Easy & Adorable M&M Snowman Cookies: Your Guide to Simple Holiday Baking
Looking for a delightful, fuss-free holiday baking project? These incredibly easy and adorable decorated snowman cookies are exactly what you need! Forget intricate piping or elaborate designs. All it takes is your favorite cut-out sugar cookie recipe, a batch of simple white icing, and a handful of colorful mini M&M’s to bring these charming snowman faces to life. Perfect for festive gatherings, gifting, or just a cozy afternoon of baking, these cookies are sure to spread cheer and smiles!
Embrace the joyful spirit of the holidays with these irresistibly cute decorated snowman cookies. This recipe offers a wonderfully easy way to engage the whole family in holiday baking, creating delightful treats that look fantastic and taste even better. They are so straightforward that even the youngest bakers can join in the fun, making them an ideal activity for children. If you appreciate the charm of homemade Christmas cookies but shy away from complex decorating, these simple snowman cookies are your perfect match. Let’s dive into creating these festive delights!
Essential Materials for Crafting Your Adorable Snowman Cookies
Gathering your ingredients and tools is the first step towards creating these festive treats. You’ll find most of these items are pantry staples or easily accessible, keeping this project as stress-free as possible.
- Cut-Out Sugar Cookie Dough: The foundation of our snowmen! You can use our recommended homemade recipe (linked below in the recipe card) for the freshest taste, or opt for a convenient store-bought pre-made dough, like Pillsbury, if you’re short on time. Both work beautifully for this recipe.
- White Cookie Icing or Buttercream Frosting: This forms the snowy base for our snowman faces. Our recipe provides instructions for a quick and easy powdered sugar and water icing that yields a smooth, fast-setting finish. Alternatively, a rich buttercream frosting will offer a fluffier texture, or even canned frosting can be used for ultimate convenience.
- Miniature M&M’s: These colorful candies are the secret to our snowmen’s expressive faces! You’ll use brown for eyes and mouths, orange for noses, and red for rosy cheeks. Green M&M’s are also great for adding “buttons” to a full snowman body if you wish to extend the design.
- White Sanding Sugar (optional): For an extra sparkle that truly captures the essence of fresh snow, a sprinkle of white sanding sugar after decorating adds a magical touch.
- Round Cookie Cutter (or a glass cup): No need for a specialized snowman cutter! A simple round cutter (we used a 2.5-inch circle) or even the rim of a drinking glass will create the perfect base for your snowman heads.
Step-by-Step Guide: Crafting Your Easy Snowman Sugar Cookies
Follow these straightforward steps to create your delightful snowman cookies. The process is designed to be simple and enjoyable, ensuring beautiful results every time.
Step 1: Prepare and Bake Your Cookie Bases
Begin by rolling out your chosen sugar cookie dough. Aim for a thickness of about ⅜ to ½ inch. This ensures a sturdy cookie that won’t easily break and provides a good base for icing. (For reference, my purple ring on the Best Rolling Pin for Sugar Cookies is ⅜”). Use your round cookie cutter or a glass to cut out perfect circles from the dough. These circles will form the heads of your snowmen.
Carefully transfer the cut-out dough circles onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake them according to the instructions in your sugar cookie recipe (our recommended recipe is detailed below!).
Tip: One of the best parts about these circle cookies is that a little spreading isn’t a problem! This means you can skip the often-required step of chilling the dough, saving you valuable time and getting you to the decorating phase much faster.
Step 2: Apply the Snowy White Frosting
Once your cookies are completely baked and cooled to room temperature, it’s time to give them their snowy coating. You can spread, pipe, or dip your cookies into the white icing or frosting. For the sleek, smooth finish you see in our photos, the simple powdered sugar and water icing (recipe included below) is perfect for dipping. Just dip the tops of the cooled cookies, allowing any excess icing to drip off before carefully flipping them back over. If you prefer a richer, fluffier texture, consider using our delightful buttercream Christmas Cookie Frosting.
Important Tip: If any air bubbles appear in your fresh icing, gently pop them with a toothpick or the tip of a fork immediately. This needs to be done quickly, especially with the powdered sugar icing, as it hardens rapidly and you want a smooth surface for your snowman’s face.
Step 3: Bring Your Snowmen to Life with M&M Faces
This is where the magic happens! To create the iconic snowman smile, have an adult carefully cut about 12 brown mini M&M’s in half. These halves will form the distinct smiling mouths. For the eyes, simply press two whole brown M&M’s onto the wet icing. A sideways orange M&M makes the perfect little carrot nose. Add two red M&M’s for charming rosy cheeks. Finally, complete the smile with the half brown M&M pieces.
Feeling creative? If you’re making a full snowman body (perhaps using another round cookie below the head), you can add two green M&M’s to a blank cookie to represent buttons, giving your snowman even more character.
For an extra festive touch, once all the M&M faces have been securely placed, sprinkle a small amount of white sanding sugar over the decorated cookies. This adds a lovely glistening effect, mimicking freshly fallen snow.
Crucial Note for Icing: If you are using the quick powdered sugar icing from the recipe below, you must work swiftly! Press the M&M candies into the wet icing immediately after applying it to each cookie. This icing sets very quickly, and waiting too long before adding the candies can cause the icing to crack when you press them in, spoiling the smooth finish.
Step 4: Allow to Set and Share the Joy!
After decorating, let your beautiful snowman cookies sit undisturbed for 1-2 hours. This crucial step allows the icing to completely harden, ensuring your M&M faces stay perfectly in place and the cookies are easy to handle and stack. Once set, store them in an airtight container to maintain their freshness, or arrange them on a festive holiday cookie platter. Prepare for an abundance of compliments on how absolutely adorable your homemade decorated snowman cookies are!
These charming cookies are not just a treat for the taste buds but also a feast for the eyes, embodying the simple joys of the holiday season. They make wonderful gifts for neighbors, friends, and teachers, or a delightful centerpiece for your holiday dessert table. Share the warmth and happiness that homemade treats bring!
Frequently Asked Questions About Snowman Cookies
Got questions about making these delightful snowman cookies? We’ve got answers to help ensure your baking experience is smooth and successful!
Absolutely! While M&M’s offer a fun and easy way to create the faces, there are great alternatives. You can use mini chocolate chips for the eyes and mouth, and then pipe on the orange carrot nose with icing. For an even simpler option for the nose, they also make cute carrot sprinkles! If you don’t have any chocolate chips or other small candies, you could decorate the entire face using piped frosting. However, if you plan to pipe intricate details, we recommend using a more stable frosting like a buttercream or traditional royal icing, as the quick powdered sugar icing might not hold its piped shape as well.
The key to preventing cracks, especially with our quick powdered sugar icing, is speed! You need to press the M&M’s or other candies into the wet icing immediately after applying it to the cookie. This icing forms a crust quickly, so if you wait too long, the surface will be too firm, and pressing candies into it can cause it to crack. Work on one cookie at a time, frosting then decorating, before moving to the next.
Yes, you can absolutely use your favorite sugar cookie recipe! The beauty of these snowman cookies lies in their simple decoration, which can be applied to any sturdy cut-out cookie base. Just ensure your chosen recipe yields cookies that hold their shape well during baking and are relatively flat on top for easy icing and decorating.
Easy Decorated Snowman Cookies
Ingredients
- Cut Out Sugar Cookie Dough
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 2-3 tablespoons water (luke-warm) can also use milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon salt optional, see notes
Toppings
- Miniature M&M’s
- White sanding sugar optional
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Instructions
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First, roll out your sugar cookie dough to about ⅜-½ inch thickness. Use a round cookie cutter (or a glass) to cut out circles. Place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake according to your chosen recipe’s instructions until lightly golden. Once baked, transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
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To prepare the quick white icing, combine powdered sugar (2 cups), lukewarm water (2-3 tablespoons), a pinch of salt (if desired, see notes), and vanilla extract (1 teaspoon) in a medium-sized bowl. Whisk or stir until the mixture is completely smooth and free of lumps.
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Adjust the icing consistency by adding more water, one teaspoon at a time, for a thinner consistency, or more powdered sugar for a thicker one. For piping, aiming for a consistency similar to pancake batter (closer to 2 tablespoons of water) is ideal to prevent it from running off the cookies. If you’re dipping or drizzling the icing, you’ll likely need a slightly thinner consistency, closer to 3 tablespoons of water. (Refer to the notes section below for detailed tips on storing and freezing the icing.)
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Once the cookies are cool and the icing is ready, it’s time to decorate! Immediately press the M&M’s into the wet icing before it hardens. For the snowman’s mouth, have an adult carefully cut approximately 12 brown mini M&M’s in half. To create each snowman face, press on 2 whole brown M&M’s for the eyes, 1 sideways orange M&M for the carrot nose, and 2 red M&M’s for the rosy cheeks. Complete the face by adding the half brown M&M pieces to form a cheerful smile. Should you desire to create a full snowman body, simply add 2 green M&M’s to a separate blank cookie to represent buttons.For an enchanting final touch, once the faces have been assembled, gently sprinkle a small amount of white sanding sugar over the cookies for a sparkling, snowy effect.
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Allow the decorated snowman cookies to sit at room temperature for 1-2 hours until the icing has completely set and hardened. Once dry, they are ready to be served, stored, or gifted!
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Notes
- Work Quickly with Icing: This quick powdered sugar icing hardens fast. To avoid cracks when pressing on candies, apply the icing to one cookie and immediately add the M&M’s before moving to the next. Speed is your friend here!
- Storage Tips: Once the icing is completely set, store your decorated snowman cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days. For longer freshness, you can refrigerate them for up to a week.
- Freezing Iced Cookies: While this particular powdered sugar icing does freeze, it may become a bit sticky upon thawing due to condensation. If you plan to freeze the iced cookies, ensure they are fully hardened, then layer them between pieces of parchment paper in an airtight freezer-safe container. When ready to serve, remove them from the freezer and immediately lay them in a single layer on a cookie sheet to thaw. Be aware that the icing may develop some moisture and stickiness. For cookies intended specifically for freezing, we highly recommend using a buttercream Christmas Cookie Frosting instead, as it holds up better to freezing and thawing.
- Balance the Sweetness with Salt: This icing is naturally sweet. To subtly cut through the sweetness and add depth of flavor, you can mix in ⅛ teaspoon of fine salt. It’s an optional but recommended addition for a more balanced taste.
Decorating Consistency Tips for Icing:
- For Drizzling Applications: If you intend to use this icing to drizzle over other desserts like brownies, bundt cakes, or quick breads, you’ll want a thinner consistency. Aim for approximately 2 tablespoons of water in the recipe to achieve a pourable drizzle.
- Ideal for Dipping Sugar Cookies: For dipping the tops of your sugar cookies, a slightly thinner consistency works best for an even coat. Closer to 3 tablespoons of water will ensure the icing spreads smoothly and allows excess to drip off easily.
- For Piping or Spreading on Sugar Cookies: When decorating sugar cookies by piping or spreading, a thicker, more controlled consistency is desired. Think of it like a thick pancake batter – approximately 2 tablespoons of water will help ensure the icing stays in place and doesn’t run off the edges of your cookies.