Welcome back!

So I've been away for a while now, but that doesn't mean I haven't been making cookies in the meantime! I recently bought some new cookie cutters too, so that's what I've been focusing on. My manager at work requested I make him some cookies with my new Fallout cookie cutter, so I had to comply.

The cutter was a little wonky, this was my first experience with a 3D printer cutter. The dough refused to come loose at first, then I inquired online and learned that I needed to drill a few small holes through the back of the cutter to create airflow so the dough wouldn't vacuum into the cutter. I also had to heavily flour the cutter and the dough to get it to come out halfway clean. So a heads up, 3D printed "whole" cutters are fun, but you gotta work with them a bit.
However I also just recently bought some 2-piece cutters from CrimsonManeCreations in Australia. Now these cutters are amazing! They're also 3D printed, but they are "plunger" type cutters. They are the easiest to use, and the details are amazing!! I haven't tried to decorate them yet, but I made basic sugar cookies with them.

                                  

Christmas is here!!!

So last weekend I went to my annual Christmas cookie swap! It was a great time! I'll post up a photo of my cookies I took! They're 1978 angels using a Wilton cutter.. I also made gingerbread Christmas bulbs, and cool whip cookies, too but I forgot to take pics of those.

So I have a couple of recipes from the party I'll share in a separate post.

Gingerbread Cookies!

So every year here in town we have our annual festival. It's a pretty big deal, but mostly because of the FOOD! LOL A lot of us townies have been every year so we go for our constant food tent staples. One of the best things I try to snag every year is the gingerbread cookies put on by the local Women's Club. Now these ladies know how to do cookies, so well that they sell out the first day almost every year and they now have been selling them by the dozens the past couple years. 

So if you manage to get ahold of some of these cookies each year, you lucked out!

I have faced the bitter disappointment of missing out on them a couple times, so I asked around if anyone knew the recipe...

Finally this year paid off! 

If this isn't exact, it's pretty darn close!!!

Gingerbread Boys

• 1 cup of Crisco shortening
• 1 cup of sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 1 egg
• 1 cup of molasses
• 2 tablespoons of vinegar
• 5 cups of flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon of ground cloves
• 1 tablespoon of powdered ginger

1. Cream together shortening, sugar and salt. 
2. Add and beat in egg, molasses and vinegar. 
3. Add all dry ingredients and mix well.
4. Chill for 3 hours or more.
5. Roll and cut, bake 8-10 minutes at 375.

Gingerbread Icing

• 2 lbs of powdered sugar
• 3/4 cup of Crisco
• 1/2 teaspoon of butter flavoring (emulsion)
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla
• 1/2 cup of water

1. Mix all ingredients well!

Thanksgiving Cookies!

So I finished up the Thanksgiving cookies I was working, the day before. So I took them to work on Thanksgiving and they were a huge hit!

I used a new icing recipe and it turned out amazing!!!
It's from Sweet Sugar Belle's website and it was super easy to use!

Royal Icing

Yield: Approximately 5 cups

Ingredients

• 2 pounds {one bag} confectioner's sugar {907 grams}
• 5 tablespoons meringue powder {approximately 53 grams}
• 2-3 teaspoons oil-free extract or emulsion
• 1/2-3/4 cups warm water

Instructions

1. Begin by stirring the flavoring into half the water.
2. Using a paddle attachment, gently mix the sugar and meringue powder. It's not necessary to sift the sugar beforehand, but you can if you like.
3. With the mixer on it's lowest setting slowly add the water/flavoring mix to the dry ingredients. As the water is added, the icing will become thick and lumpy.
4. Continue to add the remaining water {this may or may not be the entire amount} until the mixture reaches a thick, honey like consistency. At this point, turn the mixer to medium speed and whip 2-4 minutes until this icing is thick and fluffy. Mixing time can vary greatly so watch carefully and stop mixing when the icing is this enough to form a soft peak.

Making my way back..

So as we near the holidays, I'm trying to find some time to make some cookies and various edibles again. I'm going to try to be more diligent and update as I go along... Sorry for the hiatus that I didn't intend to go on. I ended up just making random cookies at that last post and didn't go into much with them. The icing I made didn't work out like I'd planned and we just ate them.

So now I've made my way back. I've started an attempt to make some sugar cookies for my co-workers for Thanksgiving as a practice. I'm planning on attending another cookie party in December so I have to get back into gear. So I made some sugar dough and baked some cookies the other night.

I have to ice them still, but I'm going to try to make some turkeys also. Still had to get to the store to get the ingredients to make the icing. Also going to attempt gingerbread here soon. So I'll drop another update once I get more work done.

Making cookies tonight!!!!

So I've had better luck lately, made two more batches of dough and kept adding flour until it was the right texture. So tonight I've been cutting out cookies and waiting for the oven to preheat now! I love my Twilight Sparkle!! My boyfriend's brother was awesome and got me My Little Pony cutters for Christmas but I hadn't quite mastered how to use them (they're 3D printed ones). So I'll update this post once I get the cookies baked!!!

Cookie failure today... so anyways lol....

So I tried to go back and make some cookies today... after two batches of dough that came out like whipped butter and unusable for using cookie cutters on, I make some royal icing and decided to try again later on.. But I also found a fun recipe I remember making when I was a kid that is fun just for a rainy day treat :D

Dessert Sand Cups ( I remember originally making these from the recipe off a box of Dixie cups with Disney's Aladdin on them)

Ingredients:

1.  2 pkg. (3.4 oz each) Jell-O vanilla instant pudding
2. 1 qt. (4 cups) cold milk
3. 32 vanilla wafers, finely crushed
4. 6-7 ounce paper drinking cups

How to Make:

• Beat together pudding mixes and cold milk with a whisk for 2 minutes, then let it stand for 5 minutes.
• Pour 1 tbsp. of crushed wafers into the bottoms of paper drinking cups, then layer pudding and wafers until full.
• Top with gummy worms or any other kind of fun toppers.