Easy Gingerbread Reindeer Cookies
Did you know that if you take a gingerbread man cookie and turn it upside down, it can easily be turned into a reindeer? It’s such an easy way to make reindeer cookies. Here’s how to do just that.
This post contains affiliate links for your convenience. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Gingerbread Reindeer Cookies
This recipe and example for upsidedown gingerbread reindeer use gingerbread cookies but you can use your favorite sugar cookie recipe and use a gingerbread man cut out and do sugar cookie reindeer cookies.
Equipment Needed for Rudolph Cookies
- Tipless pipings bags or
- Regular piping bags and tip 2 Couplers (if using regular piping bags)
- Black Royal Icing
- Brown Royal Icing
- Red Royal Icing
- White Royal Icing
- Wet paper towels
- Gingerbread man cookie cutter
- To make the royal icing grab this food coloring set.
Store Bought Royal Icing Options
You can either make homemade royal icing or buy it pre made or in powder form.
I have personally used this royal icing recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction last weekend and it worked great.
Reindeer Cookies Ingredients
- Gingerbread Shaped Cookies, these can be homemade or store bought.
- Royal icing
- brown food coloring
- white food coloring
- black food coloring
- red food coloring
- pink food coloring
How to Make Royal Icing Transfers
If you are making a large batch of cookies, try to make some royal icing transfers.
To do this simply pipe large dots of the white icing on parchment paper and then pipe small dots of black on the wet icing. Let them dry for 24 hours on the paper.
This will make the eyes and will save you a little more time the day of.
Storing Cookies with Royal Icing
If you’re going to bag them and freeze them, make sure the cookies are fully dry. This will take about 8-10 hours.
If you living in a humid climate (or it’s wet outside), let them dry longer (about 12 hours).
Another way to have the drying time reduced is to you a dehydrator, but you need a dehydrator mat so the cookies themselves do not dry out and get hard. I don’t recommend this route, but it is an option.
How to Make Easy Reindeer Cookies
More holiday recipes:
- Candy Cane Cheesecake Dip Recipe
- 25 Christmas Charcuterie Boards Perfect for the Holidays
- Healthy Christmas Appetizer Recipes
- Holiday Hot Chocolate Stirrers
Easy Gingerbread Reindeer Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- 12 Gingerbread Shaped Cookies baked and cooled 1/4 cup brown royal icing
- 1/2 cup white royal icing
- 1/4 cup black royal icing
- 1/4 cup red royal icing 3 tbsp pink royal icing
Instructions
- This recipe uses pre done cookies (whether you bake them yourself or buy store bought).
- 1. Turn the gingerbread cookie upside down and pipe the white icing into a circle. Make sure the icing is fluffy and thick at this point. Set aside to dry for 15 – 20 minutes. Then come back and pipe the second one to make a pair of eyes. Doing it one at a time defines that it's two separate eyes, but you can do both at once if you're pressed for time.
- 2. Pipe a large red nose, where the head of the gingerbread man would be. Add a dot of white for a "shine spot" on his bright and shiny nose.
- 3. Next draw the ears by piping brown down the center line of the legs. Fill (or "flood") one side with brown, wait 15 minutes, then flood the other side with pink.
- 4. Draw on antlers, and add two black dots to the eyes.
- 5. Lay the cookies on a sheet pan out of reach to let them set for 8 hours (more if you're in a humid climate, see notes). You can also have a fan on low go to help them set quicker.
