Easy and adorable Easter Basket Cookies are a fun and creative way to celebrate Easter this year. Made with simple homemade sugar cookie dough, these charming decorated cookies will not only satisfy your sweet tooth but also add a festive touch to your Easter celebrations. In addition, this tasty treat is certain to bring joy to your festivities and be a hit with kids of all ages.
So grab your apron, gather your ingredients, and hop into the kitchen to create these charming treats that will have everyone begging for more.
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Here’s What I used for these Decorated Easter Basket Cookies
- Cookies: I used my own recipe for delicious sugar cookies (included below). However, you could use your favorite sugar cookie recipe or even store-bought sugar cookie dough.
- Egg-Shape: The basic shape of the Easter Basket Cookies was an egg. For this, I used a 4-inch egg-shaped cookie cutter to cut the sugar cookie dough.
- Decorations: For the basic cookie decorations, I used store-bought white and green or pink and green decorator icing. I also used pastel-colored M&Ms for the “eggs” in the basket. For added color in some of the photographs, I included some mini-jelly beans (optional).
- Decorating Supplies: For the actual cookie decorations, I used disposable piping bags and couplers. For the basket weave, I used a #5 round tip. I used a #18 star tip for the basket handle and a #233 grass top for the grass.
Step-by-Step Guide – Making the Cookies
This step-by-step guide will walk you through the process of crafting these delicious Easter Basket Cookies, ensuring your holiday celebrations are as sweet as can be.
- Whether you use store-bought sugar cookie dough, my favorite sugar cookie recipe, or your own recipe, start by rolling the dough to a ¼-inch thickness. Then, cut egg-shaped cookies with a 4-inch egg-shaped cookie cutter.
- I placed the cookies on a silicone-lined baking sheet and baked them at 375°F for 11 to 12 minutes until they were golden brown around the edges. You could also use parchment paper here.
- My recipe for sugar cookies didn’t result in the cookies spreading too much. However, they did spread a bit. Therefore, as soon as I removed the cookies from the oven, I trimmed them with the 4-inch cookie cutter to ensure perfectly shaped cookies.
- The edges of the cookies were a bit rough from cutting them after they were cooked. Therefore, I smoothed the cookies by filing the edges on a wire mesh strainer. I learned this technique in a pasty class in Paris!
Step-by-Step Guide: Decorating the Easter Basket Cookies:
Once the cookies were ready, I turned my attention to decorating them.
- First, I produced a basket weave on the bottom half of the cookies. I started by piping a horizontal line using a #5 round tip across the middle of a cookie. Then, I piped a vertical line from the center, close to the edge. Next, I piped-spaced short horizontal lines over the vertical line. I piped another vertical line, followed by spaced short horizontal lines over the vertical line. I continued this until I had the complete basket weave on the bottom half of the cookie.
- Then, I used a #18 star tip to pipe a row of stars across the top for the basket handle.
- I finished the basket by piping “grass” using the #233 tip.
To complete the Easter Basket Cookies, I added some pastel-colored M&M’s in the “grass”.
I let the icing dry overnight before packaging the Easter Basket Cookies in clear plastic treat bags with pastel-colored ribbon.
They’re not only easy to make but also make adorable Easter goodies for both young and old. Yum!
Frequently Asked Questions
Food coloring can be added to the sugar cookie dough to create vibrant colors for your Easter Basket cookies. Divide the dough into separate portions and add a few drops of food coloring to each one, kneading until the color is evenly distributed. Be sure to use gel or paste food coloring, as liquid food coloring can alter the dough’s consistency.
Royal icing is a popular choice for decorating sugar cookies because it dries hard, making it easy to create intricate designs. You can also use buttercream icing, which is softer and creamier. However, buttercream icing won’t harden enough for the cookies to be packaged.
You can use store-bought sugar cookie dough in this recipe to save time. Simply follow the package instructions for rolling and cutting the dough, and adjust the baking time and temperature if necessary.
Easter Basket cookies will generally stay fresh for up to a week if stored in an airtight container at room temperature. You can also freeze decorated or undecorated cookies for up to 3 months.
The sugar cookie dough ahead of time. Wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw the dough in the refrigerator before rolling and cutting into shapes.
Recipe Tips and Tricks
- One potential problem with making cut-out cookies is that the dough sometimes has a tendency to stick to the work surface and rolling pin. To solve this problem, I like to dust the work surface with confectioners’ sugar. I also like to roll the dough between two sheets of parchment paper or plastic wrap to make it easier to handle.
- With this recipe, I made both white and pink Easter Basket Cookies. Yellow, light blue, and lavender also work well.
- The one time that I made these cookies using store-bought cookie dough, I was really surprised at how much the cookies spread and puffed up. If you decide to use the store-bought shortcut, keep this in mind.
- These adorable cookies make excellent gifts for friends and co-workers. Once the icing has hardened, I like to package individual cookies in flat clear plastic treat bags tied with pastel-colored ribbon.
- One time when I made these cookies, I used pastel-colored peanut M&Ms. I thought that they were actually too big, so I consistently use just the regular pastel-colored M&Ms.
Want More Ideas for Easter Treats? Check Out These:
- Easter Bunny Bark: Easter Bunny Bark contains only two ingredients and takes minutes to make. It is sure to delight your family and friends who gather for your Easter celebration!
- Easy Easter Basket Cookie Cups: If you’re looking for an easy and adorable treat for Easter, look no further! These Easy Easter Basket Cookie Cups take only a few ingredients and are a snap to make.
- Easter Surprise Lemon Bundt Cake: Brighten your Easter season with this rich and moist Easter Surprise Lemon Bundt Cake. It feels like springtime and tastes amazing under a layer of lemon glaze. Every piece is a surprise.
- Chocolate-Covered Peanut Butter Easter Treats: If you like Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, you’ll love these easy-to-make Chocolate-Covered Peanut Butter Easter Treats. They only require four ingredients and are the perfect combination of chocolate and peanut butter.
- Lemon Curd Tartlets: Lemon curd is like liquid gold! This lemon curd is smooth and silky with a tangy and tart flavor that overwhelms your senses. When piped into a mini pastry shell and topped with whipped cream, it produces an extraordinary treat.
- French Lemon Cream Tart: French Lemon Cream Tart is the perfect combination of sweet and tart. The amazing velvety smooth dessert is perfect for Easter, or anytime.
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Recipe
Easter Basket Cookies – Easy and Adorable
Ingredients
Sugar Cookies
- 1 cup (8 ounces) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup (7 ounces) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 Tablespoon milk
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 3 cups (15 ounces) all-purpose flour
- Confectioners' sugar for rolling out the cookie dough
Easter Basket Cookies
- 1 recipe for sugar cookies, cut into 4-inch egg shapes (See Tip 1 and 6)
- Pink, white, and green decorator frosting (See Tip 2)
- Pastel colored M&Ms (See Tip 3)
Instructions
Sugar Cookies
- Place butter and sugar in a large bowl; beat until light in color. Add egg and milk and beat to combine. Add baking soda and salt; beat until combined. Gradually add flour; beat on low just until the dough comes together. Divide the dough in half, wrap in waxed paper, and refrigerate for 2 hours.
- Preheat oven to 375º F. Sprinkle the surface where you will roll out dough with confectioners' sugar.
- Remove 1 wrapped pack of dough from the refrigerator at a time and place it on the prepared surface. Sprinkle the top with confectioners' sugar and cover with parchment paper. Roll out dough to ¼-inch thick. Move the dough around and check underneath frequently to make sure it is not sticking. If the dough has warmed during rolling, place a cold cookie sheet on top for 10 minutes to chill. Cut with a 4-inch egg-shaped cookie cutter. Place at least 1 inch apart on a parchment or silicone-lined baking mat.
- Bake at 375°F for 11 to 12 minutes or until cookies are just beginning to turn brown around the edges. As soon as cookies come out of the oven, shape by cutting with a 4-inch egg-shaped cookie cutter. Yield: 20 egg-shaped sugar cookies.
Easter Basket Cookies
- Use the above recipe or your own sugar cookie recipe. Bake sugar cookies, cut into egg shapes with a 4-inch cookie cutter according to the recipe directions. As soon as the cookies are removed from the oven, re-shape them by cutting with a 4-inch cookie cutter. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. (See Tip 4)
- Smooth the edges of cookies by "filing" on a wire mesh strainer. (See Tip 5)
- Fill a piping bag with white or pink decorator icing fitted with a coupler. Starting with the #5 round tip, pipe a horizontal line in the middle of the cookie. Pipe a vertical line from the center, close to the edge. Pipe 4 or 5 spaced horizontal lines across the vertical line. Pipe another vertical line. Pipe horizontal lines, creating a basket weave. Continue until the basket weave is formed.
- Replace the #5 tip with a #18 star tip. Pipe basket handle with individual stars.
- Fill a piping bag with green decorator icing fitted with a coupler and the #233 grass tip. Pipe grass in the basket. Finish by placing pastel-colored M&Ms in the grass.
- Yield: 20 Easter Basket Cookies
Video
Chula’s Expert Tips
- If your sugar cookie dough is sticky, you’ll want to dust your surface to prevent sticking. I use confectioners’ sugar to do this rather than using flour. The reason is that I don’t want to incorporate any more flour into the dough. The confectioners’ sugar does as good a job as the flour in mitigating the sticking.
- I used store-bought decorator frosting to decorate these Easter Basket Cookies. However, you could also use homemade buttercream frosting tinted with gel food coloring.
- I’ve tried using pastel-colored M&M peanuts. However, I thought that they were too big. Regular M&Ms tend to work better.
- Invariably, the cookies will spread some during baking. Therefore, as soon as they come out of the oven, I take the cookie cutter and cut the still-soft cookies to return them to their original size and shape.
- The downside to cutting the baked cookies is that their edges are no longer smooth. Therefore, I “sand” the edges using a wire mesh strainer. When Susan and I took a baking class in Paris, this was the technique used to produce smooth edges to the baked tart shells.
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