Amazing!
Christmas Cookie Decorating
The 2022 holiday season kicked off with lots of sweet confections, family, and friends to boot. Jumping into the kitchen and whipping up a little magic and creative Christmas Cooking Decorating works of art! One of the things about Christmas I love so much is making cookies each year. You can check out my 2021 designs from last year.
Family Decorating Party
First up, we got down to it the day after Thanksgiving with my family in the form of ugly sweater cookies, Christmas Trees, and snowflakes. Not to mention, diving into a sculpted fondant masterpiece made my creative and talented brother-in-law, and a holiday Tuile cookie (those were fun).
Cookie Decorating Supplies
Essentials for Christmas Cookie Decorating:
- Baked Sugar Cookies
- Royal Icing
- Piping bags
- Sprinkles
Royal Icing was made, cookies baked, and creativity abounded for a fun morning in the kitchen getting down and dirty in a little royal icing and buttery sugar cookies. Even a little fondant and sugar art joined the party, can’t leave those out, right? Check out the fabulous works of art that were created!
Stiff royal icing was thinned to a medium consistency with water for dipping (consistency of corn syrup) and we were off and ready to let our Picasso’s come out. We started with ugly sweater cookies. LOVED all the different and unique designs everyone made!
Decorating with Fondant
As mentioned, my very creative and artistic brother-in-law came up with some very unique creations that deserve 1st place in my book! Pretending to be in a real adventure of Holiday Baking Championship and up against the clock, cranked out some pretty awesome displays!
Turkey Cookie Decorating
First, was sweater cookie that was turned into a super colorful turkey cookie. Candy melts were used and colored for the feathers, and we all loved it!
Fondant Sculpture
Second, a sculpted polar bear masterpiece sitting on snow blocks (Rice Krispie treats) in a pool of blue sugar art! You can check out the sugar art recipe, here. Absolutely loved it and especially loved the color scheme creating an iconic winter wonderland appearance, straight from the artic on all fronts. Isn’t it fantastic?
Christmas Tuile Cookies
These Tuile cookies are unique in how the batter is made and the baking process. Egg whites make up a large chunk of the batter making it super light and crispy. The batter is spread into oval shapes on silpat baking mats and baked, cooled slightly and then rolled up. Deliciously sweet and crispy! Everyone got to add their “red” spin on them.
Christmas Cookie Decorating-Junior League
The second event in the Christmas Cookie Decorating adventure was teaching a class to the wonderful ladies of the Junior League. My dear friend, whom is the head of activities for this great group of ladies ask if I would be interested in teaching. Of course, I said YES!!!
As a baker, I love sharing with others my passion, hoping to inspire the same love for all things baking and pastry.
The evening was a blast and I so loved and enjoyed meeting with all the fantastic ladies!!! They did a phenomenal job decorating. Embraced those piping bags and created some beautiful cookies! Woo-hoo!
Funny, I shared with them often times I’m not sure how I’m going decorate things until I actually have them in front of me ready to go. It’s then when the creativity flows! They did the same!
240 Cookies
To prepare for the class, rolled up my sleeves, revved up the oven, and cranked out sugar and chocolate brownie cut out cookies, 240 that is! Twenty ladies x 12 cookies! This makes for one mega Christmas Cooking Decorating extravaganza!
Freezer Friendly
I separated the project baking sugar cookies one day, and the chocolate another. Once cookies were baked and cooled, they went into the freezer till ready to dip into royal icing. My friends always joke with me that I freeze everything. I always tell them “The freezer is your friend.” Truly, it is!
After decorated with royal icing, the cookies were left 7-8 hours to fully dry. Then placed in freezer containers layered with parchment and frozen for 2 weeks before class time.
Each person received 12 cookies to decorate, the sugar cookies were dipped in royal icing and dried making a perfect matte finish canvas in which to decorate. The chocolate brownie cut outs remained plain and ready to decorate with white and red royal icing.
Recipes and Decorating Ideas
Everyone got a copy of the cookie recipes and royal icing, along with pictures of decorating ideas. I gave a short tutorial on some easy decorating ideas and techniques, and the ladies totally ran with it.
I even shared with them the “Method to My Madness” Christmas Cookie Decorating Plan of baking and decorating in a step-by-step process. For example, making the dough one day, cutting and baking another, then decorating the third day.
Christmas Cookie Class Materials
Each table received:
- Bags of Royal Icing (red and white) Tip 2 and Tip 3
- Red and White Sanding Sugar
- 12 Cookies
Wow, they created some amazing cookies, and I was so impressed. Many have never decorated before, but you would never know by their awesome creations. Sending a big shout out to all of the ladies. Thank you for a great night! You all were wonderful to work with and so talented!
The ladies amazing cookies
Christmas Cookie Boxes
Rounding off the evening of decorating, each lady received a special box of my favorite Christmas cookies. These included:
- Iced Gingerbread
- Blueberry Lemon Tartlets
- Raspberry Almond Tartlets
- Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
- Peanut Butter Blossoms
- Danish Butter Cookies
- Candy Cane Cookies
- Peppermint Bark
- Cinnamon Sugar Crackles
2022 will go down in the memory books for two great adventures in Christmas Cookie Decorating. Both were full of fun, creativity, family, friends, and Christmas cheer!
Other Christmas Cookie Ideas:
Christmas Cookies-Gifts for the Embassies
