Spiced Reindeer Cookies made with warm cinnamon, ginger, rich brown sugar, and a touch of honey. Holiday cookies that bring cozy flavor in every buttery bite!
Reindeer Christmas cookies are a fun and festive way to celebrate the holidays and spend meaningful time together in the kitchen. Made with a homemade spiced dough that tastes almost like classic gingerbread, every bite delivers warm, holiday flavor you’ll love all season long. With melted chocolate as simple, no-fuss icing, these cookies are just as perfect for family baking traditions as they are delicious to eat.
Reindeer Cookie Ingredients
Butter: You’ll need ½ cup (one stick) of room temperature unsalted butter for richness and flavor while creating a soft, tender cookie texture.
Brown sugar: Adds sweetness, moisture, and chewiness because of its molasses content.
Honey: Adding 1 TBSP honey will help to give the cookies a nice depth of flavor and natural sweetness.
Flour: The base of this cookie dough is 2 ½ cups of all-purpose flour, you will need more for rolling out the dough.
Baking powder: A pinch of baking powder gives a slight lift so the cookies puff gently without spreading too much.
Spices: Bring warm holiday spice and that classic seasonal cookie flavor with 1 tsp of cinnamon and ¼ tsp of ginger.
Salt: Balance sweetness and enhance every flavor in the dough with a bit of salt.
Egg: Bind the ingredients together and add richness by adding 1 egg to the dough.
Chocolate: You need ¼ cup semi-sweet chocolate and ⅛ cup white chocolate chips to use as decoration for the reindeer.
Candies: Use Red M&Ms or Canadian Smarties for the perfect finishing touch to create Rudolph’s iconic red nose.
Do I Need a Reindeer Cookie Cutter?
If you make a lot of Christmas cookies, it is handy to have a Reindeer Cookie cutter. But if you don’t have one, don’t worry, you can use a Gingerbread man cookie cutter- just position it upside down to decorate!
Here’s a Christmas cookie cutter set with BOTH!
Tips for making Gingerbread Reindeer Cookies
- Chill Twice for Clean Shapes: Chill the dough before rolling and again after cutting—this keeps the cookie edges sharp and prevents spreading so your reindeer keep their shape.
- Dip Cutters in Flour: Dust your cookie cutter lightly in flour before each press—this prevents sticking and helps the shapes release cleanly.
- Use Piping Bags Without the Mess: If you don’t own piping bags, fill a zip-top bag and twist it tightly upward before snipping a tiny corner; cutting too large will make decorating harder to control.
- Test Your Chocolate Flow First: Before decorating the cookies, pipe a short practice line on parchment to get a feel for flow speed and line thickness.
How long are reindeer cookies good for?
These cookies store well at room temperature and will stay fresh for up to 2 weeks when kept in an airtight container. No need to refrigerate or freeze them thanks to their naturally long shelf life.
Can I decorate using a simple royal icing for these cookies?
If you prefer using a simple royal-style icing instead of melted chocolate, whisk together 3 cups powdered sugar, 3–4 tablespoons milk, and 2 tablespoons light corn syrup until smooth. Transfer to a piping bag and decorate your cookies as desired.
Can I make the dough ahead of time?
Yes! You can make the dough up to 3 days in advance and store it tightly wrapped in the refrigerator. Just let it sit at room temperature for 10–15 minutes before rolling so it softens slightly and becomes easier to work with.
Check out these other fun Christmas cookie recipes!
- Bring holiday cheer to your kitchen with these adorable 3D Christmas Tree Cookies! Soft sugar cookies layered with green frosting and colorful sprinkles make a festive treat that’s as fun to decorate as it is to eat.
- Holiday Snickerdoodles cookies coated in a warm cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg sugar. With a festive gingerbread twist, they’re the perfect treat for Christmas baking and sharing!
- Unlike traditional snap cookies, these Gingerbread Cookies stay soft for days and fill your kitchen with an irresistible festive aroma.
- Holiday Star Cookies are buttery, melt-in-your-mouth shortbread treats made from simple ingredients. Dipped in white chocolate and sprinkled with festive decorations, they’re the sparkling cookies everyone will reach for first this holiday season.
- Our recipe for Christmas Sugar Cookie Bars create thick, soft, and irresistibly delicious treats. The best sugar cookie bars you’ll want to bake again and again!
- Classic White Chocolate Butter Cookies are rich, buttery shortbread treats coated in white chocolate and festive sprinkles. With a delicate texture and incredible flavor, they’re a holiday cookie you won’t be able to resist!
Spiced Reindeer Cookies are a festive Christmas treat that’s perfect for sharing. Made with simple ingredients and easy steps, the whole family can join in the fun of baking—and of course, eating—these Santa-approved delights.
Jill says
Which just one egg it never formed a dough. Any suggestions?
Nicole says
There’s a lot that could have happened here for this and I’m sorry it happened to you. Firstly, the dough should be slightly wet and shaggy when in the bowl but should hold together when pressed. The temperature of the butter and the size of the egg will play a roll in how well this does or doesn’t work. Chilling the dough is what helps it to hold better together before rolling out. If you find that the dough is too dry to hold together, mix in one teaspoon of warm water at a time until the dough can come together into a ball when pressed. (It shouldn’t take too much and if you overdo it you can add in a little more flour).