Pumpkin Decorator Cookies

These soft cookies yield to the tooth, but are still solid enough to decorate. Yum! They do spread, so they're not right for cutters that require definition. Circles are ideal.

3 cups flour

2 tsp cornstarch

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

1/3 cup unflavored vegetable shortening

1 1/4 cups granulated sugar

2 large egg yolks

2/3 cup canned pumpkin puree

1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger for 20 seconds, set aside.
2. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter, shortening and sugar until pale and fluffy. Mix in egg yolks one at a time. Mix in pumpkin puree and vanilla extract. With mixer set on low speed, slowly add in dry ingredients and mix until combined.
3. Roll, cut and bake in preheated oven 11 - 12 minutes. Cool on baking sheet several minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Chocolate Chip Cookies for Decorators

I considered just linking to Sweet Sugar Belle's recipe, but if her site were to go down, I'd be lost without this recipe, which is perfection for royal icing art.

• 1 c unsalted butter
• 1/3c granulated sugar
• 1/2 c light-brown sugar
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 - 2 ½ c all-purpose flour
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 ½ c semi-sweet mini-chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Cream together the butter and sugars. To that add the vanilla and egg yolk. Sift together the flour and salt, and add it one cup at a time until completely incorporated. Then, BY HAND fold in the chocolate chips. You can do it with your mixer, but it might break them up, so I would really just do it the old fashioned way.
2. MEANWHILE, PREHEAT YOUR OVEN TO 350°
3. While you wait for the oven to warm, wrap your dough in plastic wrap and chill for at least thirty minutes. When it is chilled, roll out cookies on lightly floured parchment and bake at 350° for 10-12 minutes.
4. These cookies roll and cut SO WELL!

http://www.sweetsugarbelle.com/2011/01/in-the-mood-for-chocolate-chip/

Copyright © 2012 SweetSugarBelle.com

Decorated Cookies

I've been on a cookie decorating roll of late. They just make such excellent gifts.

Wedding gifts, for instance.

 

 

Miniature gingerbread houses

Printout of Miniature Gingerbread House Template
Cereal box or other stiff easy-to-cut paper for templates
6 3/4 cups all purpose flour
5 tsp ground ginger
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp ground cardamom
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups vegetable shortening
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3 large eggs
3/4 cup molasses

3 tbsp meringue powder
4 cups confectioner's sugar
7 tbsp water

Day 1: Prepare dough

1. Sift flour, spices, baking soda and salt into a large bowl.
2. Beat the shortening until fluffy, scraping down the sides.
3. Add the sugar and beat to blend. Scrape the sides of the bowl and beat again.
   
4. Add eggs one at a time and beat to mix, scraping the sides after each additio.
5. Add molasses and beat on high speed until well blended.
6. My mixer is not big enough for the entire batch of dough, so at this point I pour out half the liquid into a small bowl for later.
   
7. Switch to a flat mixer attachment and add half the dry ingredients in 3 additions, beating at low speed until dough forms.
8. Pour the dough into a bowl, and repeat step 7 with the remaining ingredients.
9. Return both sections of dough to the mixer and combine the halves on slow for a minute.
10. Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces, wrap individually in plastic and refrigerate overnight.
    

Day 2: Roll and bake

1. Tape the printed template onto a piece of cereal box or other stiff paper, and cut out the four pieces. (Consider making multiple templates of each in case you need backups.)
   
2. Preheat oven to 350°F.
3. Roll out 1 dough piece at a time between sheets of parchment paper to 1/8 to 1/4-inch thickness. If parchment wrinkles, peel it off, smooth the wrinkle, and reposition parchment over the dough.
4. Leave the parchment paper on the rolled dough.
5. Place a template on the parchment paper. Using a sharp knife, cut the dough in the shape of the template, slicing through the parchment paper. Leave at least 1/2 inch between the pieces. Be sure that you have two front/back walls, two sides, and two roof pieces for every base. If you're willing to sacrifice some dough, use a sharp knife or pizza cutter to cut squares of dough large enough to place a template inside instead. You'll cut out the shapes after baking.
   
6. Peel off the parchment paper outline and remove the extra dough. You can combine the extras to re-roll.
7. Place a cookie sheet, upside down, over the pieces on the bottom sheet of parchment paper, and flip the whole thing over. Remove the whole sheet of parchment paper, and spread the pieces out, leaving at least 1/2 inch between them. To make step 9 easier, consider baking small batches of about 12 pieces.
   
8. Bake the pieces for 9-11 minutes, until dry looking, firm to touch in center and just beginning to darken around edges.
9. While the pieces are still warm, place the templates back on them, and use a sharp knife to trim them to size. You'll need to work fast. There's no need to trim the circular bases.
10. Transfer to a cooling rack.
11. Once completely cooled, store in airtight containers, using parchment paper to separate layers and minimize cracking. (You may want to consider making some extra pieces as insurance against accidents.)
12. Any leftover dough can be refrigerated and used with cookie cutters. This dough makes perfect gingerbread men!
    

Day 3: Assemble houses

1. Prepare royal icing. Mix meringue powder, confectioner's sugar and water in a stand mixer on medium for 5 minutes. Add water if the icing is too thick or not sticky. Keep the icing covered with Saran wrap when not in use, with the Saran wrap touching its surface. This stuff hardens in contact with air.
2. Spoon royal icing into a disposable piping bag, shake down, and snip the tip.
3. For each house, assemble one base, two side walls, two front/back walls, and two roof pieces.
4. Apply a thin thread of icing to the bottom of a wall, and press into place.
5. Using the icing as glue, secure the other wall pieces to each other and the base.
6. Pipe icing around three edges on one side and secure a roof piece in place.
7. Pipe icing along all four remaining edges and attach the last roof piece.
8. Go back over the joints with lines of icing. You can use a wet finger to smooth away any messes, although if you'd got kids decorating these, they won't care in the least.
   

Day 4: Decorate

I decorate these houses with my kids, so I want them to be well set before I start decorating. However, you'll probably get a much neater result by doing some initial decorating on the flat pieces before you assemble the houses.

Use royal icing as glue, and attach raisins, currants and candies of all sorts. You can also brush on corn syrup to get sprinkles, nonpareils or shredded coconut to stick. Use your imagination! These houses are the perfect size for gummy bear resident. If you want Christmas trees, consider rolling super easy mints into cone shapes and dotting with coloured royal icing.

The dough recipe is shamelessly borrowed from Epicurious.com (although I added some spices). I use Wilton's royal icing recipe. The template and assembly instructions are mine.

If you decide to design your own template, take into account the additional 1/8 to 1/4 inch width of the gingerbread pieces. My initial attempt at these houses left me with roof pieces that weren't quite wide enough!

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

1 3/4 cup flour
1 cup oil
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/3 cup sugar
7 tbsp cocoa powder
3 eggs
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 tbsp instant coffee powder
5 ripe bananas (well mashed)
1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt and cocoa powder. Set aside.
3. Using a mixer, beat together the oil, sugar, eggs and vanilla until well blended.
4. Add the coffee powder and the well mashed bananas.
5. Add the flour mixture in thirds, beating only until well blended after each addition. Don't over-beat!
6. Stir in the chocolate chips.
7. Pour the batter into a VERY WELL GREASED 9" x 5" loaf tin.*
8. Bake on the middle rack of the oven. The 9" x 5" tin will take 70-80 minutes, a small tin 45-50 minutes. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean.
9. Remove from the oven, cool bread in the pan(s) 5 minutes. Remove from the pan(s) and complete cooling on a wire rack.

* If the bananas are large, there may be some leftover batter, which can be baked in a small loaf tin.

If you have the patience, let the bread sit overnight for the flavor to develop! I got this recipe from my friend Dustin. He's a wonderful baker, and this is one of his best dishes.

Cinnamon Rolls

3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp water
4 tbsp butter, softened
1 tsp salt
1/4 plus 1/3 cup sugar
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp yeast
2 tsp cinnamon

1. Place the water, 2 tbsp butter, salt, 1/4 cup sugar, flour and yeast in your bread maker. This is the order my bread maker likes, but yours may differ.
2. Run your machine on the dough cycle for a 1 lb loaf.
3. Grease a 9" by 9" pan. Glass works great.
4. Flatten dough into rectangle. The thinner the rectangle, the more swirls to your rolls. I usually make mine 6" by 12". You can use a rolling pin, or just pat it out with your hands. My girls love this part!
   
5. Spread remaining 2 tbsp butter on dough.
6. Mix remaining 1/3 cup sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle this over the dough.
7. Roll the dough tightly along the long edge. You'll end up with something resembling a sausage. Pinch the edge into the dough to seal.
8. Cut roll into 9 slices of equal width. Arrange the slices, cut ends down, in a square in the pan.
9. Cover and let rise for an hour. This recipe is very forgiving. I've let it rise anywhere between half an hour and 2 hours, and they've come out great.
10. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
11. Bake 25-30 minutes until golden brown.
12. Turn onto a wire rack. I find it easiest to take one cooling rack, cover the pan with it and then turn the pan over. I then take a second cooling rack, put it upside down on the rolls, and flip the whole thing over. This way you don't end up with burning cinnamon goop all over you, not that I've ever done that!
13. Frost with cream cheese frosting or vanilla glaze.
    

These cinnamon rolls are super-easy and have been requested as our Christmas breakfast tradition. I've doubled the recipe with great success. My husband has been known to eat 8 of these at one sitting.

Amaretto Brownies

2/3 cups sliced or slivered almonds
8 oz semisweet chocolate
1/3 cup plus 3 tbsp butter
1 1/4 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
3 tbsp amaretto (could use 1 1/4 tsp almond extract)*
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups powdered sugar
1 to 2 tbsp milk

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Grease 13" x 9" pan.
3. Place half the almonds in a food processor or coffee grinder and process in pulses until ground.
4. Heat chocolate and 1/3 cup butter in large saucepan over low heat, stirring often, until melted. (Leave remaining butter out to soften.)
   
5. Remove saucepan from heat and stir in ground almonds, flour, sugar, 2 tbsp amaretto or 1 tsp extract, baking powder, eggs and salt.
6. Spread batter in pan and bake 22-27 minutes. (I stick a toothpick in the center. If it comes out clean, it's done.)
7. Cool brownies completely.
8. Mix powdered sugar, 3 tbsp butter, 1 tbsp amaretto or 1/4 tsp almond extract, and 1 tbsp milk until smooth. Add the extra tbsp milk if needed.

* I use the amaretto in the brownies and the almond extract in the frosting. I like the amaretto flavour better, but don't want my toddlers to ingest the alcohol in the frosting, since it doesn't get cooked away. I know, it's paranoid of me, but I'm a protective mom.