Good Things by David

If you're looking for some Christmas cookies that are very much of the holiday, but are also holiday neutral images, look no further.  Wreaths, snowflakes and snowmen can be made for any winter occasion.  They can be given as gifts to friends, family and neighbors no matter their religion, and they can be shipped anywhere in the country or across the pond if they're made thick enough and packed well.  Holiday Sugar Cookies Can you believe that I don't actually own a wreath cookie cutter?  How utterly embarrassing, I know.  This, by no means, should prevent one from cutting out beautiful wreaths as long as there are fluted rounds and/or plain round cookie cutters on hand.  These are a must for any baker of any baking skill level.  The snowflakes and snowmen cookies do require you to have cutters in those shapes, but they can be found just about anywhere baking supplies are sold.  Online is best these days! Christmas Wreath and Snowflake Sugar Cooki...

For those of you who have been following the blog for some time, you know how much I cherish my only niece.  In honor of a special life celebration that we are throwing her this month to celebrate her childhood cancer remission, I chose to make dozens upon dozens of leukemia ribbon sugar cookies for the 100 plus guests that we're expecting.   I don't think I've ever made any cancer ribbon cookies for anyone, so who better than for my special niece?  Ribbon cookie cutters can be found in several sizes and styles, so it's up to you how large or how small you want your ribbon cookies to be, and if you want them to have the centers cut out or left intact.  I chose the former. My west coast affiliate cookie crafter, who happens to be my cousin, is also helping out with the sugar cookie favors.  Johanna is becoming extremely adept at making phenomenal sugar cookies, so I am beyond thrilled that she is assisting the family. Armed with baked and cooled...

For me, Easter evokes some of the best memories from childhood.  Weeks prior to it, probably around Ash Wednesday, mom would make it her duty to blow out eggs and save them for us so that we could dye them a few days prior to Easter.  Using one of those Paas kits from the local Woolworth's, we would set out bowls of boiling vinegar water and drop those food-coloring tablets in them.  Depending on what we wanted our eggs to look like, my brothers and I would give the eggs a quick dunk for light shades or let them steep in the mixture for minutes in order for them to take on a deeper hue. As much as I would like to dye Easter eggs these days, I find it so much more rewarding to color sugar cookies in the shapes of eggs, bunnies and other images, so that I can hand them out to friends, family and neighbors.   Over the years, I have gathered quite a nice collection of Easter cookie cutters, some of which are collectibles and others which are not.  I've...

St. Patrick's Day is right around the corner and we must all celebrate it by baking, decorating, eating or cooking something green.  Of course, we can always don something green, much like those Irish folklore characters who are said to grant us three wishes if we catch them.  In order to be festive for the holiday, though, why not make some iced sugar cookies in the shapes of leprechauns? A dear reader of the blog who is a dynamo when it comes to icing cookies (it's his hobby) gave me the idea of making leprechauns after sending me his finished works.  I loved the idea so much that I decided to make my own. The first order of business was to locate a cookie cutter that would best suit this task.  Since I did not have an actual leprechaun cookie cutter, I decided to use a gnome-shaped cutter. After making batches of my sugar cookie recipe , I cut out as many shapes as I needed, and then I modified them (above).  The gnome shapes designed by ...

When you hear someone mention Donatello, Michelangelo, Raphael and Leonardo, you immediately think of the artists from the Renaissance.  For kids, however, you are referring to the teenage mutant ninja turtle comic book characters that some of us grew up with.  These green turtles with their colorful eye bandanas, can be turned into sugar cookies, and get handed out for a TMNT-themed birthday party.  Kids of all ages are going to want them. What I like about this type of cookie is that you don't need to have a specific TMNT cookie cutter or a myriad of designs to create a set.  They can all be iced and finished with one face, and a handful of colors of royal icing.  Whether you cut out round or square sugar cookies, the faces can be outlined freehand in black royal icing.  If you're unsure about doing this freehand, you can always use a food coloring marker to trace out the design before icing.  All that is left to do is to fill in the blanks. ...

Shipping fragile sugar cookies that are decorated with royal icing require special care.  These types of cookies get baked on a monthly basis at my home, and more often than not, they are shipped throughout the United States to friends, family and clients.  I try my best to ensure that the treats arrive in one piece because it would be a waste of my time, material, expertise and money if I were to be neglectful in their packaging. What I've learned throughout the years of mailing out hundreds upon hundreds of cookies is that you must have a sturdy box, lots of packing peanuts, small-bubble bubble wrap and perhaps some cardboard cut outs to use for layering. Moreover, the sugar cookies themselves must be rolled out to a thickness of a solid 1/4" to give them the firmness required for shipping.  Anything thinner will have a greater chance of breaking into small pieces or snapping in half. Learn from these tips so that your works of edible art arrive at their d...

Cats and Hearts make a wonderful theme for a kid's birthday party, and this year, I set out to create some adorable one-of-a-kind sugar cookies for my niece's special day.  I had been searching online for some cookie decorating inspiration, but I just couldn't find what I was looking for.  It wasn't until I came across a handmade Valentine card that I had my breakthrough moment. I knew the instant I laid eyes on the charming image of a cat hugging a giant heart, that it would translate well for decorated sugar cookies. I had to search through my cookie cutters for the hearts that I thought would be great for this project, and then sketch out the treats to see how I could make them work. This is my original sketch of the cookie, along with the cookie cutters and candy elements I wanted to use.   These cookie cutters are made by Wilton and can be found at craft stores.  At the very top of the photo we have the Wilton Hearts 4-piece set.  The...