These Matcha Christmas Wreath Cookies are so cute and delicious! A unique green holiday cookie that looks amazing and tastes buttery, like shortbread. Dipped in white chocolate they can easily be made vegan.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Festive: Matcha gives these cookies their soft green colour on its own, so they look seasonal and special without relying on food colouring or extra decoration.
- Balanced, not sweet-heavy: The gentle bitterness of matcha keeps the sweetness in check, while the white chocolate adds just enough richness.
- Buttery texture: Crisp around the edges with a tender centre, they are a bit like shortbread.
- Easy to shape: The dough pipes smoothly and holds its form once chilled, which makes shaping wreaths feel achievable rather than fiddly.
- A nice change for the holidays: They fit right in on a Christmas cookie plate, but offer something a little unexpected alongside the usual spiced classic cookies.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Here’s your shopping list. The exact quantities for each ingredient listed in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- All-purpose flour
- Matcha powder
- Fine salt
- Butter or margarine (conventional butter and dairy-free butter will both work in this recipe. If using hard butter blocks, let them soften at room temperature before beating. If using margarine, take it straight from the fridge so it’s firmer.)
- Powdered sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Coconut cream (canned)
- White chocolate
- Sprinkles (to decorate)
Instructions
Here’s how to make your own batch of Matcha Christmas Cookies. You’ll need a piping kit. The recipe card below has all the exact quantities, temperatures, and bake times.
Step One: Whisk together the flour, matcha, and salt.
Step Two: Beat the butter or margarine with powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth.
Step Three: Mix in the dry ingredients, then add the coconut cream until the dough is pipeable.
Step Four: Pipe wreath shapes onto a lined baking sheet and chill until firm.
Step Five: Bake until just set around the edges, then cool completely.
Step Six: Dip in melted white chocolate and decorate before the chocolate sets.
Storage
Once the chocolate has set, store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to four days. They also freeze well – layer with parchment and thaw at room temperature before serving.
Expert Tips
If the dough feels too soft to pipe cleanly, chill the filled piping bag for 10โ15 minutes. Firming up the fat slightly makes a noticeable difference to definition without altering the recipe.
FAQ
A good-quality culinary matcha is ideal for baking. It gives you that soft green colour and a clean, earthy flavour without tipping bitter. Very low-grade matcha tends to bake dull and can lose its balance once heated.
Matcha is sensitive to heat, so baking at a moderate temperature and pulling the cookies once the edges are just set makes a difference. Overbaking can dull both the colour and the flavour.
The dough should be smooth and soft enough to pipe without resistance, but not loose. Using butter or margarine at the right temperature helps โ too cold and the dough is stiff, too warm and it wonโt hold its shape. If it feels borderline, a short chill usually fixes it.
A slightly shorter bake keeps the centres tender, while a longer bake firms them up. The cookies will continue to set as they cool, so itโs better to err on the softer side.
Piping gives the cleanest shape, but itโs not the only option. You can roll the dough into thin ropes and form rings if you prefer a more hands-on approach. The texture stays the same, just with less definition.
Once the chocolate has set, they keep well in an airtight container at room temperature for a few days. If theyโve been chilled, letting them come back to room temperature before serving improves both texture and flavour.
Serving Suggestions and More Recipes
These cookies are great with a cup of coffee or tea!
If you’re looking for more Christmas Recipes, you might also enjoy Vegan Linzer Cookies, Pecan Pie Cookies, or Walnut Shortbread.
I hope you love these! Leave a review below or tag me on social media – I am @glowdiaries___ – to show me how they turned out ๐
Matcha Christmas Wreath Cookies
Ingredients
- 1โ cups all-purpose flour 200 g
- 1 tablespoon matcha powder high-quality culinary or ceremonial grade (6 g)
- ยผ teaspoon fine sea salt 1.5 g
- 1 cup butter or margarine softened (230 g)
- ยพ cup powdered sugar 100 g
- ยฝ teaspoon vanilla extract 2.5 g
- 2 tablespoons canned coconut cream thick portion, room temperature (30 g)
- 3.5 oz dairy-free white chocolate finely chopped (100 g)
- Sprinkles of choice optional
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, matcha and salt.
- In a large bowl, beat the butter or margarine with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla extract, then beat until fully combined.
- Add the dry ingredients and mix just until a thick dough forms.
- Add the canned coconut cream and mix until the dough is smooth and pipeable.
- Transfer the dough to a piping bag fitted with a large open star piping tip. Pipe wreath shapes onto the prepared baking sheet, leaving about 1ยฝโ2 inches (4โ5 cm) between each cookie.
- Chill the entire baking sheet in the refrigerator for 30 minutes so the cookies hold their shape during baking.
- Preheat the oven to 325ยฐF (160ยฐC).
- Bake for 15โ17 minutes, until the cookies are set and lightly firm around the edges. Let cool completely on the baking sheet.
- Melt the white chocolate gently over low heat or in short microwave intervals. Dip part of each cooled cookie into the chocolate, let excess drip off, then place back onto parchment paper.
- Add sprinkles before the chocolate sets. Let the chocolate firm up fully before serving or storing.
Notes
This recipe isย fromย Matcha Butter Cookiesย by Gail fromย Teak & Thyme. This version has very minor changes with vegan substitution options, coconut cream and small method adjustments. Visit Teak & Thyme for more beautifully developed baking recipes and flavor ideas.ย Butter vs margarineย
Conventional dairy butter is what the original recipe used, but if making this vegan, aย firm, block-styleย veganย butterย is the closest swap. I used margarineย chilled straight from the fridge.ย Tipsย ifย using margarineย
- Use a firm block or sturdy tub, notย a very softย spreadย
- Chill the piped cookies well before bakingย
- If the dough feels too soft, refrigerate the filled piping bag for 10โ15 minutesย
- Avoid adding extra liquid unless the dough is difficult to pipeย
This dough is designed for piping wreath shapes using a large open star tip. If you prefer not to pipe, chill the dough until firm, then roll into small balls and lightly flatten. The cookies will spread more and will not hold the wreath detail, though theย flavorย and texture still work well.ย
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