A Christmas Cookie
Decorating Party

Preparing for a Cookie Decorating Party

1. Before the party, bake and set aside enough cookies so that each child can decorate between 4 and 8. This will ensure that they have some to take home, as well as one or two to nibble on during the party. (Alternatively, you might ask your guests to each bring a dozen unfrosted cookies. This can make things a little easier on you and also can provide a variety of cookie shapes and flavors.)

2. The night before the party, mix a variety of colored icing and refrigerate it overnight. During the party you can either set out the icing in bowls and have the children use plastic knives and spatulas to spread it, or you could put it into zippered freezer bags, and then cut a small bottom corner off each bag to make decorator tubes from which the children can squeeze their icing onto their cookies.

3. Set up a work station area for your decorators. You might cover a table with disposable plastic tablecloths, or set out individual work stations with cookie trays or plastic placemats.

4. Place a variety of decorating items in small bowls on the table. Have your decorators use icing as glue to attach their decorations. Some great choices include small marshmallows, red hots, a variety of decorator sugars, at least three different kinds of sprinkles, shredded coconut, raisins, gumdrops, M&Ms, and silver ball candies. Use whatever your imagination can dream up!

5. Other supplies to have ready at the table include plastic butter knives or small spatulas, toothpicks, and lots of paper towels.

6. On another table or countertop, set up a staging area for completed cookies. A great way to do this is to lay out a piece of wax paper with each guest's name on it where they can set their completed cookies. This keeps things organized and prevents cookie mix-ups!

7. Have out special cookie tins or holiday take out boxes for guests to carry their cookies home.

Here are recipes for both sugar cookies and gingerbread cookies:

Ingredients:

• 6 cups flour
• 3 tsp. baking powder
• 2 cups butter
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract or desired flavoring
• 1 tsp. salt

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla. Mix well. Mix dry ingredients and add a little at a time to butter mixture. Mix until flour is completely incorporated and the dough comes together.

Chill for 1 to 2 hours

Roll to desired thickness and cut into desired shapes. Bake on ungreased baking sheet at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes or until just beginning to turn brown around the edges. This recipe can make up to 5-dozen 3” cookies.

Gingerbread Cookie Recipe:

Ingredients:

• 1 (3.5 ounce) package cook and serve butterscotch pudding mix
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

In a medium bowl, cream together the butter, butterscotch pudding mix, and brown sugar until smooth. Stir in the egg. Combine the baking soda, flour, ginger, and cinnamon; stir into the butterscotch pudding mixture. Cover and chill until firm (about 1 hour). Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. On a floured surface, roll dough out to about one eighth inch thickness. Cut into gingerbread men with a cookie cutter. Place cookies 2 inches apart on the greased baking sheets. Bake for 7 to 10 minutes until edges of cookies are golden. Cool on wire racks.

Cookie Decorating Party Activities and Ambience

• Bring your party to life by playing holiday music -- Who could resist tapping their toes to some holiday favorites?

• Provide some healthy snacks -- Everyone is sure to be nibbling on lots of sweets during a cookie decorating party, so it is wise to offer some healthy alternatives such as a veggie tray, cheese and crackers, small sandwiches, or cut fruit. Milk and hot cider are good drink options.

• Make some special hot cocoa -- After everyone is done decorating their cookies, a special treat of hot cocoa with whipped cream, marshmallows, or peppermint sticks makes a great finale!

• Decorate Aprons -- Decorating Christmas cookies is even more fun when you are wearing an apron you designed yourself. This can be a fun and easy craft that turns into a great party keepsake. To do this, provide one plain apron per child, and then set out your choice of fabric paint and holiday stamps, fabric pens, iron-on patches, or buttons and embroidery thread.

• Read a holiday Classic -- Let your guests nibble their creations and get cozy while listening to a great holiday book such as The Gingerbread Man or The Night Before Christmas.

• Play a Holiday Movie -- A good idea to hold the interest of early finishers is to have a holiday movie playing. This way, as children complete their cookies they can watch the movie until everyone is ready to move on to the next activity.

GAMES

Rudolph Dash -- Cut small red circles from construction paper to make one nose per child (plus a few extra). Set out a small bowl of Vaseline. Set up this relay race by having the first child in line apply a small amount of Vaseline to his nose as glue and then attaching a paper reindeer nose. They race up and back, tagging the next person in line, who must attach a nose before leaving. If during your turn your nose falls off, you must return to the bowl of Vaseline, reapply it, and start again. Sure to bring giggles to your group!

Snowball Relay

You'll need:

• Styrofoam balls or balls of white yarn

• Spoons and mittens for each team

Directions:

1. Play this game as you would any relay race: divide into teams.

2. Each player takes turns putting on mittens and balancing a "snowball" on a spoon while racing to the other side of the room.

3. Drop the snowball into a bucket, return to the team, pass the mittens and go to the back of the line.

4. First team to complete the race wins!

Favors for a Cookie Decorating Party

• Decorated aprons

• Chef's Hats

• Personalized cookie tins

• Cookie Cutters

• A Holiday Book

• Paintable Gingerbread Man Craft

If you enjoyed these cookie decorating party ideas, you might also enjoy these parties:

Cupcake Party

Pizza Party

Ornament Exchange Party

Ideas Submitted by Our Readers

Gingerbread House Party

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