The Secret of Beautifully Decorated Cookies Is a Cheap Squeeze Bottle

I don’t know about you, but decorating cookies is not my strong point. Those glazed and gilded holiday cookies seem to require so much technical skill — I’m a baker, darn it, not a painter! But then I discovered an easier way: the lowly and inexpensive plastic squeeze bottle. It’s your secret weapon for gorgeous cookies.

• Don’t make these mistakes: 5 Mistakes to Avoid When Making Sugar Cookies

I discovered this tip when our Recipe Editor, Emma, shared her simple yet amazingly good tutorial for decorating holiday cookies.

She used a squeeze bottle instead of the piping bag I’ve tried to use in the past, and I thought it was genius. A squeeze bottle is easier to control, and if kids are helping out, it’s easier for little hands to grasp too.

And best of all? No pricey tips to buy. Just pick up a few bottles at the dollar store or grocery.

• See how: How To Decorate Cookies with Icing: The Easiest, Simplest Method

• Get a recipe: Gingerbread Cookies

1. Less Equipment: I used to juggle a piping bag and tips for decorating cookies, and it’s kind of a pain to keep everything sorted. You need bags, tips, and a practiced sense of how it all goes together.
2. Easy Filling: Unlike a more traditional piping bag with a tip, the squeeze bottle doesn’t require shuffling between jar or cup when filling. Just funnel in the icing. Done.
3. More Control: Have you never quite mastered the art of controlling a pastry bag? No problem. Everyone knows how to squeeze a ketchup bottle. The hole in the tip is perfect for drawing thin lines, and if you want something a bit bigger, you can just cut a little off the bottle’s tip to make a larger hole.
4. Simple Storage: In between icing cookies, just stand the bottle upright. No oozing out of the tip, unlike a pastry bag. And leftover frosting? No problem! Just store right in the bottle.
5. Less Messy Cleanup: I loathe cleaning pastry bags, but the bottles are simple. Throw them in the dishwasher or soak in soapy water.

Have you ever tried this? It’s so easy, and gave me a way better outcome when decorating cookies with icing. It even makes fancy techniques easy, like marbling cookies with icing.

• How to marble cookie icing: How To Create a Marbled Effect When Decorating Cookies
• Get a recipe: The Very Best Cut-Out Sugar Cookies
• More cookie recipes: 18 Cookie Recipes for Your Holiday Cookie Exchange