushed candy canes for added texture and visual appeal.
Step By Step Instructions
Step 1. Combine the dry ingredients using a medium size mixing bowl.
Step 2. Get out a separate bowl and beat together the butter with the sugar. I used a stand mixer. Add in the eggs one at a time until combined. Add in the vanilla extract. Then combine the dry ingredients and wet ingredients.
Step 3. After you divide and roll out the dough, cut into shapes with tree shaped cookie cutters. Place on the baking sheet.
Step 4. Bake until the cookies are lightly browned around the edges. Then allow to cool completely on a wire rack.
Step 5. While the cookies cool, make the frosting. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese and butter until the mixture is smooth.
Step 6. Then add the powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Mix on low until all the ingredients are combined. Then increase the speed and beat until the frosting is smooth.
Step 7. Add the green gel food coloring until it is the shade you prefer.
Step 8. Put the frosting in a piping bag fitted with either a star piping tip, ribbon tip or leaf/petal tip. Decorate each of the tree cookies with the green frosting and top with the sprinkles to resemble ornaments on the trees.
Pro Tips
- Use room temperature ingredients: Allow butter, eggs, and cream cheese (if using frosting) to sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes before starting. This helps the dough and frosting blend smoothly.
- Don’t overmix the dough: Overmixing can lead to dense, tough cookies. Mix just until the ingredients are combined for soft, tender cookies.
- Use pure vanilla extract: High-quality vanilla enhances the flavor of both the cookies and frosting. Avoid imitation vanilla for the best taste.
- Chill the dough if needed: If the dough feels too soft or sticky, refrigerate for 15–30 minutes to make rolling and cutting easier.
- Even rolling: Roll the dough evenly to ensure cookies bake uniformly and hold their shape well.
- Watch baking time: Keep an eye on the cookies and remove them when the edges are lightly golden to prevent overbaking.
Storage
Room Temperature: Store completely cooled cookies in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Place parchment paper between layers to prevent sticking.
Refrigerator: Keeps cookies fresh for up to 1 week. This is especially useful if your frosting contains cream cheese.
Freezer: Wrap cookies individually or layer with parchment paper in an airtight container. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature before serving.
Frosted Cookies: If decorated with frosting or royal icing, allow the icing to set completely before storing to prevent smudging.
More Christmas Cookie Recipes
- Christmas Pinwheel Cookies
- Christmas Cowboy Cookies
- Christmas Cut Out Sugar Cookie Recipe
- Easy Grinch Cookies Recipe
- Eggnog Cookies
- Christmas Light Cookies
It’s your turn to make these delightful Sugar Cookies Christmas Trees. Then please come back and leave a star recipe rating and comment.
Christmas Tree Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
FOR THE COOKIES:
- 2 1/2 cups All Purpose Flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 Large Eggs
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
FOR THE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING:
- 8 oz Cream Cheese softened
- 1/4 cup Butter softened
- 3 cups Powdered Sugar
- 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- Green Gel Food Coloring
- Sprinkles for decorating
Instructions
FOR THE COOKIES:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a medium size mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Then set aside.
- In a separate bowl, beat together the butter with the sugar until creamy and light and fluffy. Add in the eggs one at a time until combined. Then add in the vanilla extract. Continue mixing.
- Slowly add the dry mixture to the butter mixture. Mix until just combined. Be careful not to over mix.
- Divide the cookie dough into 2-3 balls.
- Roll out each of the dough balls onto a lightly floured surface until the dough is approximately ¼ inch thick. Then use a Christmas tree cookie cutter to cut out the cookies. Continue this process until all the dough is formed into the cookies.
- Line the cookie sheet with parchment paper. Using a metal spatula move the cut cookies to the parchment lined cookie sheet.
- Bake for 7-8 minutes until the cookies are lightly browned around the edges (just a slight change of color).
- Let the cookies cool on the pan for 5 minutes and then carefully move the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. (About 10 minutes).
FOR THE FROSTING:
- In a large mixing bowl beat together the cream cheese and butter until the mixture is well combined and smooth. Then add in the powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Mix on low speed until all the ingredients are combined.
- Then increase the speed and beat until the frosting is smoothed. Add in the green gel food coloring and mix until the frosting is the color of green that you prefer.
- Place the frosting in a piping bag fitted with either a star tip, ribbon tip or leaf/petal tip.
- Decorate each of the tree cookies with the green frosting and top with the sprinkles to resemble ornaments on the trees.
- Then the cookies are ready to serve and enjoy!
