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What Is a Cookie Press?

Here’s how to make bakery-style cookies at home.

what is a cookie press

Wanting to up your cookie decorating skills? Look no further than a cookie press! These pastry tools make showstopping desserts by turning a plain round cookie into cool shapes or designs. If you’re asking yourself, “what is a cookie press?”, read on to learn all there is to know about these items and how to use them.

What Is a Cookie Press?

what is a cookie press

A cookie press is a device that imprints designs or pictures onto a cookie but also has the ability to cut out different cookie shapes as well, depending on the type of cookie press you have. Cookie presses have different discs in their kits to create images (stars, flowers, or holiday-themed elements) that are planted on the cookie with the help of a trigger mechanism or manually by pressing the cookie press down onto the dough.
These kitchen gadgets come in two forms: a press with a barrel and trigger or a circular stamp with a handle.


Barrel cookie press sets are made with a barrel that attaches to the different discs with cookie designs. When you load the barrel with cookie dough and press the trigger, the dough will slide through the disc’s design to form cookies in the particular shape. To use a barrel cookie press, fill the press with your dough, then use the trigger to push out a fully-formed cookie.


Some barrel cookie press sets come with tips that allow you to use the press as a piping bag. You can reuse a barrel press as an icing tool by removing the discs and swapping them with icing tips instead. Fill the barrel with frosting instead of dough, and start decorating your cookies!


Circular stamp cookie presses come with just a handle and no barrel. They feature a design on the end of the handle that you manually press down into the dough to form the cut-out cookie shape or the design on top of the cookie. To use a circular stamp, push the stamp down on the cookie to produce the desired image or design.

Cookie Press vs. Cookie Cutter: What’s the Difference?

cookie press vs. cookie cutter

Cookie press vs cookie cutter… What are the differences? For starters, cookie cutters are tools used to cut flat, rolled-out cookie dough into certain shapes. The dough bakes, rises, and fills out in the cut-out shape.


Cookie cutters create shapes by altering the edges of the cookie. Cookie presses can do the same thing, but they also make cookies more intricate. Some cookie presses focus on altering the edges and shape of a cookie, while some keep the cookie’s traditional round shape but stamp an image, design, or shape on the face of the cookie. That option is the main difference between these types of baking tools.

How to Use a Cookie Press

how to use a cookie press

Here are step-by-step instructions for how to use a cookie press.

Step 1: Choose the Right Design

Cookie presses can elevate any kind of party, event, or get-together. The first thing to do is select a cookie press with discs that fit your purpose.


Select pastry designs that match your occasion. Some cookie presses come with a barrel that has a trigger mechanism to do the work for you, or some have a handle for you to press the design yourself.

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Whether you’re using store-bought cookie dough or making it yourself, you need to prepare the dough for your cookie press. Roll the dough into balls and sit it on a silicone mat or flat surface. You will not need to do this if you are using a press with a barrel. Instead, roll the dough into a log, as this will make it easier to fill the barrel and press out cookies.

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Tip!

Make sure your cookie dough is at room temperature before using a cookie press! This helps it pass through the disc more easily, as well as hold its shape.

Step 3: Make Your Cookies

Now it’s time to decorate! If your cookie press comes with a handle, firmly press the design onto your cookies before placing them onto the cookie sheet. To use a barrel cookie press, make sure the tip is completely face-down and not tilted at any angle. Use the trigger to form your cookies and continue until your cookie sheet is full and your dough is all gone.

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Tip!

Don’t forget to switch discs to give your cookies variety!

Step 4: Bake, Decorate, & Enjoy!

Once all of your dough is pressed, your cookies are ready to bake. If you want to take the design a step further, give your cookies some color or sparkle with icing and sprinkles. Clean your barrel cookie press as your dough bakes to reuse it as a piping bag for frosting, or use a separate piping bag if your cookie press is a stamp.

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Now that we’ve answered “what is a cookie press?”, it’s time to bake!

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