Little Debbie is one of the most famous and beloved snack food companies in the United States. Fans of the brand go wild for everything from its Donut Sticks to Zebra Cakes. However, one treat from the iconic brand went especially well with the most popular holiday season, Christmas. This was, of course, the Little Debbie Cookie Wreaths. But were the Little Debbie cookie wreaths discontinued?
It looks like the Little Debbie Cookie Wreaths were discontinued in 2016, so it’s not possible to find the treat at any store or for purchase online anymore. Curiously, the Little Debbie website does not include the spiced cookie wreath even in their history timeline.
Read on to find out more about the Little Debbie Cookie Wreath treats and other Little Debbie Cakes to see if your favorite dessert has been discontinued, and what to do if you still want to enjoy the Little Debbie (spiced) Cookie Wreaths during the holidays.
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Why Were Little Debbie Christmas Wreaths Discontinued?
Little Debbie Cakes are so popular, you can even buy them in bulk (like these Little Debbie Big Pack Variety Bundle from Amazon). But lovers of the ‘Little Debbie Christmas Cookie Wreaths’ will be disappointed because they are not included in the bundle; this is because the Little Debbie Christmas Wreaths were discontinued.
Little Debbie remains the best-selling snack cake company (making $150 million more than second most popular, Hostess), but there are some cakes that don’t sell well, so Little Debbie discontinues them. The Cookie Wreath is one discontinued Little Debbie cake, along with red velvet and spice cakes.
Inspired by the beautiful wreaths that decorate front doors during the Christmas season, the cookie wreaths from Little Debbie were some of the most delicious cookies for the holidays, if you like spiced treats, that is. However, it seems most people do not.
In Europe spices are used a lot around the Christmas holidays, like cloves, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, and star anise. But these are quite pungent flavors and not for the masses. Little Debbie decided to stop making their spiced cookie wreaths, to the chagrin of some loyal customers, just not enough loyal customers though!
The spiced cookie wreaths used to be available in stores from late November, December, and early January. However, you cannot find these on the shelves these days- not since 2016.
This has been unfortunate as the Little Debbie Christmas wreath cookies were as cute as tasty, for many people. But being the best-selling snack company they are, I’m sure Little Debbie crunched the cake numbers and made a decision based on profits.
Why Did People Like the Little Debbie Cookie Wreaths?
But what is it that made some people such loyal fans of the Little Debbie cookie wreath in the first place?
People liked the Little Debbie Cookie Wreath because the spices evoked Christmas Spirit. The combination of nutmeg, cinnamon, and cloves made the cookie wreath an iconic Christmas treats. Yet, Little Debbie made the business decision to discontinue the spiced cookie in 2016.
The cookie wreath was soft and covered with a thin layer of white, sugary icing and decorated with colorful sprinkles for Christmas. And of course, the wreath shape was ideal for the Christmas holiday.
Hence, people used the Little Debbie cookie wreath as a symbol of hospitality or a “welcoming” to friends and family who are enjoying Christmas with. It gave people a warm feeling when indulging in the cookie and was just easy to put on a treat tray, requiring no real prep.
After all, Christmas is full of traditions, creating beautiful memories, and spending time with family. And for many families, the ‘Little Debbie Wreath Cookies’ had become a traditional snack for the holidays.
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What are the Most Popular Little Debbie Cakes?
The most popular Little Debbie Cake is, according to their website, the original Oatmeal Creme Pie. The Oatmeal Creme Pie is what got the Little Debbie Company started back during the Great Depression.
The next two Little Debbie Cake best sellers are the Swiss Cake Roll and the Nutty Bars, after the most popular, Oatmeal Creme Pie.
The Little Debbie Oatmeal Creme Pie is a chewy, mild oatmeal ‘cake’ cookie that sandwiches a vanilla cream icing filling. I’m not sure why this is remains the most popular cake considering the oatmeal cookie is not the most popular, and given the over 200 Little Debbie Cake varieties nowadays. In fact, in my experience, it’s the least popular with kids. Maybe it’s because of nostalgia?
The Little Debbie Swiss Cake Roll is reminiscent of the well-known, large Swiss Cake Roll, popular for special occasions, like the ‘Yule Log Cake’ at Christmas time. It is a chocolate cake rolled with a light, fluffy vanilla cream and then glazed with a chocolate frosting. One thing people seem to really enjoy about this small cake is that it comes in ‘two’ so you can eat one now and save one for later, or share with a friend.
The Little Debbie Nutty Buddy Bars are a chocolate and peanut butter wafer treat. It also comes in a package of two. I have never been a huge fan of this variety, though it is quite popular with my teen boys. I guess its popularity makes sense, given the very well-liked combination of flavors it possesses.
Fun Fact: All of the same varieties of 1964 still exist in Little Debbie production today. These are known as the Little Debbie Classics and are Banana Twins; Swiss Rolls; Zebra Cakes (another of our family favs!); Raisin Creme Pies (which my kids won’t even try!); Nutty Buddy Wafer Bars; and of course, the most iconic of all, the Oatmeal Creme Pies.
What Happened to Little Debbie Cookie Wreaths?
Little Debbie caused a small ‘mass hysteria’ a few years ago when their Twitter account posted a cryptic message. The message seemed to suggest that one of their classic snacks was being retired. The snacks posted included the Oatmeal Crème Pies, Nutty Buddy Bars, Honey Buns, and the Christmas Tree cakes. But apparently, it was just a joke!
In response to the tweet, fans became protective of the Oatmeal Crème Pies, Nutty Buddy bars, and the Christmas Tree Cakes. But for the Honey Buns, they ended up being one that most folks claimed they’d pitch if they had to.
In the end, the company clarified that the post was meant just for fun. It was their way of being active and participating in the trending hashtag “#OneGottaGo,” in which Twitter users had been posting a selection of cherished items and challenging others to pick one they would sacrifice.
Little Debbie still sells the same cakes from 1964, but there are some that have come and gone in their history. Little Debbie discontinued the Cookie Wreaths because they weren’t selling as well as other cakes and treats. The red velvet and spice cakes have also been discontinued.
Is There a Recall on Little Debbie?
Though Little Debbie has a long safe history, there was a recall of one Little Debbie snack variety that affected the ‘Mini Nutty Buddy Cookie Bites’. So, fans might want to steer off for the time being as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recalled them on the grounds that they may contain undeclared pecans.
Keep in mind that recalls happen frequently of all food product companies and the reason for the Little Debbie recall was not due to a ‘bad product’ per se but because of a potential allergy risk for those allergic to nuts. It’s said that people who have severe sensitivity or are allergic to pecans run the risk of a serious or life-threatening effect if they eat the product.
You can access all recalls by going to the Food and Drug Administration website at any time.
Are the Little Debbie Cookie Wreaths Making a Comeback?
Making cookie wreaths has become a trend in winning Christmas by combining the powers of Christmas cookies and DIY Christmas decorations.
Little Debbie Cookie Wreaths are making a comeback but not by the Little Debbie company. While the comeback isn’t about the Little Debbie Cookie Wreaths being mass produced, these delicious wreaths are coming back as incredible DIY Christmas treats.
From the cornflake cookie wreaths to no-bake Christmas wreath cookies recipes, the wreath cookies are making a definite comeback via YouTube and Tik Tok videos and viral online recipes.
Can You Make Homemade Little Debbie Cookie Wreaths?
If you still want to enjoy the Little Debbie cookie wreaths, you can jazz up your table with your own homemade cookie wreaths. Not only are these great to look at, you can control the ingredients and tailor them to what your family likes!
There are many recipes for making Christmas cookie wreaths with some looking more like the vintage Little Debbie cookie and others taking a different look entirely. It’s such a breeze to make and will be an absolute treat as a centerpiece.
You can dip the finish cookie into white melting chocolate to give it the Little Debbie vibe, or use green food coloring on your cookie so they resemble typical wreaths.
Here’s one recipe with what you will need to try DIY cookie wreaths that I like:
- ¾ cup self-raising flour
- 2 ⅓ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup sugar
- ½ cup molasses or golden syrup
- 2 ½ sticks butter
- 1 egg large, lightly beaten
- 2 tsp allspice
- 1 tsp ginger ground
- ½ tsp cloves ground
- ⅔ cup green sanding
Here is what to do to make your cookie wreaths:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
In a large mixing bowl, mix the floors together with an electric mixer and add the spices and sugar. Next, add the butter and mix using the paddle attachment until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs.
Add the molasses and eggs and blend them until the mixture starts forming a ball. Line the kitchen counter with your non-stick baking paper and turn out the mixture on it.
Roll out the dough until it’s about 5mm thick. You should cut the dough using a wreath cookie cutter, but if you don’t have one, you can use a fluted circular cookie cutter and a shot glass to cut the center of the cookie.
You can choose whichever size wreathe and can cut out centers you want. Have fun with various shaped cutters as there are lots of possibilities for the shape of the inner center and outer edge of the cookies depending on the cutters you pick.
Lightly moisten the top of each cookie with water and sprinkle generously with your sanding sugar. Put it on a baking tray lined with baking paper while you continue sprinkling sugar on the rest of the cookies. Bake for about 14-15 minutes.
Essential note: While these cookies may not be the exact Little Debbie cookie wreaths, baking the lightly melted sugar crystals on top gives them a beautiful, almost glitter-like finish.
Some Other Recipes- Using the Most Popular Little Debbie Cakes
Since Christmas time means lots of baking, in my book anyway, here are some other recipes I found that would be fun using popular Little Debbie Cakes for the holidays-or any day!
- Oatmeal Creme Pie Foxes: This is super cute and doesn’t require many ingredients, making it an easy recipe to do with kids. Considering it’s a recipe using the most popular and iconic Little Debbie Cake, I’d say it would be a good one for most people to try. As a teacher, I could definitely see doing this as a special activity with kids (maybe after school since many public schools don’t allow ‘sweets’), aligning with an animal science unit.
Ingredients include oatmeal creme pies, marshmallows, jelly beans, and white melting chocolate.
- Swiss Horses: These are just simply adorable! Like with the creme pies, there aren’t many ingredients and again, using a really popular Little Debbie cake makes this appropriate for most people. As a teacher, as well, I could see making these with an afterschool group for a special activity. Maybe a teacher should have an entire week of fun treat decorating using these ideas!
Ingredients include Swiss rolls; mini vanilla wafers; white icing; almonds; and candy for the eyes.
- Nutty Buddy Bars: Finally, the last recipe using the most popular Little Debbie Cakes to share is one that simply layers Little Debbie Cakes around boxed or homemade cake. You can take the Nutty Bars and stand them upright, pressing them into an iced round cake. Then you can add your other favorite Little Debbie Cakes.
Ingredients that would work the best: fudge rounds, Swiss rolls, and star crunch cosmic cookies.
Wrapping Up Little Debbie Cookie Wreaths
To wrap it up, the Little Debbie Cookie Wreaths have not only been discontinued, they are part of an extremely small group of discontinued Little Debbie products like the Little Debbie red velvet cakes and Little Debbie spice cakes.
However, if you really crave Little Debbie cookie wreaths, there are many copycat recipes online, including videos demonstrating how to make them on YouTube and Tik Tok. And in my opinion, nothing is as good as homemade treats made with love, even Little Debbie!
And keep in mind, Little Debbie offers many other seasonal treats with a Christmas theme you can try, like the Christmas Tree brownies and the particularly popular, Christmas Tree Cakes (in white and chocolate varieties).
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