Make this beautiful edible cookie wreath out of gingerbread cookies as a holiday showpiece to hang on your door or to set in the center of your table. It looks stunning, and it tastes fantastic, too! (Some clever tricks to make it easily.)

The world is winter-white and it's cookie-making time! It's Christmas card snowy outside, the spruce boughs are bending low with their coat of fairy icing, and mundane yard objects have become poufs of marshmallowy magic.

We're cozy and warm inside, and there's nothing better than making a mug of hot cocoa and getting together with friends to bake cookies.
Our friends Nicoletta and Loreto, of the blog 'SugarLoveSpices' came over and we had a gloriously busy day with our third annual Christmas Baking Bonanza! Our first one was a spectacular yule log (this German-flavoured Bûche De Noël) and last year we had fun making decadent and delicious holiday trifles (my gingerbread Lebkuchen Trifle was a hit).

This year we decided on a cookie wreath. Gingerbread cookies, iced and sparkling, then 'glued' together in a circle shape make a showstopping Christmas decoration or table centerpiece. A feast for the eyes that smells delightfully of holiday spices, it can be pulled apart and eaten for a sweet cookie treat or nibbly dessert. Or the cookie wreath can just hang there throughout the holidays to add a warm welcome to your festive decor.
Use a selection of themed cookie cutter shapes in different sizes for your cookie wreath. I've been collecting snowflake shapes (thrifting is a great way to grow your collection), but stars, gingerbread men, bells, hearts, Christmas trees, etc. would all work great, or mix and match a couple different shapes. If you don't have cookie cutters, cut out shapes with a small, pointy-tipped knife.
Let's Start with the Gingerbread Cookies
Make up the gingerbread dough. A stand mixer makes the job easy. You'll need to chill the dough for an hour (or up to 24 hours) so it firms up and is easy to roll out. Divide it into two balls, flatten each to a disc about 1-inch (2.5cm) thick, and wrap them in plastic food wrap or parchment paper to chill them.

Rolling the Dough for the Cookie Wreath Shape
Roll out one of the dough discs between two sheets of parchment paper (or transfer it to parchment paper after rolling) to about ¼-inch (.6 cm) thick. Then find a bowl or round platter 11-12 inches (28-30 cm) in diameter. Invert it onto the dough and cut around it to make the outside edge of the cookie wreath base. Find another bowl or plate that is 6-7 inches (15-18 cm) in diameter and use it to cut around to make the inside edge of the wreath. Aim for the wreath to be 4-5 inches (10-12 cm) wide. (I used an 11-inch bowl and a 7-inch bowl.)



Slide the cookie wreath, with the parchment paper, onto a rimless baking sheet or onto the back of an upturned cookie sheet and bake it.
Then roll out the second disc of dough and cut out as many cookies as you can. Reroll the scraps from both discs and keep cutting until you've used up all the dough.

Make the Royal Icing
Royal icing, a simple mixture of egg whites and icing sugar, adds the sparkling white 'snow' decoration to the cookies and also becomes the 'glue' to attach them to the wreath base.
Whisk together an egg white with powdered sugar, then add a bit of fresh lemon juice until you get a consistency that is just right - thick enough to hold its shape but thin enough to flow easily in a line when squeezed from a piping bag or squeeze bottle with a small round tip. This part will take some adjusting, but after doing it once, you'll know the consistency you're aiming for.



Scoop the royal icing into a piping bag fitted with a small round tip or into a squeeze bottle with a small hole.
Decorate the Cookies
Once the cookies are baked, the fun begins. Now you can decorate them to your heart's content. Go crazy piping the royal icing in fine lines, dots, and squiggles onto the cookies. Add sprinkles, edible glitter, candy beads, sanding sugar, or crushed candy canes.


Assemble the Cookie Wreath
If you plan to hang your cookie wreath and are not sure it's stable enough, you can cut out a cardboard circle slightly smaller than the cookie circle and 'glue' it to the back of the wreath with dabs of royal icing. This will reinforce it enough to hang, but when you want to consume the wreath, the cardboard can still be easily popped off by sliding a butter knife between the cardboard and the cookie.

If you plan to hang the wreath, add a brightly coloured ribbon first and attach it to the cookie wreath with dabs of royal icing. Then place a few of the larger cookies onto the wreath. When you are happy with their placement, 'glue' them in place with royal icing.
Play with the remaining cookies, moving them to different places on the wreath to see where they fit best. Once it looks good, lift the cookies and dab the backs with royal icing and place them back into their spots. Leave the cookie wreath flat until the icing is completely hard and dry - overnight is best. Then hang your wreath or set it out as a table centerpiece (a pillar candle set in the center with a bit of ribbon or greenery around its base makes it look extra special).


Two Wreaths and a Lot of Fun
Our Christmas Baking Day was so much fun! Head over to Nicoletta and Loreto's blog to find their recipe for the Angel Cookie Wreath they made (they used a different recipe and a slightly different technique) and to see their photos of our project.
Look at those beautiful finished results. We were pretty chuffed with our wreaths - hopefully, they will last until the holidays and no little cookie elves will be a-nibbling!


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Guten Appetit!

Gingerbread Cookie Wreath
Ingredients
Gingerbread Cookies
- ¾ cup (170 g/1½ sticks) salted butter
- 1 cup (200 g) brown sugar, firmly packed
- ¾ cup (245 g) fancy molasses (or half blackstrap molasses and half maple syrup, corn syrup, or honey)
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons powdered ginger
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom optional
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves optional
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 5-5¼ cups (650-680 g) gluten-free flour blend (or regular flour for non gluten-free)
Royal Icing
- 1 large egg white (or the equivalent in pasteurized liquid egg whites or powdered egg albumen + water)
- 1½ cups (200 g) icing sugar (powdered sugar/confectioner's sugar)
- 1-2 teaspoons lemon juice
For the Cookie Wreath:
- optional: sprinkles, edible glitter, candy beads, sanding sugar, or crushed candy canes
- a decorative ribbon if you plan to hang the wreath
Instructions
- Beat the butter and brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer until smooth and fluffy.
- Add the molasses, eggs, and spices and beat until smooth.
- Beat in 5 cups (650 g) of the flour. Scrape the dough onto the counter and knead it lightly by hand, adding in the last ¼ cup (30 g) of flour, if needed, to make a soft dough that comes together in a ball, with the consistency of playdough.
- Divide the dough into two balls, flatten them to discs about 1-inch (2.5 cm) thick. Wrap each disc in plastic food wrap or parchment paper and chill them for at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours.
To Bake the Cookies:
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ (180℃).
- Roll out one dough disc between parchment paper sheets to ¼-inch (.6 cm) thick (or roll it on the counter and then transfer it to a sheet of parchment paper). Remove the top layer of parchment paper, if you used it.
- Use a bowl or round platter 11-12 inches (28-30 cm) in diameter. Invert it onto the dough and cut around it to make the outside edge of the cookie wreath base. Find another bowl or plate that is 6-7 inches (15-18 cm) in diameter and use it to cut around to make the inside edge of the wreath. Aim for the wreath to be 4-5 inches (10-12 cm) wide.
- Slide the cookie wreath, with the parchment paper underneath it, onto a rimless baking sheet or onto the back of an upturned cookie sheet and bake it for about 14 minutes, or until it is very lightly browned at the edges.Remove the cookie wreath base from the oven and allow it to cool in the pan. Then gently move it to a large baking sheet or tray.
- Roll out the second disc of dough and cut out as many cookies as you can, in whatever shapes you choose for your wreath. You will also have a few extra cookies to enjoy. Reroll the scraps from both discs and keep cutting until you've used up all the dough. Lay the cookies onto ungreased or parchment-lined cookie sheets ½-1-inch (1-2 cm) apart. Try to keep cookies of the same size on each baking sheet, so the baking time is the same for all cookies on that pan.
- Bake for 8-12 minutes, depending on their size, until they are very lightly browned at the edges. Remove to wire racks and allow them to cool completely.
Make the Royal Icing:
- Stir together the icing sugar and egg white until smooth. Add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice, stir again. Keep adding more lemon juice, ¼ teaspoon at a time, until the consistency of the icing is thin enough to flow out through a piping bag nozzle but thick enough to hold its shape and not spread when piped. If you've never worked with royal icing, this may take a bit of juggling until you get the feel of how you need it to be, and you may have to make a few practice lines on parchment paper or a plate. If the icing needs adjusting, scrape it back into the bowl and add more lemon juice or more icing sugar, small amounts at a time.
- Scrape the royal icing into a piping bag fitted with a small round-hole tip or into a squeeze bottle with a fine tip. If you have none of these, you can scoop the icing into a heavy-duty zip-top bag, cut a very tiny tip off one corner, and use that as a piping bag.
Assemble the Cookie Wreath:
- If you plan to hang your cookie wreath and are not sure it's stable enough, you can cut out a cardboard circle slightly smaller than the large cookie circle and 'glue' it to the back of the wreath with dabs of royal icing. This will reinforce it enough to hang, but when you want to consume the wreath, the cardboard can still be easily popped off by sliding a butter knife between the cardboard and the cookie.
- Decorate the cookies by piping the royal icing in fine lines, dots, and squiggles onto the cookies. Add sprinkles, edible glitter, candy beads, sanding sugar, or crushed candy canes. Leave them lying flat until the icing has hardened and dried.
- If using a decorative ribbon, add it first and attach it to the cookie wreath with dabs of royal icing. Then place a few of the larger cookies onto the wreath. When you are happy with their placement, 'glue' them in place with royal icing.
- Play with the remaining cookies, moving them to different places on the wreath to see where they fit best. Once it looks good, lift the cookies and dab the backs with royal icing and place them back into their spots. Leave the cookie wreath flat until the icing is completely hard and dry - overnight is best - before hanging it.
Nicoletta
How pretty is this wreath! You did an incredible job decorating those snowflakes! It was a wonderful afternoon filled with joy. We are truly blessed to have you and Raymond in our lives. Cheers to many more collaborations!
Margaret
It really was a joy for us, too - another Christmas memory to treasure.❤️ I love our projects and cannot wait for more to come! We feel very blessed, too, to have these times together with you guys. I love looking at our two wreaths - they bring a smile to my face. 😊
Elsa
So beautiful Margaret, the wreath looks amazing, a lot of work.
A wonderful way to spend a winter afternoon with friends creating a delicious beautiful wreath!
Margaret
Aw, thank you so much, Elsa. It was such a fun project, and really did put me into the Christmas mood. Somehow it never feels like as much work when you're doing it with friends and the Christmas music is playing in the background. 🌲❤️