Host Your Own Cookie Decorating Party
A throwback pic from 2017 with my best gal pals (Jamie, Kelsey, and Alyssa) decorating holiday sweater cookies together back in Austin.
Some of my best memories as a kid were getting together with my mom or grandma and making cookies for Christmas. As an adult, you realize it’s up to you now to create those holiday memories and magic for those around you. What better way to do that than to host a cookie decorating party with your friends or family? Here are some tips on how to put together one heck of a holiday cookie decorating party with some linked recommendations at the end!
Nail Your Recipe + Process
Use a cookie recipe that doesn’t use any sort of leavening agent (like baking powder or soda). You don’t want your sugar cookies to puff up or lose their shape! My recipe uses cornstarch which lends to a slightly thicker cookie with crisper edges.
You want your dough to be chilled to avoid butter from melting too quickly and creating a flatter, less shapely cookie. After I make cookie dough, I will leave it in the fridge for about 10-15 minutes before rolling out.
Speaking of rolling out - I put my dough between saran wrap while rolling out. You don’t want to add more flour to prevent your rolling pin from sticking. More flour will lead to a drier cookie. Ensure there is an even thickness all the way around to prevent the cookie from baking uneven (which is going to make it tougher to decorate - that icing will be slippin’ and slidin’).
I usually always bake using silicone mats on my baking sheets to prevent the cookie bottoms from crisping up too much before the tops bake. I linked a few cheap and good ones below!
Need more recipe tips and troubleshooting? Check out this blog post.
Choose your Shapes Wisely
The more shapes you choose, the more colored icing you may end up needing to provide to your guests to perfect their design. Four to six designs is likely plenty for a casual decorating party.
I recommend using 3.5 - 4 inch cookie cutters to provide ample space to get creative. You can also find plenty of cute mini cookie cutters if your party will have kiddos. I find that the kids mostly just want to pile on sprinkles and eat them versus mastering a design, so giving them smaller options is ideal!
Icing Advice
I decorate my cookies with royal icing using meringue powder. You can add more or less water to adjust the thickness to your liking and based on the skillset of your guests.
My rule of thumb while making royal icing is that if I drizzle icing back into its bowl, it should go back to being (mostly) smooth in about 15 seconds. This is my perfect consistency to bag and decorate without it being so runny it spills off the cookie.
For coloring the icing, I prefer to use a gel versus a liquid or powder. I found that you can use less and get a more vibrant color that doesn’t separate or discolor as your icing dries. I linked one of my favorite starter sets from Ann Clark below.
I prefer to use tipless icing bags. With these, you can pour in the icing, tie off the top, and prep to have ready for your guests to decorate. Just cut a small hole at the tip when you’re ready. I linked below both the 12 inch (which is what I use for bigger orders and colors I need more often in designs) and 8 inch (which likely will be better for a decorating party with multiple colors lying around for guests to grab).
For more information on royal icing, check out this blog post.
For Decorating
If your guests are aiming for perfection, I recommend getting some bamboo skewers or toothpicks. You truly just stick it in your icing after you put your base layer on the cookie and swirl it around until it is smooth and to your liking. These are also great for popping any air bubbles that may form in your icing (which will happen if anyone is squeezing the icing out too fast).
Kids and adults alike love tossing sprinkles on their cookies. I highly recommend popping into your local bakery supply shop if you have one and seeing if they have bulk sprinkles you can purchase. If not, I linked a few options below to check out.
Things to Keep In Mind
Some of your guests may look for some creative inspiration. Print out a few design examples for them to follow along with, or create your own designs and leave out as the gold standard!
While you certainly can eat decorated cookies immediately, royal icing will harden as it dries (and taste better that way, in my humble opinion). I recommend getting some holiday cookie boxes and encouraging your guests to take them home with them, gift to a loved one, or leave them out for Santa.
If your audience loves a (friendly) competition, I recommend having each person submit one of their cookies and having the party vote on best in show.
I’d love to see pictures and videos of your holiday cookies using the above tips! Tag me on Instagram (@ normaneekbakery), and please reach out if you have any questions. Happy Baking! - Julie @ Normaneek Bakery
Julie’s Recommendations*!
*PS - I am not sponsored by these brands/products. These are items I actually use and recommend and linked to my Amazon account!