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Baking Christmas cookies with kids is so much fun! Discover 5 beautiful and super easy ideas for Christmas cookies without cookie cutters – perfect for creative families. Includes a simple recipe & helpful tips to make baking with kids stress-free!
This weekend the first Christmas markets open, the first fairy lights appear in the windows, and the shops are decorated for Christmas… The perfect time to start our favorite family tradition: baking Christmas cookies!
My “minis” and I love to bake creative Christmas cookies during the holiday season! (Have you already seen our favorite Christmas cookies?). From reindeer cookies to Santa Claus Cookies and delicious stamp cookies – we absolutely adore pretty and funny Christmas cookies with cute designs. We try new ideas every year. Today we want to show you how to make 5 beautiful Christmas cookies without using cookie cutters – perfect for creative kids who love shaping, rolling and experimenting.
Our Christmas Cookies Without Cookie Cutters
These shapes are easy to create from cookie dough – without tools and completely stress-free:
- Bows
- Candy Canes
- Gifts
- Christmas Swirls
- Drops
Ideal for small hands from around 2–3 years old (with help) and perfect for older kids who already enjoy designing on their own.
Recipe for Christmas Cookies – Simple Basic Dough
For our Christmas cookies without cookie cutters we use our classic cookie dough and a bit of food coloring. The dough is easy to make and tastes delicious! Of course, you can also use this dough wonderfully for traditional cut-out Christmas cookies.
One dough – endless creative possibilities! Our recipe is fool-proof, soft, delicious and perfect for shaping.
Ingredients
- 500 g flour
- 250 g very soft butter (almost melted)
- 220 g powdered sugar
- 1/2 packet of vanilla sugar (7g)
- 1 pinch of salt
- 2 eggs
- green food coloring* (We’ve been using the Goodbake drop system for years and love it!)
- red food coloring*
Discount code for your purchase at GoodBake: With the discount code “LIA12” you save 12% on your purchase from Goodbake.
(*The links marked with an asterisk (*) are affiliate links. I can recommend suitable products that do not cost you more and I receive a small commission that helps me finance my blog. Thank you!)
Baking Accesories
Mixing bowl, plastic wrap, rolling pin, baking sheet, parchment paper, blunt kitchen knife, string, cooling rack
Preparation
- Knead all ingredients into a smooth dough.
- Divide the dough into three parts and color two of them red and green.
- Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30–60 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (top and bottom heat).
- Shape the cookies according to the instructions below.
- Bake for 10 minutes in the preheated oven on the middle rack.
- After 10 minutes the cookies may still look soft. Don’t be fooled – they’re fully baked. They will firm up as they cool. Wait two minutes before moving them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
How to Shape the Cookies – Step-by-Step
Candy Canes
Roll two thin dough strands of about 30 cm – one red and one light. Twist them gently together and roll once more. Cut into 8 cm pieces, then bend one end into a candy cane shape.
Bow
Roll two thin dough strands (30 cm each) in different colors. Twist gently together and roll again. Cut into pieces about 10–12 cm long and shape into bows.
Gift
Roll out the dough and cut rectangles with a knife – these are the gifts. Roll very thin strands from another color and place them crosswise on top as ribbon.
Christmas Swirl
Roll out three equal dough rectangles thinly and layer them on top of each other. Roll up tightly from the long side to form a large dough log. Use a string to cut 0.5–1 cm slices – these are the Christmas Swirls.
Drops
Place 4 mini-dough balls (about 1 cm diameter) together and roll them into one ball between your hands. Flatten slightly.
5 Tips for Stress-Free Christmas Cookie Baking With Kids
- Time – kids bake slowly, and that’s absolutely okay!
- Many small steps
- Keep it simple – easy recipes and shapes win!
- Creativity & fun instead of perfection
- Prepare protection for clothes & table
Shared Family Time
Baking with children is more than just a recipe – it’s precious family moments full of laughter, flour clouds and sweet memories.
My minis and I wish your minis and you a wonderful start to the Christmas baking season! We wish you beautiful shared moments & delicious cookies!
Yours, Lia
How to encourage your children to bake
Baking with children is much more than just a delicious treat that can be enjoyed together!
By baking with your child, you'll teach them many valuable things! Learn more about this in my blog post: How to encourage your children to bake!
To make baking a wonderful, shared experience for you and your little ones, you'll find tips for stress-free baking in the following blog posts:
- My tips for baking with children
- Baking tasks for children aged 2 and over
- Safety when baking with children
- Q & A about baking
Have fun baking! Yours Lia!
Have you baked the recipe?
How exciting! We're really happy about that! We are pleased that we were able to delight you with our recipe. Feel free to share your treat with us on Instagram using the hashtag #backenmitminis.
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