How to Make a Christmas Star Cookie Tree

Young children can assemble a Christmas star cookie tree mostly on their own.

A tree tower of Christmas cookies is simple to make and a delight to decorate. You can use it as a holiday buffet centerpiece or make several to give to friends and neighbors as seasonal decorations and treats. The process is easy, and even young children can assemble a Christmas star cookie tree mostly on their own.

Things You'll Need

• Star-shaped cookie cutters in various sizes
• White icing
• Green food coloring
• Red hots
• Pastry knife
• Bakery bags
• Round platter
• Spatula

Instructions

1. Bake a large number of star cookies. The exact number will be determined by the number of sizes of star cookie cutters you have and the desired height of the tree. A good number to start with is 10: three large; four medium; two small; and one extremely small star. Once you have built a few "starter" trees, you can build taller ones if you wish. If you have only one or two sizes, use the pastry knife to trim down the larger stars to create medium and small ones.

2. Let the cookies cool for 24 hours.

3. Use green food coloring to tint the white icing, and put it in the icing bag. Make a thick icing outline around each star cookie. If you prefer, spread a layer of green icing across the entire top surface of each star cookie; this can get a little messy.

4. Place a large dollop of icing on the platter and press the bottom of the largest star cookie on top of it. Stack the cookies on top of one another, with a large dollop of icing under each to hold them together.

5. Rotate the stars about 30 degrees each time you add another star so the points of the stars look like branches. Place the large cookies on the bottom, followed by the medium and the small cookies.

6. Place the smallest star upright on top of the tree instead of laying it flat like the others.

7. Use the icing bag to dab numerous little dots on the tree, then press a red hot on top of the dot.

8. Let the icing set for 24 hours, keeping the cookie tree in a cool, dry location.

Tips & Warnings

• Use white icing instead of green to make your tree look like it came straight from a snowy forest.

• Use any type of candies you like to decorate the tree.

• If you plan to eat your tree, do not use craft icing. Make sure you use icing that is edible and does not dry so hard that you could break your teeth on it.