Easy Christmas Cookies to Make with Kids
The holiday season is the perfect time to create lasting memories with your little ones in the kitchen! Baking Christmas cookies together is a wonderful way to bond, teach valuable skills, and create delicious treats that the whole family will love. Whether you're decorating for a party, making gifts for neighbors, or leaving cookies out for Santa, these easy recipes are designed with kids in mind.
Would you like to save this?
We'll email this post to you, so you can come back to it later!
This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Affiliate, I earn a commission on qualifying purchases.
We've rounded up 10 simple and festive Christmas cookie recipes that are perfect for baking with children. Each one uses straightforward ingredients and kid-friendly techniques that make the baking process fun and stress-free!
Why You'll Love These Recipes
These Christmas cookie recipes are specifically chosen with busy parents in mind! Most use premade dough, cake mixes, or simple no-bake methods, which means less prep work and more time for fun. The decorating steps are easy enough for small hands to master, building confidence in young bakers while creating Instagram-worthy results. Plus, these recipes use common ingredients you likely already have in your pantry or can easily find at any grocery store. Best of all, they're designed to be forgiving - if the icing isn't perfect or the sprinkles are a bit messy, they'll still taste amazing and look festive! These aren't just recipes; they're opportunities to slow down during the busy holiday season and create joyful memories that your children will treasure for years to come.
1. Christmas Wreath Cookies
These adorable wreath cookies are as fun to make as they are to eat! Using premade sugar cookie dough and decorated with green M&Ms and red Twizzler bows, they're perfect for little hands to help create.
Ingredients you'll need:
- Premade sugar cookie dough
- White icing
- Green M&Ms
- Peel 'n Pull Twizzlers
Get the full recipe for Christmas Wreath Cookies →
2. Reindeer Sugar Cookies
Bring Rudolph and his friends to life with these cute reindeer cookies! Kids will love adding the pretzel antlers, candy eyes, and red M&M noses to create their own herd of festive reindeer.
Ingredients you'll need:
- Premade sugar cookie dough
- Chocolate icing
- Candy eyes
- Mini pretzels
- Red M&Ms
Get the full recipe for Reindeer Sugar Cookies →
3. Easy Grinch Sugar Cookies
Who doesn't love the Grinch? These bright green cookies topped with red heart sprinkles are a hit with kids and adults alike. They're simple to make and capture the whimsical spirit of everyone's favorite Christmas grump!
Ingredients you'll need:
- Sugar cookie mix
- Butter
- Egg
- Green food dye
- Granulated sugar
- Powdered sugar
- Red heart sprinkles
Get the full recipe for Easy Grinch Sugar Cookies →
4. Sugar Cookie Blossoms
A festive twist on classic peanut butter blossoms, these sugar cookie blossoms are topped with Hershey's Sugar Cookie Kisses and rolled in colorful red and green sugar. They're beautiful, delicious, and easy enough for kids to help make.
Ingredients you'll need:
- Butter
- Sugar
- Egg
- Vanilla extract
- Flour
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Milk
- Red and green sugar crystals
- Hershey's Sugar Cookie Kisses
Get the full recipe for Sugar Cookie Blossoms →
5. Grinch Haystack Cookies
No-bake and kid-approved! These Grinch Haystack Cookies use chow mein noodles and vibrant green candy melts to create a crunchy, sweet treat. Perfect for little ones who want to help but aren't ready for the oven yet.
Ingredients you'll need:
- Chow mein noodles
- Vibrant green candy melts
- Coconut oil
- Red heart sprinkles
Get the full recipe for Grinch Haystack Cookies →
6. Red Velvet Cookie Bars
These stunning red velvet cookie bars are topped with cream cheese frosting and festive sprinkles. Using a cake mix as the base makes them incredibly easy, and kids will love helping spread the frosting and add the colorful toppings!
Ingredients you'll need:
- Red velvet cake mix
- Vegetable oil
- Eggs
- Whipped cream cheese frosting
- Red and green sprinkles
Get the full recipe for Red Velvet Cookie Bars →
7. Snowman Cookies
Build a snowman you can eat! These adorable cream cheese cookies are stacked and decorated to look like little snowmen, complete with candy decorations for eyes, noses, and buttons.
Ingredients you'll need:
- Cream cheese
- Butter
- Sugar
- Flour
- Vanilla extract
- White frosting
- Candy decorations (for eyes, nose, buttons)
- Mini chocolate chips
- Orange candies or fondant
Get the full recipe for Cream Cheese Snowman Cookies →
8. Snowflake Sugar Cookies
Delicate and beautiful, these snowflake cookies are perfect for teaching kids about winter wonderlands. The cream cheese makes them extra soft and tender, and decorating with white icing creates stunning snowflake patterns.
Ingredients you'll need:
- Cream cheese
- Butter
- Sugar
- Egg
- Vanilla extract
- Flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
- White icing
- White sprinkles or sanding sugar
Get the full recipe for Snowflake Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies →
9. Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies for Christmas
These classic cream cheese sugar cookies are a holiday staple! Soft, buttery, and perfect for decorating with festive colors and sprinkles. Let the kids use cookie cutters in their favorite Christmas shapes!
Ingredients you'll need:
- Cream cheese
- Butter
- Sugar
- Egg
- Vanilla extract
- Flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Food coloring
- Sprinkles
- Icing
Get the full recipe for Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies for Christmas →
10. Peanut Butter M&M Cookies with Cinnamon
A fun twist on traditional peanut butter cookies! These treats combine the classic flavors of peanut butter and chocolate with a warm hint of cinnamon. Kids will love pressing colorful M&Ms into the dough.
Ingredients you'll need:
- Peanut butter
- Butter
- Brown sugar
- Granulated sugar
- Egg
- Vanilla extract
- Flour
- Baking soda
- Salt
- Cinnamon
- M&Ms
Get the full recipe for Peanut Butter M&M Cookies with Cinnamon →
Tips for Baking Christmas Cookies with Kids
Cookie Baking Equipment Essentials
Before you start baking, make sure you have the right tools on hand to make the process smooth and enjoyable!
- Measuring cups and spoons - For accurate ingredient portions
- Baking sheets - Have at least two so you can rotate batches
- Cookie scoop - Creates uniform cookies every time
- Parchment paper or silicone baking mats - Prevents sticking and makes cleanup easy
- Mixing bowls - Various sizes for different tasks
- Electric mixer - Hand or stand mixer works great
- Rubber spatula - For scraping down bowls
- Cooling racks - Let cookies cool properly
- Piping bags or zip-top bags - For decorating with icing
- Offset spatula - Perfect for spreading frosting
- Cookie cutters - Festive shapes for sugar cookies
- Rolling pin - Essential for rolling out dough
- Oven mitts - Keep little hands safe!
Set Up a Kid-Friendly Workspace Cover your counters with parchment paper or a washable tablecloth, and have all ingredients and tools within easy reach.
Let Them Measure and Mix Give children age-appropriate tasks like measuring ingredients, stirring dough, and adding mix-ins. It's a great way to practice math skills!
Embrace the Mess Baking with kids can get messy, and that's okay! Focus on the fun and memories rather than perfection.
Make It a Tradition Set aside a special day each year for cookie baking. Kids will look forward to this special time together!
Get Creative with Decorations Stock up on sprinkles, colored sugars, candies, and icing. Let kids' imaginations run wild with decorating!
Final Thoughts
Baking Christmas cookies with kids is about so much more than the final product. It's about spending quality time together, teaching important skills, and creating traditions that will last a lifetime. These 10 easy recipes are designed to make the process fun and accessible for bakers of all ages.
So preheat that oven, put on your aprons, and get ready to make some magical holiday memories! Which recipe will you try first?
Happy Baking! 🎄🍪
For more holiday recipes and family-friendly cooking ideas, visit MarathonsAndMotivation.com
