Ginger Elf Christmas Cookies with Royal Icing Decoration
These festive spiced ginger cookies are transformed into adorable Christmas elves with chocolate and white icing faces, candy eyes and noses, and creative fruit roll-up hats. The soft, chewy cookies are flavored with warm ginger and cinnamon, making them perfect for holiday baking and decorating with kids. Each cookie becomes a unique character with piped facial features and a whimsical pointed hat made from colorful fruit snacks. The combination of sweet cookie base and fun decorating elements makes these ideal for Christmas parties, cookie exchanges, or family holiday traditions.
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cups Gold Medal all-purpose flouralmond flour3/4:1gluten-freelow-carbgluten-free
Reduces structure, cookies will be more fragile
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ cup butter or margarine, softened
- ½ cup dark brown sugar, packed
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 eggsflax eggs1:1veganeggs-free
Mix 2 tbsp ground flaxseed with 6 tbsp water, let sit 5 minutes
Full guide → - 1 pouch (7 oz) Betty Crocker Cookie Icing chocolate icing
- 1 pouch (7 oz) Betty Crocker Cookie Icing white icing
- 1 pouch (7 oz) Betty Crocker Cookie Icing red icing
- 13 Betty Crocker Fruit Roll-Ups, green or red, unwrapped, from 2 (5-oz boxes)
- 52 mini brown candy-coated milk chocolate candies, from 12-oz bag
- 52 mini red and green candy-coated milk chocolate candies, from 12-oz bag
Instructions
- 1
Heat oven to 350°F
- 2
Stir together flour, baking soda, salt and spices in medium bowl and set aside
- 3
Beat butter and sugars with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy
- 4
Add eggs one at a time, beating until blended
- 5
Gradually beat in flour mixture until soft dough forms
- 6
Drop dough by rounded measuring tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets 2-inches apart
- 7
Bake 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown
- 8
Cool 1 to 2 minutes then remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks
- 9
Cool completely before decorating
- 10
Pipe hair using chocolate icing
- 11
Pipe two small dollops for eyes using white icing and press 1 brown milk chocolate candy on each
- 12
Pipe pea-sized dot for nose using red icing and press on 1 red milk chocolate candy
- 13
Pipe on ears and mouth
- 14
Cut fruit snacks in half vertically into rectangles
- 15
Fold rectangles in half creating squares
- 16
Fold squares in half diagonally to create triangles
- 17
Roll up 1 edge of each triangle slightly to create hat brims
- 18
Pull and stretch hat to fit cookie if necessary
- 19
Fold hat tip down at an angle to meet brim
- 20
Pipe small dot where tip of hat meets brim using white icing and press 1 red milk chocolate candy on dot
- 21
Let stand until frosting is set
- 22
Store in airtight container using waxed paper between cookie layers
Tips
Make sure cookies are completely cool before decorating to prevent icing from melting and sliding off the surface.
Cut fruit roll-ups with clean scissors for neat edges when making the elf hats, and work quickly as they can become sticky.
Store decorated cookies in a single layer or use waxed paper between layers to prevent the decorations from sticking together.
Good to Know
Store in airtight container using waxed paper between cookie layers for up to 1 week at room temperature.
Cookies can be baked up to 2 days ahead and stored undecorated. Decorate the day of serving for best appearance.
Serve at room temperature. Best enjoyed within 2-3 days of decorating.
Common Mistakes
Let cookies cool completely before decorating to avoid melting the icing and ruining the design.
Don't overbake the cookies as they will become hard and difficult to decorate attractively.
Substitutions
Dairy-Free Swaps
Vegan Options
Mix 2 tbsp ground flaxseed with 6 tbsp water, let sit 5 minutes
Full guide →Gluten-Free Swaps
Reduces structure, cookies will be more fragile
Full guide →General Alternatives
FAQ
Can I use different colors of icing?
Yes, you can substitute any colors you prefer. Green icing would work well for Christmas themes, or use school colors for team events.
What if I don't have fruit roll-ups for the hats?
You can make hats from colored fondant, small ice cream cones, or even pipe hat shapes directly with icing.
How long will the decorated cookies keep?
Store in an airtight container with waxed paper between layers for up to 1 week at room temperature.