I made these playful Soccer Ball Cookies for my kid’s birthday party! Whether you’re preparing a treat for a soccer-themed party or just want to have fun with your baking, these cookies are sure to be a hit. In this post, I’ll show you how to make simple sugar cookies and transform them into soccer ball cookies using two easy decorating techniques: drawing a soccer ball pattern with an edible ink marker or piping frosting to fill in the design.
Make sure to check out all the soccer-themed posts on my website to see lots of soccer-themed dessert ideas, party games, snacks, decorations and much more!
Let’s dive into the recipe and decorating techniques to turn your basic sugar cookies into fun, soccer-themed treats!
Ingredients
- 115 g (1 butter stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 100 g (1/2 cup) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 210 g (2 cups minus 2 Tablespoons) all purpose flour, sifted
- edible ink marker (black)
- black and white frosting – for the second technique only
- 2 piping bags – to pipe the frosting
This is enough to make ~15-20 cookies, depending on the size of the cookie cutters you use.
Directions
Make the sugar Cookies
Using a hand or stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 5-6 minutes.
Lightly beat the eggs and vanilla extract.
Then, add the egg mixture over the butter mixture and mix until incorporated. You can use a spatula for this or your mixer.
Mix the salt with the sifted flour. Add this over the butter mixture and mix the ingredients until just combined. You can mix it using a mixer with a dough hook or just a spatula and then your hand, but make sure you don’t overmix! Don’t worry if there are a few lumps or streaks of flour in the dough.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3-4 hours.
Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F).
On a lightly floured surface roll the dough until it’s about ¼ inches thick. I usually place a piece of plastic wrap over the dough so that the rolling pin doesn’t stick to the dough and I don’t use lots of extra flour on top to prevent it from sticking.
Using the cookie cutters, cut out the dough and place the cookies in a baking pan lined with parchment paper.
For 6.5 cm (2.5’’) round cookies, bake for 10-12 minutes until the edges are firm to touch. Allow to cool completely.
Decorate the Soccer Ball Cookies
Technique 1: Draw the Soccer Ball Pattern
Once your cookies have cooled, use the edible ink marker to draw the classic pentagon (I mistakenly made black hexagons, I know :-P) and hexagon pattern of a soccer ball on each cookie. Focus on drawing a black pattern—this is a quick and simple way to create the look of a soccer ball without the mess of frosting.
For each cookie, start by drawing a black pentagon in the centre and then fill the rest with hexagon shapes around it.
Technique 2: Piping Frosting to Fill the Pattern
Divide your frosting into two parts. Tint one part black using black food colouring, and leave the other part white for the hexagons.
Place each colour of frosting into separate piping bags. Cut a small tip from the bags to make a small opening for dotting.
Trace the pattern with the edible ink marker: Use the edible ink marker to trace the outline of the soccer ball’s pentagons and hexagons. You can lightly mark the areas where you’ll pipe the frosting.
Start by piping the black frosting into the pentagons and the white frosting into the hexagons. Use a gentle squeeze to create small, even dots that fill the spaces you outlined. It’s okay if the dots are a little bit imperfect—it adds to the homemade charm!
Allow the frosting to set for 30 minutes before serving to make sure it holds its shape.
