Cookie Decorating
COOKIE DECORATING
IDEAS AND TIPS
It is always fun for everyone to decorate their favorite cookies in their favorite colors and with their favorite toppings. Decorated cookies fit well into any occasion, but why wait to have so much fun?
Decorating cookies is great fun for anyone who enjoys being creative. Mix and match different techniques to fulfill all your cookie cravings. For example, try frosted cookies striped with chocolate or cookies on a stick, dipped in frosting and decorated to look like bees and flowers. Or enjoy dainty biscotti dipped in two flavors of chocolate. AND - most decorating techniques require little or no skill, so people of all ages can enjoy decorating together ? all it takes is a little practice and in no time, your delicious creations will turn out PERFECT!
Below are all kinds of great decorating styles and ideas that will make your cookies a big hit at home and with everyone else! Try as many of these basic techniques as you can and you?ll soon be the hit of any party you and your cookies come to.
Frostings
The most popular, time-honored technique for decorating cookies is still the use of frosting because it is a very versatile means of decorating. The simplest types of cookie icing are made using confectioners' sugar, butter or shortening and milk or water, such as decorator frosting or sugar cookie icing. These icings are easier to work with because they have a somewhat softer texture than royal icings, which dry to a very hard finish. Though royal icings are great for gluing gingerbread houses, they are still not very tasty.
Colorings and Flavorings
Flavored extracts such as vanilla, lemon, orange or almond can add great variety to standard cookies. In many recipes, different flavored juices can also be substituted for the liquid called for. It's fun to make a different flavor for each color that you use. Icing can be quickly and easily colored with liquid food coloring, but for brighter colors, the paste food coloring works better.
When adding color, first mix the color into about 1 tablespoon of icing then blend that into the rest of the icing. Frosting can easily be thinned to the desired consistency by adding liquid such as milk, juice or water. For a smooth glossy finish, warm the icing slightly in a microwave oven, or in a bowl over a pan of simmering water, but be sure to stir it frequently so that a crust does not form on the top.
Application
Frosting can be applied using a pastry brush, or by simply dipping the cookies directly into the frosting. Set freshly frosted cookies onto a tray or onto waxed paper to dry. Once the first coat of frosting is dry, you can pipe another color of frosting over the top to add details such as stripes, spirals, faces or names. If you don?t have a disposable plastic pastry bag, a plastic baggie with the corner cut out can work just as well (disposable plastic pastry bags can be purchased at most cake decorating supply or craft stores). For smaller children, try pressing pieces of candy into the frosting before it hardens, or sprinkle the cookies with different colors of sugar. Some stores even carry edible glitters that add sparkle and fun for young children to enjoy.
Chocolate
Working with chocolate can be fun and creative, and the best part is that when you are done with your works of art, you get to eat chocolate. Several flavors of chocolate are available, with dark, semi sweet, milk chocolate and white chocolate being the most common flavors. When working with the darker chocolates, remember that they need to be tempered to keep them shiny and firm. However, you can get around this problem by purchasing a type of chocolate called ?coating chocolate.? This kind of chocolate is specially designed to hold a good shine without requiring tempering.
Most coating chocolates are of a lower grade and so may not taste as chocolaty as the regular semi-sweet varieties. These usually come in the shape of small discs for more convenient melting. White coating chocolate is also known as "almond bark? - if you cannot find this type of chocolate at your local supermarket, it can be found at stores that carry candy making and cake decorating supplies.
Chocolate Dipping
Decorating with chocolate is easy, but it helps to be organized. First, put the chocolate into a heatproof bowl and set this on top of a pan of simmering water because chocolate burns very easily and cannot be melted directly on the stovetop. Though a microwave oven also works well, be sure to stir every 15 seconds or so.
If not done in advance, while the chocolate is melting, arrange your workspace so that the cookies you want to dip are on one side of you - and a couple of cookie sheets lined with parchment or waxed paper are on the other side. When the chocolate is mostly melted, remove it from the heat and stir until it is completely smooth. This will melt it the rest of the way, and it will also cool it a bit so that it won?t burn your hand when you are dipping the cookies.
§ Dip cookies halfway into the chocolate, and scrape the excess off of the bottom using your finger or the side of the bowl. Then give the cookie a gentle shake and once again, scrape the excess chocolate off. This will keep the chocolate from forming a puddle around the cookie while it sets up.
§ Place the cookies onto the waxed paper, staring at the farthest end and working inward. This will prevent any dripping onto the finished cookies.
More Creative Decorating
If you like nuts, dip one end of each cookie into ground up pistachios or peanuts while the chocolate is still wet. After the first coating has set up, you can then apply another color of chocolate if you wish. Try dipping one half of each cookie in dark chocolate, and the other half in white. The white chocolate can even be colored a nice pastel color.
Striping also lends an elegant touch to the cookies. To avoid getting your hands dirty, you can spoon chocolate into a plastic baggie and cut one corner to the desired size. Twist the top to close, and squeeze the chocolate through the hole. Several commercial cookies that are even better when dipped in chocolate include: Chocolate-dipped Orange Biscottis, Sugar Cookie Cutouts and Chocolate dipped Mocha Rounds.
Decorating Before Baking
If you just want great looking cookies, but don't want have lots of time, there are a few ways to add a special touch before the cookies are even baked. One easy way to brighten up cookies is to roll them in colored sugar, finely chopped nuts, coconut, sesame seeds or sprinkles before baking. This technique is wonderful on Sesame Thumbprint Cookies, for example. For a different twist, even a light dusting of confectioners' sugar or cocoa powder will give any cookies an elegant finish. Remember to dust the cookies again, right before serving, to freshen their appearance.
Molds and Presses
There are many different ceramic, metal, and even plastic molds and stamps that emboss each cookie with beautiful designs. Sandbakelser is a traditional Swedish molded cookie, while Springerle is a traditional German molded cookie that is made using a hand carved rolling pin or board to print the design onto the cookies. The Greek cookies, Koulourakia are molded into beautiful braided or twisted shapes by hand, while the Italian Bowknot Cookies are tied into loose knots. As you acquire greater skills with cookie presses and pastry bags, trying adding a greater variety of shapes such as crescents, stars and wreaths ? which are some of the more popular designs to enjoy. Then you can enhance these efforts even further with a few sprinkles or by adding a dot of jam to bring even more color and taste to your cookies.
Novelty shapes
For the crafty baker, novelty shapes make fabulous conversation pieces. Some cookies are first formed into the shape of different fruits before decorating. Austrian peaches and candy strawberries make a great, tasteful addition to any cookie tray. For a summer picnic, children and adults alike will always be thrilled if you serve them Watermelon Cookies! They look like tiny slices of watermelon.
Rolling and Cutting
Cookie dough is much easier to work with after it's been refrigerated for at least half an hour. You can keep cookie cutters from sticking to the dough by first misting them very lightly with cooking spray. If you're cutting out delicate or large shapes, you can keep them from falling apart by rolling out the dough on parchment paper, cutting or forming the desired shapes, lifting off the scraps, and then sliding the cookies on the paper directly onto a baking sheet.
Different Types of Frosting
One popular frosting for sugar cookies is a simple glaze of confectioners' sugar and either milk or fruit juice. By adjusting the ratio of liquid to sugar, you can make this glaze as thick or as thin as you need. Royal icing, as another option dries to a hard, crunchy finish that will also hold up well if you mail your cookies to family and friends. Buttercream frosting is soft, thick and tasty, though it is not good if you plan to stack the cookies. Instead of frosting, you can also dip half or all of a cookie in chocolate and then in chopped nuts any thing else you may like.
Other Decorating Ideas
Instead of frosting, you can decorate the cookies before you bake them by sprinkling on coarse colored sugar, nuts, colored sprinkles, silver balls or other small candies. You can also make colorful designs on the unbaked cookies by painting them with a mixture of egg yolks beaten together with food coloring. The finished cookies will end up being bright and glossy.
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