VW Beetle Cookies

Since it’s rolled off the production in 1938, timeless design of VW Beetle has captured the hearts of people around the globe, myself included. It’s friendly, charming appearance makes it a perfect canvas for cookies and cakes. Today I’ll share with you step-by-step tutorial on how to decorate nostalgic VW Beetle Cookies.

Decorated cookies are arranged on a bokeh background.

updated from 2013

HOW TO DECORATE VW BEETLE COOKIES WITH ROYAL ICING

Cookie Decorating Guide
Beginner’s Guide To Cookie Decorating
Ultimate Guide to Cut-Out Cookies (tips, tricks, troubleshooting)
Royal Icing Recipe
Small Batch Royal Icing Recipe
Cookie Icing Recipes (includes vegan royal icing, glaze, fondant)
Guide To Royal Icing Consistencies with Visual Help(what is stiff, flood icing, etc.)
How To Freeze Royal Icing
How To Make Royal Icing Transfers
Royal Icing FAQ ( for example: how to make black icing, color bleeding, storage, and more)
How To Make a Cookie Cutter Template
Ultimate Guide To Cookie Decorating Tools

A close-up of a sugar cookie in the shape of a car decorated with royal icing.

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE VW BEETLE COOKIES

VW Beetle Cookie Cutter – I used Ann Clark Cookie Cutter
Decorating Template (via Haniela’s Template Shop)
Edible Markers: brown, black, blue
Gel Food Colors – royal blue, black, yellow, red
Piping Bags – I used tipless piping bags
Scribe Tool
Paintbrush – I love this Wilton Set!

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ROYAL ICING

Did you know that the most popular VW beetle colors are white and black, with blue being the 3rd most popular color? I’m unsure if I’m living under the rock but I have never seen white VW Beetle, have you?

I planned on making red car cookies but ultimately decided to make blue VW Beetle Cookies instead.

Royal Icing Colors
2 Shades of Blue – color royal icing with royal blue gel color and a touch of black (use dark blue for the body (15-second consistency) and to outline (piping consistency), use lighter blue for a fender (20-second consistency)
Red (20 second consistency)
Yellow (20 second consistency) – lemon yellow with a touch of orange
Light Gray (20 second consistency) – use minuscule amount of black to color white icing
Black (20 second consistency) – windows and tires
White ( 20 second consistency) – window shading, tires

Piping bags filled with colored royal icing.

VW BEETLE DECORATING TEMPLATE

I created a simple cardstock template to help streamline the decorating process. I printed the template onto cardstock and cut it out with an exacto knife. Check the tools section at the top of this page, for the template details.

TRACE TEMPLAE OUTLINES WITH AN EDIBLE MARKER

Align the template with the cookie and trace the outlines onto the cookie using an edible marker.

Hand drawing a template onto a cookie with an edible marker.

HOW TO PREVENT CRATERS IN ROYAL ICING

To prevent crater formation in royal icing I used a simple technique – first I piped a zic zag line onto sections that are most likely to develop craters – tires and fender sections (steps 1-2). Before you can fill these sections with icing you need to let support lines crust, then you can pipe over them (see the next picture slide).

To decorate windows, I used a simple decorating technique that attributes to depth. Brush a thin layer of black icing onto the windows. Then pipe three lines of white icing across each black window and use a damp paintbrush to shade the windows. Let icing crust (steps 3-8).

Piping a zic zac line onto a cookie and brushing a thin layer of icing onto the windows.

DECORATE TIRES

Now that the black line inside of the tires is crusted (lines are no longer shiny), pipe an outline and flood both tires with 20-second consistency black icing (steps 1-6). Let the icing crust.

Outlining and flooding a cookie with black icing.

FLOOD THE COOKIE

Once window sections are crusted over, if needed use a smaller template and reinforce the window outlines, again, with a tip of a metal scribe (steps 1-3).

Scratching dry icing with a metal scribe tool.

Outline the window frames with darker blue icing of 15-second consistency and pipe the outline along the outer edge. Then flood the inside of the cookie with blue icing. Use a scribe to smooth and distribute the icing evenly (steps 1-6). Let the icing crust.

Outlining and flooding a cookie with blue icing.

Now that the tire and body (main section) are crusted, it’s time to flood the fender (areas above the tires). Use lighter blue icing of 20-second consistency. Increase the pressure, squeeze the piping bag so more icing comes out, and fill the fender sections. Carefully use a scribe tool to smooth imperfections ( steps 1-2). Then fill in the headlight with yellow icing (20-second icing) and rims with white icing (20-second icing). Let icing crust.

PIPE DETAILS

Let’s finish VW Beetle Cookies. Now we can add details. Flood the bottom rocker panel with 20-second consistency gray icing (steps 1-3).

Piping gray icing onto the rocker panel car section.

Pipe taillights with 20-second consistency red and white icing. Pipe small rectangular shapes next to each other. Accentuate corners with a scribe tool (steps 1-3).

Outline the car with dark blue piping consistency icing (steps 1-3).

DOOR HANDLE

You can skip to step 3, or if you want, you can tap into your inner artistic spirit and create depth using a marker. I first filled the rectangular section with a blue marker (steps 1-2). Then pipe a small triangular handle with gray icing across the dark rectangle (steps 3-6).

DRAW VOLKSWAGEN LOGO

Lastly, we’ll make the Volkswagen logo. Before you can draw the logo onto the royal icing, you need to make sure the icing is dry. Allow icing to dry for 6-8 hours, then use a black edible marker and write V; then, write W below (steps 3).

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2013 DECORATE COLORFUL VW BEETLE COOKIES

I decorated first VW Beetle cookies in 2013, long before I acquired a beetle cookie cutter. Hence I used a cardstock template to hand-cut cookies.

VW Beetle Cookies can be packaged individually or as part of a gift set, making them a fun and memorable present. I made these colorful car cookies to help celebrate 1st Birthday.

Car cookies decorated with colorful royal icing.

This post was originally published on February 24th, 2013. On June 19th, 2023 I updated this post with new step-by-step pictures, and written instructions.