I was just about to write “Happy Halloween”, but that’s been over for a while now… Happy Advent then! ;) This blog will serve you a lot of Christmas cookies until Christmas – to prevent you from getting a sugar shock you don’t have to eat today’s cookies. You can use this Gingerbread Cookie Wreath for Christmas decorations instead! How about that? Baking your decorations instead of buying it? ;)

Well… even though this cookie wreath is perfect for pimping your walls, it is still something you can eat, of course! It looks really nice on a wall with some other decorations, but if you are in the mood, feel free to break off a cookie star and eat it. The Christmas wreath will probably look a bit weird after some snack attacks, but hey… that’s how this thing is supposed to look like after a while ;)
The recipe should be good for two wreaths, but you can bake many different things with it actually – regular gingerbread cookies, for example. Little Christmas trees, stockings, hearts, angels… and then decorate them with the sugar icing from the recipe. Easy peasy I’d say ;)

About that icing though… it’s a simple way of decorating your cookies – I assume everybody made sugar icing like the one from the recipe already. It is quick and easy. The disadvantage, however, is that the icing loses some of its “radiance” over time – in other words, the white becomes a little paler and dull and the sugar in the icing can crystallize again which can lead to spots in the icing. This does not mean the icing has gone bad, you can still eat everything, but it just does not look that nice anymore sometimes.

You can alleviate the problem with some white food coloring added to the icing or you use Royal Icing instead – that does not fade at all normally ;) I used Royal Icing for my Día de los Muertos Cookies, for example, and those cookies still look good after a year! Yes, I kept some of them because they look so cute ;P
Anyway. Here is the recipe…
INGREDIENTS / ZUTATEN
For the dough:
3/4 cup (170g) butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar
1 large egg
1.8 oz. (50g) sugar beet molasses
3 1/4 cups (420g) all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tbsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. salt
For the icing:
7 oz. (200g) confectioners‘ sugar
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
1-2 tbsp. milk
Für den Teig:
170g weiche Butter
100g brauner Zucker
1 Ei (L)
50g Zuckerrübensirup
420g Mehl (Type 405)
1 TL Natron
1 EL Zimt, gemahlen
1 1/2 TL Ingwer, gemahlen
1/4 TL Nelken, gemahlen
1/4 TL Muskatnuss, gemahlen
1/2 TL Salz
Für das Icing:
200g Puderzucker
1/4 TL Vanille Extrakt
1-2 EL Milch

DIRECTIONS / ZUBEREITUNG
2. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a baking sheet with baking parchment and set aside. Roll out half of the dough on a floured surface to a thickness of about 0.1 inches (3mm). Place a dinner plate with a diameter of about 10 inches (26cm) on top of the dough and cut out a circle. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet, place a smaller plate with a diameter of about 6 inches (16cm) on top, and cut that one out as well to create a large ring. Use a fork to press down the edges of that ring a bit and bake for about 10 minutes. Take out of the oven and place on a wire rack. Repeat to create another ring for a second wreath – I made this one a bit smaller. Collect the remaining dough, roll out again and cut out stars in different sizes. Bake those for about 8 minutes – that should be enough. Let everything cool down completely.
3. For the icing mix the confectioners‘ sugar with the vanilla extract, then gradually add the milk until the icing has a thick and not too runny consistency. Fill into a piping bag, cut off the corner just a bit so only a small amount of icing can get out. Decorate the star cookies to your liking and let them dry completely. Use the remaining icing to glue the stars to the rings – if you want to hang the wreaths, later on, you should leave a spot blank so you can attach a ribbon or something like that. Let the icing dry/harden well, then use the wreaths as wall or table decorations.
2. Den Ofen auf 180°C (350°F) vorheizen. Ein Backblech mit Backpapier auslegen und zur Seite stellen. Die Hälfte des Teiges auf einer bemehlten Fläche etwa 3mm (0.1 inches) dick ausrollen. Einen Teller mit etwa Ø26cm (10 inches) auf den Teig legen und einen Kreis ausschneiden. Diesen Teigkreis auf das Backblech mit dem Backpapier ziehen und dann aus der Mitte einen Kreis mit etwa Ø16cm (6 inches) ausschneiden – funktioniert am besten mit einem kleineren Teller als Schablone. Den entstandenen Ring mit den Zinken einer Gabel rundum etwas eindrücken, damit ein Streifenmuster am Rand entsteht. Für etwa 10 Minuten backen. Aus dem Ofen holen und sofort auf ein Kuchengitter ziehen und komplett abkühlen lassen. Für einen zweiten Kranz (ich hab den etwas kleiner gemacht) die Prozedur wiederholen. Mit dem restlichen Teig Sterne unterschiedlicher Größe ausstechen – hier sollte eine Backzeit von etwa 8 Minuten ausreichen. Alles komplett abkühlen lassen.
3. Den Puderzucker für das Icing mit dem Vanille Extrakt verrühren, nach und nach Milch dazugeben und unterrühren, bis ein glattes und nicht zu dünnflüssiges Icing entstanden ist. In einen Spritzbeutel füllen, eine kleine Ecke abschneiden (es sollte nicht viel Icing rauskommen) und dann die Kekse nach Belieben damit verzieren. Komplett trocknen lassen. Die Sterne dann mit dem verbliebenen Icing auf den Kränzen festkleben und antrocknen lassen – wer die Kränze aufhängen möchte, sollte an einer Stelle nichts festkleben, damit dort dann ein Band zum Aufhängen angebracht werden kann. Die fertigen Kränzen können nach dem Trocknen des Icings aufgehängt, oder einfach auf den Tisch gelegt werden.


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Here is a version of the recipe you can print easily.
Print
Gingerbread Cookie Christmas Wreath
- Prep Time: 00:30
- Cook Time: 00:10
- Total Time: 05:00
- Yield: 2 1x
- Category: Cookies
- Cuisine: Germany
Description
What could be better than an edible Christmas decoration?! This Gingerbread Cookie Christmas Wreath is easy to make and tastes delicious too!
Ingredients
For the dough:
3/4 cup (170g) butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar
1 large egg
1.8 oz. (50g) sugar beet molasses
3 1/4 cups (420g) all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tbsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. salt
For the icing:
7 oz. (200g) confectioners‘ sugar
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
1–2 tbsp. milk
Instructions
1. Add the butter and sugar to a large bowl and mix until light and fluffy. Add the egg and mix until well combined. Add the sugar beet molasses and mix in. Mix the flour with baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, and salt in a second bowl, then add in 2-3 batches to the large bowl and mix in. Knead until you get a nice and smooth dough. Shape into a ball, flatten and wrap in plastic wrap. Place in the fridge for about 3 hours or overnight.
2. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a baking sheet with baking parchment and set aside. Roll out half of the dough on a floured surface to a thickness of about 0.1 inches (3mm). Place a dinner plate with a diameter of about 10 inches (26cm) on top of the dough and cut out a circle. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet, place a smaller plate with a diameter of about 6 inches (16cm) on top, and cut that one out as well to create a large ring. Use a fork to press down the edges of that ring a bit and bake for about 10 minutes. Take out of the oven and place on a wire rack. Repeat to create another ring for a second wreath – I made this one a bit smaller. Collect the remaining dough, roll out again and cut out stars in different sizes. Bake those for about 8 minutes – that should be enough. Let everything cool down completely.
3. For the icing mix the confectioners‘ sugar with the vanilla extract, then gradually add the milk until the icing has a thick and not too runny consistency. Fill into a piping bag, cut off the corner just a bit so only a small amount of icing can get out. Decorate the star cookies to your liking and let them dry completely. Use the remaining icing to glue the stars to the rings – if you want to hang the wreaths, later on, you should leave a spot blank so you can attach a ribbon or something like that. Let the icing dry/harden well, then use the wreaths as wall or table decorations.
Notes
Enjoy baking!
Keywords: gingerbread, wreath, decoration, edible, Christmas, Xmas, cookies