Reindeer Cookies Recipe

These reindeer cookies are store-bought sandwich cookies dipped in milk chocolate, then given mini pretzel antlers, candy eyes and a red M&M nose while the chocolate is still wet. One batch makes 15 cookies from 1½ cups of milk chocolate, with no oven at all.

Plan on about 20 minutes of dipping and decorating, then 30 to 45 minutes for the chocolate to set on the counter, or 15 minutes in the fridge. Have every pretzel, eye and nose sorted into bowls before the first cookie goes into the chocolate. You only get about a minute per cookie before the coating stops holding them.

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Fifteen Rudolphs From One Bowl of Chocolate

• Cookies: 15 plain sandwich cookies, double-stuffed if you can find them
• Coating: 1½ cups milk chocolate chips or melting wafers, plus 1 tablespoon coconut oil (optional)
• Antlers: 30 mini pretzels, 2 per cookie
• Eyes: 30 candy eyes
• Noses: 15 red M&Ms
• Time: about 20 minutes hands-on, then 30 to 45 minutes to set (15 in the fridge)
• Keeps: 2 to 3 days at cool room temperature

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Which Sandwich Cookies Hold Up to Dipping?

Double-stuffed sandwich cookies are the sturdiest. The thicker filling holds the two halves together when they go into warm chocolate and when you press the pretzels in. Single-stuffed cookies tend to split or crack under the antlers.

Plain chocolate or vanilla cookies give the classic Rudolph look and taste. Mint or peanut butter cookies work too and add a twist under the chocolate. Use cookies that are not already coated. A bare cookie takes the chocolate smoothly, and you can see where the coating is thin. If you like the base idea without the face, my chocolate covered Oreos use the same dip.

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Chocolate Chips or Melting Wafers for the Coating?

Both work, and they behave differently. Melting wafers are made to melt thin and set firm, so they coat evenly and forgive a few mistakes. They are the better pick if kids are helping. Milk chocolate chips taste richer, but they contain stabilizers that help them keep their shape in the oven, so they melt thick. The 1 tablespoon of coconut oil thins chips enough to coat a whole cookie in one dip and gives a glossier finish.

Seizing is a different problem. A drop of water or steam, or chocolate that gets too hot, turns it from glossy to a thick, grainy paste. Use a dry bowl and a dry fork, and microwave in 30 second bursts, stirring well after each one. Stop when a few small lumps remain and stir until they melt in the warmth of the bowl.

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Dipping Each Cookie Without a Chocolate Puddle

Line a baking sheet with parchment or wax paper first. Drop one cookie into the chocolate, turn it over with a fork so it is fully coated, then lift it out and tap the fork on the side of the bowl a few times. Scrape the bottom of the cookie along the rim of the bowl. That one move stops a flat puddle of chocolate from spreading around the base on the tray.

Slide the cookie off the fork with a toothpick instead of tipping it. A deep, narrow bowl makes the 1½ cups go further than a wide one, because the chocolate stays deep enough to cover the cookie.

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Pressing On the Pretzel Antlers, Eyes and Red Nose

Decorate each cookie right after dipping, while the chocolate is still shiny. Push two pretzels into the top edge for antlers, add two candy eyes just below them, and set a red M&M in the center near the bottom for Rudolph’s nose. Then dip the next cookie. Working one at a time beats dipping a whole tray first, because the first cookies will be set before you reach them.

Broken pretzels often make better antlers than whole ones. They look more natural and a little wild. Sort the bag before you start, pick the best pieces, and save the rest for holiday snack mix.

For a no bake Christmas cookie with kids, split the jobs. An adult dips and sets each cookie on the tray, and the kids press on the antlers, eyes and nose straight away. Melting wafers give small hands a little more time. Candy eyes are in most baking aisles, and if you cannot find them, pipe dots of white chocolate and add a mini chocolate chip to each. For more decorating projects at the same table, try snowman cake pops or snowman cupcakes.

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How Long Do Chocolate Reindeer Cookies Take to Set?

Leave them at room temperature for 30 to 45 minutes, or put the tray in the fridge for 15 minutes. They are ready when the chocolate looks matte instead of glossy and does not mark when you touch the edge. The fridge is the quick choice for a party. Letting them set on the counter gives a smoother finish for gifting.

Take them out of the fridge once they are firm. A long chill makes condensation form when they come back to room temperature, and that leaves dull streaks on the chocolate.

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Fixes for Sliding Antlers and Loose Candy Eyes

• Antlers slide down: the chocolate is too hot and runny to grip. Let the bowl cool for 2 to 3 minutes, then lean the pretzels so they rest on the tray while the coating sets.
• Eyes or nose will not stick: the chocolate set before you got there. Dab a little melted chocolate on the back of the candy and press it on.
• Cookie split in the chocolate: single-stuffed cookies or a cookie left too long in warm chocolate. Use double-stuffed and dip quickly.
• Coating looks streaky: chips melted without the coconut oil, or the cookies sat too long in the fridge. Add the oil next time and chill only 15 minutes.
• Chocolate turned thick and grainy: it seized from water or heat. Start a fresh bowl; seized chocolate will not coat smoothly.

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More Christmas Reindeer Desserts to Make

The same face works on other bases. Oval cookies like Milano give a longer reindeer face: dip them the same way and put the nose near the narrow end. For a bake, my reindeer cupcakes use chocolate frosting and pretzel antlers, and reindeer pancakes turn Christmas breakfast into the same game.

On a cookie tray, these sit well next to stained glass cookies, snowflake cookies and holiday pinwheel cookies. Alternate them with plain cookies so the faces stand out.

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Packing Reindeer Cookies for Trays, Tins and Swaps

They keep best at cool room temperature for 2 to 3 days. In a warm kitchen, store them in the fridge and let them come back to room temperature before serving. Keep them in a single layer, or separate layers with parchment. The pretzels are fragile and shift under weight.

For cookie boxes and swaps, set each cookie in a paper cupcake liner. It cushions the base and keeps the antlers from catching on the cookie next to it.

These cookies are part of my 24 Days of Christmas Desserts collection.