Piping Leaves for Christmas Wreath Sugar Cookies

These Christmas wreath cookies are a great family baking activity. They also make for a nice gift in holiday cookie exchanges.

After you've prepared your cookie dough, you'll roll it onto your kitchen counter to flatten.

Once the dough is flattened and roughly a quarter of an inch thick, press the round cutter into it.

Use the larger end of a big piping tip (like Wilton 2D) to cut out the middle sections of each wreath and add it back to your remaining dough.

Use a spatula to lift and transfer dough onto ungreased aluminum baking sheets or space out the cookies on silicon mats and slide those onto each baking sheet to bake for about 12 minutes.

As cookies bake, make your frosting by combining buttercream ingredients. Then divide frosting into separate bowls for mixing colors. Green, red, and white keep it simple, but feel free to be more creative here for your own wreaths!

For a more advanced design, put a small leaf tip (I used #352) on a piping bag full of green buttercream.

If you’re new to using a leaf piping tip, it really helps to practice on a piece of parchment paper or a spare surface.

Once ready, press the narrow end of the tip outward and squeeze frosting from your piping bag at a 45-degree angle onto the cookie's surface.

As you continue to apply pressure, lift the piping bag slightly, and then release the pressure to create a tapered end on the leaf.

Continue piping leaves in a consistent pattern you like, by creating individual leaves or clusters.

Swipe up for the full tutorial to bake and decorate these wreath cookies!