How to Make Decorated Gingerbread Man Cookies

With Halloween just a few days away means Christmas is just around the corner. I wanted to provide winter holiday cookie cutter designs in the shop early so you could get a head start planning your own Christmas cookie options. Whether it be for cookie sales in your store or an upcoming holiday event, I wanted to give you enough time to place an order before the holiday craziness starts. Included in the first round of Christmas designs added to the shop is this fun duo of gingerbread man cookies.

Gingerbread Man Cookie Cutters

This adorable pair of gingerbread man cookies are two of the four designs added to my shop.

Usually, gingerbread man cookies are in an awkward, umm... spread eagle position. I wanted to change things up with a new, playful design. This gingerbread man cookie cutter is gesturing a wave "hello", all while making the cookie itself more durable. With one arm attached to the head, the neck connection is strengthen. Also, the three remaining limbs are attached for added durability.

For a personalized touch, I designed the same gingerbread man hanging out in a coffee cup. The cup allows plenty of room for a message or name, making it the perfect gift or stocking stuffer. The Large size option for the gingerbread cup cookie cutter is especially sized to best fit into 4" x 4" gift boxes.

These two gingerbread man cookie cutter designs are available in various sizes, but Regular is the size I decorated in the tutorial below.

Template for the Gingerbread Man Cookies

I provided a downloadable PDF template file for the gingerbread man cookie designs shown in this tutorial. In the file, I included both designs of the standalone gingerbread man and the personalized cup version.

You can download the gingerbread man cookie template HERE.

If you have a Kopykake or Pico projector, just print it out (or pull it up on your mobile device) and you are good to go. For those without a projector, follow the suggested steps below by cutting out the template and tracing the design onto the cookie with an edible food marker.

The Decorating Process

To get the shade of gingerbread tan, I pulled up LilaLoa's handy guide for mixing caramel coloring. It works for both caramel apples and gingerbread men! I made a batch of icing that was the caramel color and another that is just a tad shade darker for the dot accents.

You will also need icing in white, black, and another color of your choosing (I used a mixture of sky blue and teal).

Step 1

Begin by marking where the outline of the head and body should be. I made a template from the template file above and used a food marker to draw the guideline on the cookie. From there you can sketch out the arm guidelines as well.

Step 2

Next, outline over the body guidelines with the darker tan icing using a #2 icing tip. Let it set up for about 15 minutes before moving on.

Step 3

Now this is the fun part. Fill in the individual sections with the lighter tan icing. Then immediately add darker accents dots. Be careful not to fill over the outline.

Step 4

Be sure to fill in non-adjacent sections first, then fill in the remaining after the icing has set. Below is how I progressed through the flooded sections. Let this base layer dry completely (about 2 to 4 hours).

Step 5

After the tan icing is dry, it's time to add the details. Add two gum drop buttons to his belly. I used a light blue, but any color would work. While it's still wet, I added a white, shine accent as well. Just add a dot and drag a scribe through it to make the accent shape.

Step 6

Add the final details like the white squiggle accent lines and the facial features, as shown.

Video Tutorial

The steps above are summarized in this time-lapsed video.

I'm really digging the wet-on-wet dots on these gingerbread man cookies. I think it adds a cookie-like texture to the overall design. Here's the complete set along side with the gingerbread cups.

Be sure to check out the shop for the other added Christmas designs. I will also be showcasing more Christmas cookie ideas over the coming weeks so stay tuned!