How to Make Mele Kalikimaka Cookies with Video
Let’s make some Mele Kalikimaka cookies! Wait! Did you hear that? Listen close…
Mele Kalikimaka Song by Bing Crosby:
‘Mele Kalikimaka is the thing to say
On a bright Hawaiian Christmas day
That’s the island greeting that we send to you
From the land where palm trees sway’
Did you hear Bing Crosby and The Andrew Sisters singing? I feel kinda bad because that song is going to get stuck in your head. I’ll apologize now but I couldn’t help myself.
Have you ever watched Christmas movies and listened to your favorite Christmas music in the middle of July because you couldn’t wait until December? If you haven’t done these things you don’t know what you are missing!
For the last couple of years, I have been trying really hard to make my blog become a ‘Christmas in July’ Cookie spot, and this year I have found something that has made things easy. It is wonderful because there isn’t any holiday stress. No Christmas parties, no shopping until you drop mindset, no scraping the ice off of your car before you go to work because it’s just pure Christmas Cookie fun!
Supplies:
Supplies for Mele Kalikimaka Santa Cookies:
(may contain affiliate links)
Sugar Cookie Recipe
Royal Icing Recipe or Half a Batch of Royal Icing Recipe
Santa Cookie Cutter– This Santa Cookie Cutter is the reason I started decorating cookies and you can read all about it here.
15 Second Icing in the following colors in a decorating bag or bottle fitted with a #2 decorating tip:
- Flesh Colored Icing –AmeriColor Ivory with a very small amount of AmeriColor Chocolate Brown
- Red Icing-If you don’t like the bitter taste of red food gel you can use Wilton ‘No-Taste’ Red
- White Icing-If you’re looking for a bright white icing, try adding a little AmeriColor White Food Gel. It is amazing!
DIY White Sprinkles– make them a few days or weeks in advance and you can seriously stock up on DIY Sprinkles now so you’ll be ready for baking season.
Coarse White Sanding Sugar
Black Icing or Black Nonpareils for the eyes
Turkey Lacer, Boo-Boo Stick, or Toothpick
Coffee filter to catch the excess sprinkles
Here is the tutorial for the Hibiscus Cookies that go with this set and there is also a list with links to the other cutters I used in this set.
***VIDEO HERE***
I hope you enjoy the video!
Outline & Flood:
- Begin decorating Santa by outlining and flooding the face, chest, arms, and feet with the flesh-colored royal icing.
- Place two black nonpareils on Santa’s face for his eyes or you can add two dots of black royal icing.
- Add a black nonpareil for Santa’s belly button and let the cookies dry for several hours.
Time for a Swim:
- Next, pipe the hat and pants with the red icing and pipe a few white circles on his pants.
- Drag a turkey lacer, Boo-Boo Stick, or a toothpick through the circle to make a flower. If you’re a visual person you can watch the video below to see how simple this wet-on-wet technique is.
- Let it dry for a few hours before you move to the next step.
Add a Little Fur and Sprinkles:
After the red icing on the hat and swim trunks have dried, place the Santa cookie in a coffee filter so you can add the fur.
- Start making the fur on the hat by piping a dot of white royal icing at the top of the hat and piping it in the brim area.
- While the royal icing is wet sprinkle them with sanding sugar.
- Next, pipe the white royal icing at the top and bottom of the swim trunks and sprinkle with sanding sugar.
- Let it dry for a few minutes.
- Bridget at Bake at 350° taught us this wonderful coffee filter tip for catching all the extra sprinkles. It’s great because it keeps you from making a huge mess and wasting your precious sprinkles.
Let’s Finish this Guy So He Can Go Swimming and Have Fun:
- Aren’t his trunks cute?
- Next, use the white icing to make his beard because we all know Santa needs a beard even in the summer.
- Add the DIY White Sprinkles while the icing is wet.
- Don’t forget to use the coffee filter because we need those extra sprinkles for the other Santa cookies.
- Push the sprinkles around his face with the tip of your finger so Santa’s beard will look nice and neat and then let the cookies dry completely before you package or stack them.
Did you know that you can use your leftover royal icing to make DIY Sprinkles and you should make them now because you’ll be stocked up for the holidays?
Usually, the summer heat makes me cranky like the Grinch before Cindy Lou Hoo made his heart grow three sizes but now I am full of cheer and there’s joy in my heart. I think Santa’s shorts moved these Mele Kalikimaka Cookies to the top of my favorite cookie list because they’re so cute.
More Christmas and Mele Kalikimaka Cookies:
- Hula Cookie Tutorial by Clough’D 9 Cookies
- Surfboard and Wave Cookies by Glorious Treats
- Flip Flop Cookies by Glorious Treats
- Palm Tree Cookies by Semi-Sweet
Bear hugs,
These are so cool Lisa! So much fun! And yes, love the trunks!
I thought about a making him wear a Speedo for about a half a second. It made me laugh but there is no way I was going to do that! Bahahahaha
Omg I really want to find this Santa cookie cutter. Any ideas??? 🙏
Hi Katy,
I can’t find this cutter anymore but Sweet Dani B has designed one that’s for sale at Copper Gifts (copergifts.com). It’s copper so it’s more expensive but here is the link if you’re interested: https://coppergifts.com/-/pc/Santa-with-Bag-Cookie-Cutter-by-SweetDaniB-110p5833.htm
If you make him please send me a picture. I’d love to see your cookies!
I may have to plan a trip to Hawaii this Christmas just to make these cookies. Or, maybe I’ll just make them for someone else! 🙂 So cute!
If you need a travel buddy I will make that sacrifice for you Kim! LOL 😉
Lisa – I went back and read your santa story – I was able to sang those cutters on amazon for $16! I totally understand “I have to have it” – I recently had to have a dog cutter that was from an old Better Crocker 101 set. I bought 100 extra cutters to get that one dog cutter! It’s all good and fun!
I love you Kim! I am so glad to know that I am not the only one who over pays for a good cutter! LOL
PS-To justify spending so much on this guy, My tradition is to make him every year and do something different with him. I already have an idea for next year! LOL
PSS-I would love to the dog once you make it!
This is one of my all time favorite Christmas movies we watch it more times then I can count over the holidays !
I am happy to have this song stuck in my head….great design and I too have that cutter because I just had to have it right at the same time you did 🙂
Thanks I really enjoy your blog and talent!
Thank you Diane! Maybe one day we can get together in July and make some cookies and watch Christmas movies. 😉
Aww, these are so adorable! Thank you very much for sharing your cute cookies AND a great tutorial! May I ask what you used for the hula girl?
Thanks again 😉
Hi Wendy,
At the bottom of the tutuorial click ‘Hula Cookie Tutorial by Clough’D 9 Cookies’ and you will see a How To Video on how to make the hula girl. Her tutorial is great! 😉
These are adorable!! You are right, I should try to enjoy making Christmas cookies in July. In December, I’m always stressed! 😉
It is wonderful! At least you get time to think about your designs. 😉
I LOVE Christmas in July..and your cookies are just too dang adorable! Even though it drives some of my family nuts, I listen to Christmas music year round! 🙂
Thanks so much for the link to these adorable cookies. They are magnificent! Merci !
What colors of green did you use for the hula girls grass skirt?
The lighter green is AmeriColor Electric Green and the darker green is AmeriColor Leaf Green. 😉
LOOOOOOVE these ever so much. All I have to hear is “mele kal…” and I sing the song with total abandon and with total disregard to anyone around me. For days. Like I will now. Love!