Grinch cookies recipe add fun and color to your holiday baking! With vibrant green dough and a cute red heart, these holiday treats are as delicious as they are adorable. Perfect for Christmas parties or gifting, they’ll bring festive cheer to any celebration!
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Grinch cookies are a fun twist on your classic holiday treats, inspired by the grumpy green character from How the Grinch Stole Christmas! These festive cookies are made with vibrant green dough and a cute red heart in the center, making them as fun to look at as they are to eat.
Grinch cookies are a simple, classic sugar cookie recipe with a festive twist! Made soft and chewy with just the right balance of sweetness, these cookies are brought to life with vibrant green food coloring to match the playful Grinch theme.
These festive treats are easy and quick to make, making them perfect for the holiday season. Whether you’re looking to gift them to friends and family or bring them along to a cookie exchange, they’re sure to add a fun and festive touch to any occasion.
Why you'll love this recipe
Ingredients you need
Craving for more Christmas cookies and recipes? Give these a try: Grinch hot chocolate bombs, Iced Christmas sugar cookies, Iced gingerbread cookies, mini gingerbread houses, candy cane cookies, Chocolate thumbprint cookies.
You will need these ingredients to make these easy grinch cookies:
- Butter: Use softened unsalted butter or cooled melted butter.
- Sugar: Granulated white sugar.
- Egg: At room temperature for easy incorporation into the dough.
- Food Coloring: Opt for food gel color for a vibrant green hue without altering the dough’s texture.
- Flour: All-purpose flour.
- Baking Powder: Use baking soda, or check the recipe card to use baking powder if preferred.
- Vanilla and Salt: Liquid vanilla extract and fine salt, or fleur de sel for a touch of luxury.
- Sugar Hearts: Mini red candy hearts that represent the "Grinch’s heart."
How To Make Grinch Cookies
Here are some quick visual steps to guide you. Don't forget, the full instructions with exact ingredient measurements are in the main recipe card below!
Step 1: In a large bowl, beat the butter with the sugar using an electric mixer, then add the egg, vanilla extract, and green food coloring. Mix until a smooth, green dough forms.
Step 2: Add the sifted dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, and salt. Gently mix to combine.
Step 3: Scoop the dough using a cookie scoop and roll the balls in a bowl of powdered sugar.
Step 4: Place the cookie dough balls on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper, spacing them out enough.
Step 5: Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and bake cookies for about 8-10 minutes, or until they are slightly golden around the edges but still soft in the center.
Step 6: Once out of the oven, place a sugar heart on top of each cookie and gently press it to make it stick. Let the cookies cool completely on a wire rack before enjoying!
Tips for this recipe
Storage instructions
- Room Temperature: Store the cookies in an airtight container, away from moisture, for up to 5 days to keep them soft.
- Freezing: You can freeze the uncooked dough in balls or the baked cookies for up to 1 month. Thaw the cookies at room temperature before enjoying.
Variations & Substitutions
More Cookie Recipes
I hope you love these Christmas grinch cookie recipe! If you make it, be sure to leave a comment and a rating so I know how you liked it. Happy Baking!
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Grinch Cookies
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 12 cookies
Description
Grinch Cookies, a recipe for green Christmas cookies with a little sugar heart in the center (makes 12 cookies).
Ingredients
- 115 g (½ cup) unsalted butter, softened
- 130 g (⅔ cup) granulated sugar
- 1 egg, at room temperature
- 180 g (1 ½ cups) all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 pinch of salt
- Green food coloring
- Sugar hearts
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and prepare a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- In a bowl, mix the flour, baking soda (or baking powder), and salt, then set aside.
- In another bowl, beat the softened butter and sugar until creamy.
- Add the egg, vanilla extract, and a few drops of green food coloring to color the dough. Mix until the color is even.
- Gently fold in the dry ingredients with a spatula until the dough is smooth. (Refrigerate the dough if it’s too sticky.)
- Form 12 equal-sized dough balls and roll them in powdered sugar or granulated sugar to coat.
- Place the dough balls on the baking sheet, spacing them slightly apart.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes, until the edges are slightly firm and the center is still soft.
- Once out of the oven, gently press a red sugar heart onto each warm cookie.
- Let the cookies cool completely before enjoying.
Notes
Storage: Store the cookies in an airtight container, away from moisture, for up to 5 days or freeze them for up to 1 month.
Tips:
- Use gel food coloring: It provides an intense green color without altering the dough's texture.
- Weigh the dough balls: For uniform cookies, weigh each portion or use a cookie scoop.
- Roll the dough balls in sugar: This ensures a nice sugary crust after baking.
- Add the sugar hearts immediately: Gently press the decorations onto the cookies as soon as they come out of the oven so they stick properly.
- Monitor baking: Don't let the cookies brown too much; they should stay soft in the center.
- Reshape the cookies: Right out of the oven, use a round cookie cutter and gently spin it around each warm cookie to reshape them into perfect circles.
- Use a kitchen scale: For more accurate measurements and consistent cookie sizes, a kitchen scale is a great tool.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: cookies
- Cuisine: American
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