Step 1: Make Dough, Cut Shapes, and Bake Your Cookies

The foundation of any great decorated cookie is a perfectly baked sugar cookie. Begin by following the instructions in the recipe card below to create a batch of my classic cut-out sugar cookie dough. Once your dough is ready, it’s time to roll it out and cut your festive shapes. For each decorating idea detailed below, I’ve specified the cookie cutters or simple hacks you can use to achieve the desired form.

If you’re new to working with sugar cookie dough, achieving the right thickness and consistency can be tricky. I highly recommend checking out my comprehensive guide on how to perfectly roll out sugar cookie dough for all the best tips and tricks, ensuring your cookies bake evenly and hold their shape beautifully.

Tip: Planning ahead? You can absolutely make your cookie dough in advance and roll it out later! Learn all about how to freeze sugar cookie dough effectively, saving you time and effort on decorating day.

Step 2: Prepare Your Vibrant Buttercream Frosting

With your cookies cooled and ready, it’s time to create the colorful buttercream frosting that will bring them to life. Use my easy buttercream frosting recipe as your base. This recipe is incredibly versatile and forms the perfect canvas for all your Easter cookie designs. Once your frosting is made, divide it into separate bowls and add food coloring to achieve the ideal pastel shades for Easter. I’ve included my simple formulas using the Wilton Color Right Set to guide you in creating these beautiful hues:

• Coral Frosting: For every 1 cup of frosting, use 1 swipe Wilton Red + 1 swipe of Wilton Yellow. This creates a soft, warm coral.
• Orange Frosting: For every 1 cup of frosting, use 4 drops of Wilton Orange + 2 drops of Wilton Yellow. Adjust to your desired intensity.
• Green Frosting: For every 1 cup of frosting, use 4 drops Wilton Blue + 4 drops Wilton Yellow. A classic pastel green for spring!
• Yellow Frosting: For every 1 cup of frosting, use 4 drops of Wilton Yellow & 1-2 swipes Wilton Orange. This adds warmth to the yellow.
• Mint Frosting: For every 1 cup of frosting, use 2 swipes Wilton Blue + 2 swipes of Wilton Yellow. A delicate and refreshing mint shade.

Tip: For frosting that is a pure, bright white, it’s crucial to use clear extracts, such as clear vanilla extract. Regular vanilla extract can impart a slightly off-white, yellowish tint. If your frosting still looks a bit dull, you can add a TINY amount of purple food coloring (using my toothpick trick for precision) to neutralize the yellow tones and make it appear whiter.

Step 3: Time to Decorate Your Easter Masterpieces!

Now for the most fun part – bringing your cookies to life with vibrant frosting and cute details! To make this process as easy and enjoyable as possible, I’ll share specific decorating instructions for each design, along with helpful tips and tricks to ensure your success.

Idea 1: Simple & Sweet Flower Cookies

These cheerful flower cookies are arguably the easiest to decorate among all the Easter ideas I’m sharing today! You don’t even need a special flower cookie cutter; a simple round cutter works perfectly. A small circle from a champagne glass rim can also create charming mini flowers!

1. Cut Your Cookies: Use a flower-shaped cookie cutter if you have one, or simply a small circle cutter. Even the rim of a small glass can create cute, uniform circles.
2. Pipe White Petal Stripes: Fill a piping bag fitted with a small round tip with white buttercream frosting. To create the petals, start in the middle of the cookie and pipe a stripe outwards, then loop back in towards the center, forming a petal shape. Repeat this around the cookie, making sure your petals are evenly spaced. The buttercream’s forgiving nature makes this technique very beginner-friendly.
3. Add a Pink Center Dot: Once your petals are done, switch to a piping bag with pink frosting (or coral) and pipe one small round dot right in the middle of the flower for a cheerful center.

Tip: For an extra touch of sparkle and texture, you can leave the cookie as is, or gently sprinkle some white sanding sugar or pink sugar sprinkles over the wet frosting before it sets. This adds a beautiful glistening effect!

Idea 2: Colorful Easter Egg Cookies

Easter eggs are a classic symbol of spring, and they make for incredibly fun and versatile cookies to decorate! You can achieve this shape using a dedicated egg-shaped cutter, a simple oval, or even a plain circle cutter with a clever trick. Feel free to use any of the vibrant buttercream frosting colors you’ve prepared, but I especially love using pink and white for a soft, festive look.

1. Cut Your Cookie Shapes: If you have an egg cookie cutter, great! Otherwise, use a plain circle cutter. After cutting the dough, gently “squish” in the top and bottom sides slightly with a butter knife or your fingers to create a more distinct oval or egg shape before baking.
2. Spread Your Base Frosting: Using a piping bag (to outline and fill) or an offset spatula (to spread), apply your chosen colored buttercream evenly onto the cookie. If piping, first create a neat outline around the edge of the cookie, then fill the center. Use a small offset spatula or the back of a spoon to smooth out the frosting for a perfect, even base.
3. Add Decorative Patterns: Once your base layer is smooth, grab another color of frosting. This is where your creativity shines! Use a piping bag to add playful zig-zags, charming polka dots, elegant stripes, or any other decorative design you envision. Don’t be afraid to experiment with different patterns and color combinations to make each egg unique.

Tip: Elevate your Easter egg cookies with extra sparkle! Finish them off with a sprinkle of edible glitter for a dazzling effect, or add some colorful sanding sugar for extra texture and shine.

Idea 3: Charming Easter Bunny Sugar Cookies

What would an Easter cookie collection be without the iconic bunny? These Easter bunny sugar cookies are not only incredibly easy to create but also super adorable, making them a guaranteed hit. You can use any bunny-shaped cookie cutter you find; simply adapt the decorating steps to match your specific cutter’s shape and proportions.

1. Cut Your Cookies: Use your favorite bunny-shaped cookie cutter to cut out the dough. Ensure the dough is rolled to a consistent thickness for even baking.
2. Spread White Frosting Base: Using either a piping bag (with a larger round tip or just the end snipped off) or an offset spatula, generously spread white buttercream frosting evenly over the entire bunny cookie. Aim for a smooth, opaque base layer.
3. Add Pink Accents: Switch to a piping bag filled with pink or coral icing. Carefully pipe in the inner ear details and create cute rosy cheeks on your bunny’s face. The soft pastel colors will make your bunnies extra charming.
4. Press on Eyes & Nose: While the frosting is still wet, gently press two black pearl sprinkles, mini chocolate chips, or mini M&M’s into place for the bunny’s eyes. You can also add another sprinkle or mini chip for a tiny nose.

Tip: For variety, consider using brown M&M’s (the mini ones work wonderfully!) or mini chocolate chips for the eyes and nose. This adds a slightly different texture and color to the bunny’s face, similar to how I created the eyes for my 5 EASY Christmas Cookies for Kids!

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Idea 4: Fluffy & Adorable Lamb Cookies

This fluffy little lamb is hands down one of the cutest cookies on this list! Its charming appearance is guaranteed to bring smiles, and it would also make an absolutely adorable addition to a baby shower cookie spread. The texture of the “wool” is surprisingly easy to achieve, even for beginners.

1. Cut Circular Cookies: Start with a simple circle cookie cutter or even the rim of a glass cup to cut out your cookie shapes. These round cookies form the perfect base for your lambs.
2. Spread Frosting for the Face: Take a small amount of white buttercream frosting and, using a small offset spatula or the back of a spoon, spread a small, smooth circle on the bottom third of each cookie. This smooth area will serve as the lamb’s face, contrasting with the fluffy wool.
3. Pipe the Fluffy Wool: Fill a piping bag fitted with a small round tip with white buttercream frosting. Pipe small, distinct dots of frosting all over the remaining two-thirds of the cookie, carefully avoiding the smooth face area you just created. The individual dots will mimic the texture of fluffy lamb’s wool.
4. Add Eyes and Nose: While the frosting is still fresh, gently press three black sprinkles, mini brown M&M’s, or mini chocolate chips onto the smooth face area – two for the eyes and one for the nose. Arrange them to create an endearing expression.
5. Pipe a Small Bow (Optional): For an extra touch of cuteness, use a small round piping tip to pipe a tiny pink bow just below one of the lamb’s ears. This small detail adds personality and charm.

Idea 5: Crunchy & Colorful Carrot Cookies

If you’re making cute bunny cookies, it’s only natural that you’d also need some delicious carrots for them! These carrot cookies are a perfect accompaniment and surprisingly simple to decorate, bringing a pop of vibrant color to your Easter cookie platter.

1. Cut Your Carrot Shapes: Begin by using a carrot-shaped cookie cutter to create your cookie bases. Ensure all cookies are of similar thickness for uniform baking.
2. Add Orange Frosting: Using a piping bag, first outline the edges of the carrot shape with orange buttercream frosting. Then, fill in the entire bottom section of the carrot with the orange frosting. You can use an offset spatula or the back of a spoon to gently smooth out the frosting, creating a neat, even surface.
3. Pipe on Green Frosting for Leaves: Switch to a piping bag filled with green buttercream frosting. At the top of the carrot, where the leaves would be, use a small round piping tip to pipe short “squiggles” or small star shapes. This technique gives the leaves a lovely texture and dimension, making them look more realistic.
4. Smooth (if desired): If you prefer a perfectly smooth finish for your green leaves, you can gently tap the cookie or use a small, clean knife or toothpick to smooth out the frosting. However, the textured squiggles often add a nice rustic touch.

Tip: No carrot-shaped cookie cutter on hand? No problem! You can easily freehand the carrot shape directly from your rolled-out dough using a sharp knife. Just sketch out a simple carrot shape and carefully cut it out.

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Idea 6: Easter Bunny Paw Print Cookies

These adorable bunny paw print cookies are incredibly easy to decorate, making them a fantastic activity for kids and a charming addition to your Easter spread. Pair them with your Easter bunny shaped cookies for a fun and cohesive theme!

1. Cut Your Cookies: Use an egg-shaped cookie cutter to create the oval base for the paw. If you only have a round circle cutter, simply use a butter knife or your fingers after cutting the dough to gently “squeeze” in the top and bottom edges, transforming the circle into an egg-like oval before baking.
2. Spread White Frosting: With a piping bag or an offset spatula, spread a smooth, even layer of white buttercream icing over the entire surface of each egg-shaped cookie. This will be the main part of the bunny paw.
3. Add Pink Dots for the Paw: Fill a piping bag with pink buttercream (or a Ziploc bag with a tiny corner snipped off for a makeshift piping bag). Pipe one larger pink dot towards the bottom center of the white-frosted cookie, and then pipe three smaller pink dots in an arc just above the large dot. This arrangement perfectly mimics the charming shape of a bunny paw print!

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Idea 7: Chirpy Yellow Easter Chick Cookies

And now, for the final delightful Easter cookie idea! This bright yellow chick cookie is one of my absolute favorites, especially because you can easily make it with just a simple round cookie cutter or even a regular glass cup. It’s perfect for adding a burst of sunshine to your Easter celebration.

1. Cut Your Cookies: Use a standard round cookie cutter or the rim of a glass cup to cut out perfectly circular cookie shapes. These simple circles will be transformed into charming baby chicks.
2. Spread Yellow Frosting: Using a piping bag or an offset spatula, spread a smooth and even layer of bright yellow buttercream icing over the entire surface of each round cookie. This yellow base will give your chick its iconic color.
3. Add Face Details: Switch to a piping bag fitted with a fine tip (or a Ziploc bag with a very small corner snipped) and orange buttercream frosting. Gently pipe a small triangle for the chick’s beak in the center of the face. Below the beak, pipe three tiny dots in a cluster to create the chickie’s adorable feet. For an extra touch of cuteness, you can also pipe a tiny pink bow next to the beak.
4. Press on Eyes: While the frosting is still moist, carefully place two black sprinkles, mini brown M&M’s, or mini chocolate chips above the beak for the chick’s expressive eyes.

Tip: For an even simpler approach to the face, you can use mini M&M’s! Turn an orange M&M sideways for the beak and use two regular brown or black M&M’s for the eyes. This technique is similar to how I made the faces on my Easy Decorated Snowman Cookies for inspiration!

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FREE Easter Sugar Cookie Decorating Class & eBook!

Ready to dive deeper into Easter cookie decorating? You can watch the class replay here and download my exclusive Easter sugar cookie eBook! Simply enter your email below to receive the link to download. The eBook includes not only my signature sugar cookie and buttercream frosting recipes, but also detailed pastel color formulas and additional tips to master your Easter cookie creations. Check your email for the download link!