Pinecone Cookies

Make beautiful Pinecone Cookies the (really) old fashioned way, with a carved wooden cookie mold. Gingerbread cookie dough casts beautifully and creates a realistic 3 dimensional effect.

Pinecone Cookies

It was love at first sight with these Pinecone Cookies. I first spotted some in an advertisement for a wooden cookie mold. The 3-D effect drew me in, and I just had to order the mold to see if I could recreate them in my own kitchen. I was skeptical, and – full disclosure- there is a learning curve, but once you find your technique it’s easy.

Needless to say, you’ll need to procure the pinecone mold for this recipe. There’s one that’s not too expensive right here. I loved making these cookies because the technique has such rich history. The origins of molding cookies in wood forms can be traced back to the ancient arts of wood carving and pottery, around 3000 BC. The practice has endured through the ages with cookies such as German Springerle and molded Scottish shortbread.

Use a scale.

Through trial and error I figured out how to make the job of hand molding loads of cookies a shorter task. First, figure out how much dough the mold will hold. Press dough bit by bit into the mold until it is full. Then remove it and weigh it on a digital scale. This will give you the weight to use for all of the cookies. This pinecone mold holds 2.50 oz. of my gingerbread dough. If you use a different dough recipe, or a different mold, the weight will vary.

My molding method.

Using the scale, portion off balls of dough and weigh them all so they are equal, such as my 2.50 oz. weight. Portioning the dough will make quicker work of molding all the cookies.

I started out dusting the mold with cocoa powder. Then cinnamon. And then powdered sugar. Much as I tried, the dough would not come out of the mold. The method that worked best for me (and this particular molasses heavy dough) was to oil the mold with cooking spray. Spray the mold well between each dough pressing.

Casting.

Flatten a dough ball and press it into the cavity so that it overflows the edges of the pinecone design. Using a finger, push the overflowing edges back so you can see the edges of the pinecone shape. It should look like the picture above just before it is unmolded.

Unmolding.

Next, whack the mold on a work surface at the pinecone tip edge. And I mean really whack it hard. You may have to do this a few times before the dough starts to loosen. When the dough starts falling out, just let gravity do its thing and wait for it to relax out of the mold and onto the work surface.

Pinecone Cookies

From there transfer the shaped dough to a parchment-lined baking sheet using a cookie spatula. Be careful not to stretch or distort the pinecones too much as you move them. It’s very easy to do so. Just use extra care.

Pinecone Cookies

Perfectly puffed pinecone cookies!

The cookies bake to a beautifully sculpted finish that’s slightly puffed. I experimented with bake times, because I wasn’t sure what texture they’d be with their fat middles and delicate edges. At 12 minutes they are soft baked, which is perfect to eat as the sandwich cookies I made. They’re more firm in the centers at 16 minutes, and very crisp around the edges.

This gingerbread dough recipe is pretty ginger-forward, and even though it molds well I still found the cookies alone to be a little plain. So I whipped up a batch of pistachio buttercream and made them into sandwich cookies.

Pistachio paste is a staple in the pastry chef kitchen, and it’s wonderful in buttercream. A little fine grain sea salt mixed in enhances the pistachio flavor and takes the edge off of the buttercream’s sweetness.

Hold the pinecone cookies upright and sieve a little powdered sugar over the top. The protruding pinecone scales will catch just enough to make them look snowy.

Pinecone Cookies

One assembled Pinecone Cookie sandwich is a generous serving! These would look so pretty individually packaged in cellphone bags. Then tied with festive ribbon and a sprig of rosemary. And I think that’s just how I’ll gift them this year.

If you love pinecone-shaped sweets, check out these marzipan and almond pinecones I made years ago for The Etsy Journal (link). They could be a nice option if you’re not ready to invest in a carved pinecone cookie mold.

Again, the pinecone mold I used can be found right here.

Gingerbread Pinecone Cookies

Heather Baird
This cookie recipe requires a carved wooden pinecone cookie mold to create the realistic 3 dimensional effect. See the blog post for shopping links.
The large batch gingerbread recipe is adapted from Wilton. It makes a sturdy gingerbread structure and molds well. One recipe yields 24 pinecone cookies (at 2.50 oz. each) or 12 sandwich cookies, assembled with the pistachio buttercream recipe provided.
5 from 5 votes
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 24

Equipment

  • Carved wood pinecone mold (see blog post for link)
  • large closed star piping tip
  • Piping bag

Ingredients
 
 

Gingerbread

  • 5 cups all-purpose flour plus more to bring to consistency/kneading
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons ground ginger
  • 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1 cup unsalted butter melted
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 1/4 cups molasses unsulfured, such as Grandma's brand
  • 2 eggs slightly beaten
  • Cooking spray to grease mold such as Pam brand
  • Powdered sugar for dusting

Pistachio buttercream

  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter
  • 1/3 cup pistachio paste
  • 4 cups confectioners’ sugar
  • Milk or cream to thin I like half and half
  • 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
  • 3 tablespoons ground pistachios for sprinkling

Instructions
 

Cookies

  • In a large bowl, thoroughly whisk together the flour, soda, salt and spices. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, sugar, molasses and eggs. Mix well. Add four cups of flour mixture and mix until just combined. Add in additional flour while mixing on low until a firm non-sticky dough forms. Turn mixture out onto a lightly floured surface and knead briefly.
  • Oil the cookie mold with cooking spray. Press small pieces of cookie dough into the carved cavity until it is evenly filled. Remove the dough from the mold and weigh it on a scale (mine was 2.50 oz.). Using that weight, portion the remaining dough into balls that each weigh the same.
  • Re-grease the mold. Flatten a dough ball and press it into the cavity so that it slightly overflows the edges of the pinecone design. Using a finger, push the overflowing edges back so you can see the edges of the pinecone shape. This ensures the dough gets pressed into the fine edges of the mold, which gives the finest edge when unmolded.
  • Next, whack the mold on a work surface at the pinecone tip edge. And I mean really whack it hard. You may have to do this a few times before the dough starts to loosen. When the dough starts falling out, just let gravity do its thing and wait for it to relax out of the mold and onto the work surface.
  • Transfer the cookie to a parchment-lined baking sheet using a cookie spatula. Be careful not to stretch or distort the pinecones too much as you move them. It’s very easy to do so. I used a large cookie spatula at the large end of the pinecone, with my free hand as under support to the pinecone tip. Gently lay the cookie onto the sheet without stretching or pulling it.
  • Re-grease the mold and repeat the filling and unmolding process with the remaining pieces of dough. Chill molded cookies in the freezer on the pans for 10 minutes.
  • Preheat oven to 375°F.
  • Bake for 12 minutes for cookies with soft middles (best for sandwiches). For cookies that snap, bake for 16 minutes. (See recipe notes for more on bake times.) Remove cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
  • Stand each cookie upright with one hand and sieve a little confectioners’ sugar on with the other. The protruding pinecone scales will catch the sugar and give the cookies a snowy effect.

Pistachio Buttercream

  • In the bowl of an electric mixer, place the butter and pistachio paste; beat until combined. Add powdered sugar. Beat on low speed until just combined.
  • Add milk or cream a little at a time until the mixture thins slightly (about 2-4 tablespoons, more or less depending on the cornstarch content in the powdered sugar). Add the salt and beat on high speed until the mixture is fluffy and pale yellow-green in color. Cover the buttercream with a damp towel to prevent crusting. Transfer the buttercream to a large piping bag fitted with the closed star tip.

Assemble

  • Pipe thick swirls of buttercream onto the flat side of one pinecone cookie.
  • Sprinkle with chopped pistachios. Top with a second pinecone cookie.

Notes

What to expect:
Beautiful ginger forward cookies with a 3D pinecone appearance. The pistachio buttercream is a wonderful addition with lightly salted nut flavor.
Your first successful cookie may take some practice. Don’t give up! I tried 3 times before I found my preferred method. If the cooking spray method is not working for you, try dusting your mold with unsweet cocoa powder or cinnamon using a kitchen-dedicated art brush. I do feel that the oil method is best for this particular dough with molasses.
Try not to overwork the dough. It’s easy to start kneading a ball of dough in your hand before you press it into the mold, but just try to flatten it. Over kneading the dough will result in tough, rubbery gingerbread cookies.
Keep a watchful eye on the cookies as they bake. Carved wooden mold capacities can vary, so your cookies could be thinner or thicker than mine are. When cookies are fragrant and lightly browned around the edges, that’s a good sign that they are baked through.
The wooden mold should come with care instructions. If it doesn’t, then here’s how to care for it. After you’re done using it, wash it under a stream of tap water and brush any dough out of the cavity (you could use a kitchen-dedicated toothbrush like I do for my silver). Dry thoroughly and rub it down with a little olive oil using a paper towel. Oil the wood lightly after each use to prevent the mold from drying out and cracking.
Keyword ground ginger, molasses, pistachio buttercream, pistachio paste
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
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Michelle
Michelle
2 years ago

I love this!

Monica
Monica
2 years ago

Woooow! I’ve never seen wooden cookie molds, they are beautiful! Your pinecone ones came out so amazing 😀

Samantha Couture
Samantha Couture
2 years ago

Can you use something other than pistachio paste? it is so incredibly expensive!

Samantha Couture
Samantha Couture
2 years ago
Reply to  Heather Baird

doesn’t seem like it will taste the same – i’ll give in and order it! Also, ordered silicone molds because I couldn’t find a wood one that shipped in time! I can’t wait to let you know how amazing it is!

Veronica Langley
Veronica Langley
2 months ago
Reply to  Heather Baird

I used marzipan and butter.

Lauren
Lauren
2 years ago

I only have a hand mixer, without a paddle attachment. It does have dough hooks but I assume this won’t have the same result. Am in okay to use the regular beaters on a slow speed?

Nancy
Nancy
2 years ago

I made these pinecone gingerbread cookies today and they are delicious. The cookies are not overly ginger-y. I was unable to get the wooden mold you had on your website because it said the shop was taking a break so I ordered a similar wooden one. My pine cones did not come out as sharp as yours — could it be that the mold was not as deep as yours? Or is there another reason? The powdered sugar didn’t grab as nicely because the ridges weren’t jutting out quite as much. Also, the pam didn’t work as well as dusting… Read more »

Michelle
Michelle
2 months ago
Reply to  Nancy

Same! Couldn’t get the mold from the same vendor, but got another one. Edges were not as sharp or 3-d looking & Flour worked amazingly better than Pa

Marci
Marci
1 year ago

How long can you store these after they are baked and assembled? I’m hoping to make them on Sunday, in time for a sweet Thanksgiving thank you for friends.

Shanaka Maggio
Shanaka Maggio
1 year ago

Do you have a sugar cookie recipe that will work with these wood molds?

Jennifer Billingsley
Jennifer Billingsley
1 year ago

5 stars
Great recipe! I ordered the mold…the oil did not work for me, but flouring the mold did. I think it depends on the area/weather/dough temp, etc. the tasted great! I also made the icing- best ever! Absolutely will be making this again. I went skimpy on the icing between the cookies… I should have went exactly as you did to get that fulling icing flavor. Perfect combination!!!!

Sindia
Sindia
4 months ago

These are a work of art!! Any nut free filling suggestions that would work in place of the pistachio buttercream? Thank you!

Last edited 4 months ago by Sindia
ariel
ariel
4 months ago

5 stars
These cookies were a hit with my 4 year old niece! Unmolding was a nightmare but I eventually got the hang of it and found a rhythm. They kept their shape better than I thought they would and had the perfect amount of chew. I’m a huge ginger fan so I liked the spice level a lot. 10/10 will make again! I didn’t have pistachios on hand so I just made a maple buttercream instead but I thought it was a nice compliment

Suzanne
3 months ago

This looks so good! What a great recipe to make with kids!

Vanessa
3 months ago

Thanks for sharing! Does it keep long?

Michelle
Michelle
2 months ago

Mine are puffing up so much the 3-d effect isn’t really there. Idk if people realize they’re pinecones or not