How to Make Red and Black Icing (without losing your mind)

Psst....if you're having trouble making red or black icing, I have what you need right here.  The good stuff.

AmeriColor Super Red & Super Black gel paste food colorings.  

Yep, that's it.

No adding cherry juice to red icing.  No mixing of every color in your arsenal to make black.  No stirring 2 containers of red food coloring into icing and still winding up with pink.  (When I first started decorating cookies, I tried it all.)

 {strawberries, scotties, double-decker hearts, batman}

All you need is AmeriColor Super.  What I love about these colors is that you don't need the entire bottle to make a true red and true black.  Both colors will darken over time and while drying, so try tinting your icing *just about* to the color you want, then stop.  You can even tint your icing a few days ahead and store it in the fridge until you need it.

Oh, did I mention these have no yucky aftertaste like some other colors?  

You can find it many places online: Bake It Pretty, Layer Cake Shop, Sweet Baking Supply, Copper Gifts and, of course, Amazon.  If you have a bakery supply store in your town, I bet they'll have it, too.  I almost forgot...Hobby Lobby!!!

Making red & black icing the easy way...works for me!

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My #1 Tip for Rolling Cookie Dough

DO NOT FEAR THE FLOUR!!!

Yep.  That's all there is to it. 

Flour your rolling surface, rolling pin, cookie cutters.  Heck, before I start rolling, I even dust my cookie dough with a little flour.  If your dough starts sticking to your rolling surface, throw on a little more flour.

I PROMISE this will not make your cookies dry.  I've made thousands and thousands of cut-out cookies this way using this cookie recipe.  If I'm using a chocolate cut-out recipe like the Chocolate-Hazelnut cookies in the book, I use a combination of flour and cocoa powder.

So, don't worry about rolling between layers of wax paper, or rolling in sticky powdered sugar.  Flour away!

Works for me!

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Shades of...Pink! (Works for Me Wednesday)

Pink!  Pink, pink, pink!  PINK!!!

Forget Fifty Shades of Grey; we're talking PINK, people.  {PS...having not read FSoG, but having *heard* about it, it totally creeps me out to sit next to someone on an airplane who is reading it.  I rather NOT know that about you, total stranger.  Airplanes are for John Grisham or Michael Crichton. The end.}

OK.  Pink.  Did you know that you had so many choices?  I'm showing you here four pinks.  All AmeriColor brand. I love, love, love AmeriColor.

• soft pink
• dusty rose
• deep pink
• electric pink

Most often when I'm making pink cookies, I'll reach for Deep Pink.  It's vibrant, bright, and perfect for almost everything.  I think it has a little bit of a blue undertone. (But what do I know?)

Soft Pink is, well, softer.  In the pictures, I'm showing it pretty saturated, but I use it when I want a light, not to vibrant pink. It looks to have more yellow in it than the Deep Pink.

Dusty Rose.  Just those words remind me of tea time and wallpaper from the 1980's.  Shown here, it's really saturated, but a little lighter and is makes a *perfect* ballet slipper color.  And...roses.

Electric Pink.  This is a really fun color.  I use it when I want my cookies to SCREAM pink.  Not neon, but definitely bright.  It's Deep Pink kicked up a notch.

Of course, the colors will vary depending on the amount of icing and the amount of color you use. I never measure out icing and food coloring, but the colors you see here are a heaping 1/4 cup of royal icing mixed with about 1/8 teaspoon food coloring.  Give or take. :)

Pink...works for me!

I baked my cookies...now what? (Works for Me Wednesday)

Alright.  So, you baked your cookies.  You're ready to start decorating.

Where do you put them to start?!?

{thanks to my iPhone & Instagram, I have a million of these shots.}

Here's what I do: Instead of setting them on my kitchen counter or table, I put them on cookie sheets. Cookies line the edges, facing out, no cookies in the middle.

Why no cookies in the middle?

1. When reaching to the middle cookies, my pajama sleeve might brush into a cookie on the edge and mess it up. (Yes, sometimes I wear pj's while decorating...in the middle of the day. Kidding. Kind of.)
2. Sometimes icing bottles leak.  You know when they'll leak?  Right when you're reaching over a perfectly decorated cookie.
3. Piping will go much more smoothly if you don't have to reach. 

Cookie sheets are easily rotated.  Try doing that with your kitchen counter.

Cookie sheets are easily transported.  Working at your kitchen table and your family wants to eat dinner?  Pick them up and move them to the dining room.
(Not your family, the cookie sheets.)

You don't need expensive cookie sheets.  I have lots of cookie sheets that I bake on, but I also have a whole stack of cheap-o cookie sheets just for this purpose.  They come in handy when you're decorating 100's of cookies.  Or, if you're decorating 12 cookies and want your good cookie sheets to heat up some taquitos.

Cookie sheets for cookie decorating....works for me.

How to Apply Disco Dust...Works for Me Wednesday

Disco dust.  Have you tried it?

Disco dust will make your cookies sparkle like nobody's business.
{It also drives me slightly insane, which leads me to why I apply it the way that I do.}

About the size of fine glitter, disco dust tends to spread EVERYWHERE....just like glitter.  If you attempt to sprinkle it just on one area of your cookies, I promise, it will stick to every damp surface of that cookie.  I like to apply it to a DRY cookie.

Just like applying sanding sugar, let your cookies dry overnight.
Then, you'll need this:

• Mix equal parts meringue powder and water (for small batches, start with just 1/4 teaspoon of each).  
• Use one paintbrush to apply the mixture onto the cookie where you want the disco dust to stick.  
• Sprinkle on the disco dust over a basket-style coffee filter.  
• Shake off the excess and use the filter as a funnel pour back into the container.
• Use the 2nd (dry) paintbrush to brush off as much excess from the cookie as possible.

 

{Side note: unless you'd like to be WEARING disco dust all over your face and hair, I strongly discourage blowing on the cookie to remove the excess.  Not that I've ever done that or anything.}

Where to buy disco dust?

1. Amazon
2. Sweet Baking Supply
3. Layer Cake Shop 

Disco dust...works for me! 

 

Now, go get your DISCO on!

Cookie Decorators, Raise Your Work Surface...Works for Me Wednesday

Every now and then, husbands know best.


I'd been decorating cookies for a couple of years...I always decorated at night after putting kiddo to bed. It never failed, I'd crawl into bed after a few hours of decorating with an aching back and tense shoulders.

One night, Mr. E walked into the kitchen as I was decorating and said, "why don't you raise up your work surface?"

Ding, ding, ding!!!  Life. changed.

Now when I decorate, I *always* raise up my cookie sheet.

If you don't have a step stool, I *know* you have a stack of cookbooks. 

Raise 'em up.  No more hunching.  

Thank you notes from your back can be addressed to Mr. E. ;)

Help! My cookies have streaks!!! (Works for Me Wednesday)

Has this happened to you?

You've spent hours mixing colors, outlining and flooding.  Your cookies look perfectly perfect. You decide to let them dry overnight and go to bed. You wake up the next morning to STREAKS in your royal icing.

Nooooooooooooooo! 

Those white or light colored streaks are caused by.....water.  Yep.  Water.

Let me tell you how that water probably got there:

1. Squeeze bottles used for flooding weren't *completely* dry.  Even a small drop of water clinging to the side of the bottle can wreak havoc on a cookie.  Solution: check all bottles before filling.  If there is a drop of water, dry with a paper towel.
2. When thinning a bowl of icing, a drop of water goes unnoticed on the side of the bowl.  When the icing is poured into the squeeze bottle, the drop of water is poured in as well.  Solution: always add water with a measuring spoon into the bowl.  Never hold the bowl under running or dripping water.
3. The icing in the bottle is too thick for flooding, so a drop or two of water is added and not properly mixed.  Solution: to add water, pour the icing back into a bowl and stir. Do not under any circumstances SHAKE the bottle.  This will fill your icing with air bubbles (another issue for another day.)

 

If you happen to spot a drop of water when you're filling your cookies, use a paper towel to blot out the water and add more icing if needed. 

Have streaks ever happened to you?  Have you had other issues decorating cookies?  What are they?  Tell me, tell me!  I bet I've had them, too.

{In the meantime, check out this post from the archives on Troubleshooting.}





Preventing streaky cookies....works for me!

Giving Gluten-free a Go...Works for Me Wednesday

I'm going to be totally honest with you.  Gluten-free scares me. 

To be more precise, it intimidates the HECK out of me.  Rice flour, tapioca starch, xanthan gum, teff, millet...when I read about these ingredients, I feel like I should apologize for blogging about all-purpose flour.  It's so, ya know, *mundane.* ;)

You're talking to a girl who dips into her flour canister almost daily.  You're talking to a girl whose house is covered in a light dusting of flour.  You're talking to a girl who panics when there are less than 2 bags of all-purpose flour in the house.

You're also talking to a girl who has a friend with Celiac Disease. When she and her family were visiting town a couple of years ago, they popped in for dinner.  Y'all, I was so nervous.  I ended up making ice cream for dessert which was the only thing I could think of that was gluten-free.

So, I was delighted to meet Elana Amsterdam from Elana's Pantry last December at the Girl Hunter Weekend.  Elana is cool, funny, smart, beautiful; you'd like her.  She did not make this ol' all-purpose flour girl feel intimidated. As a matter of fact, she inspired me to break out of my comfort zone. She has 2 cookbooks: Gluten-Free Cupcakes: 50 Irresistible Recipes Made with Almond and Coconut Flour and this one...

The Gluten-Free Almond Flour Cookbook

{Now, does that cover make you want to dive into gluten-free baking, or what?!?}

Elana was nice enough to let me share her chocolate chip cookie recipe from the book here on the blog.  The cookies are soft and wonderful with a great texture from the almond flour and big chunks of chocolate throughout.

PS...did you know that all food bloggers must have a stash of baker's twine to tie cookies?  
Really.  It's in the handbook.

I followed the recipe *almost* exactly, except I mistakenly bought the wrong kind of agave nectar (more on that in a minute).

You'll need these ingredients...

....will you please pretend you see vanilla extract in that picture?  Thank you!

 A close-up of almond flour...dontcha wanna reach right in that bag?

Let's get gluten-free, y'all!

Elana's Gluten-free Chocolate Chip Cookies

{adapted and used with permission from The Gluten-Free Almond Flour Cookbook}
  *makes 15-16 large cookies*

 2 & 1/2 cups blanched almond flour

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup grapeseed oil

1/2 cup light agave nectar (if you buy the amber, please see my notes below)

1 TBSP vanilla

1/2 cup coarsely chopped dark chocolate (I used Lindt 70%)

Preheat oven to 350.  Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, stir together the almond flour, salt, and baking soda.  

In a separate bowl, whisk together the grapeseed oil, agave nectar, and vanilla extract until thoroughly combined. 

Add the wet ingredients into the dry and stir until combined.

Fold in the chopped chocolate and refrigerate the dough for 20 minutes.

Use a 2 TBSP cookie scoop to scoop the dough onto the prepared cookie sheet.  The cookies will spread, so leave 2 inches between each cookie. 

Bake for about 9 minutes until lightly golden.  Let the cookies cool for 20 minutes on the sheets. Serve warm or remove to wire racks to cool completely.

**If you mistakenly use amber agave like I did, the agave has a distinct deep, molasses flavor when the cookies are warm (they're still yummy). The next day, the amber agave mellows and the cookies are brilliant.  I might have inhaled two this morning...possibly three.  Shh...**

Having some delicious gluten-free recipes up my sleeve?  Works for me!

Thank you, Elana!!!

How to: Dry Luster Dust Application...Works for Me Wednesday

I love using luster dust to add a metallic shine and shimmer to my cookies.  Did you know you can apply it wet OR dry?

 

It's a little hard to see the effect of a dry luster dust application in photos sometimes. Think of it this way....dry luster dust is like a shimmery body powder.  Wet luster dust application is like a gold lame skirt.

The wet application is perfect for when you want an opaque finish that really transforms your cookie into silver or gold.  These First Communion Chalice cookies are a great example...and the tutorial for applying is there for you as well. 

Instead of using the wet application for the keys, I kept the cookies in the same color palette by adding the luster dust dry.

Adding the luster dust dry lets you see the original cookie color, but adds a sheer, metallic shimmer. 

It really couldn't be easier.  Let your cookies dry overnight, then use a clean and dry paintbrush to brush on the luster.

Can you see the difference? It's a little hard to pick up in a photo.  The cookie in front has luster; the one in the back doesn't.

How about now?

The same luster dust color I used here can be found at Sweet! 

Happy lustering! 

Yes, you CAN freeze decorated cookies...Works for Me Wednesday

 

We've talked about it before, but for some reason over this last two weeks, I've had SO many questions about freezing cookies, I thought it was time to have "the talk" again.

YES!  You can freeze cookies decorated with royal icing! 


YES!  You can freeze baked cookies that are not decorated!


YES!  You can freeze the dough before baking!


Yes!  Yes!  Yes!!! 
{And kiddo thinks all I can say is, "no."}

If you happen to follow along on Instagram, you might have noticed that over the last several weeks, I've been making a kajillion horse cookies.  They're Kentucky Derby horses, and they're for a charity event.
{You can read more about it and get the cookie tutorial here.}

Since I don't have room to decorate a kajillion cookies all at one time....we sometimes need to use our kitchen and dining room tables for homework, folding laundry, and you know, eating...I've learned to take on projects like this little-by-little.

These instructions are for cookies decorated with royal icing, if you're freezing unbaked cookies, just don't decorate them first.  I guess you knew that.


ONE.  Let the cookies dry completely overnight.

TWO. Either individually bag and tie the cookies, or place them in freezer bags.

THREE. Stack the bags in a freezer-safe container.  Not only will this give them an added layer of protection, it will keep them from getting crushed by an unwieldy box of corn dogs.

FOUR. Freeze.

FIVE. When ready to use, thaw in the container and bags at ROOM TEMPERATURE for several hours.  Never thaw in the refrigerator.  Condensation can ruin the icing.

How long can you freeze them?  This goes for iced cookies, plain cookies and dough....I think they're best used within 3-6 months.  I have, however, tested cookies after being in my freezer for a year.  Still good. :)

{This only applies to sugar cookies decorated with royal icing, not glazes or buttercream.}

OK...I need to get these babies back in the freezer...

Freezing cookies....it works for me!

Works for Me Wednesday e-book (!)

Have you ever looked through the tips on Works for Me Wednesday and thought, "man, I wish I had a book of those?"

Well, guess what?  Now you can!

My beautiful neighbor, Kristen (host of Works for Me Wednesday, and blogger at We are THAT Family, and author, and humanitarian, and all-around supermom) and her friend Jennifer DeGroot have put together an e-book called That Works for Me!

The book contains over 800 WFMW tips, organized into 24 different categories and including 300 contributing bloggers.

{A few of the bloggers: Jen from My Kitchen Addiction, Myra from A Blessed Life, and the gals from How Does She?}

Here's a little peek at the categories, as well as a few sample tip summaries:

One thing I LOVE about the e-book is that after reading a synopsis of the tip, one click takes you directly to the original post.  It's a win-win for readers and for bloggers.  (Kristen is so smart.)  Oh, and it's also available on Kindle!

You can purchase a copy here.
{psst...here's $1 off coupon code: SAVE1}

You can submit a tip to enter to win $150 worth of housecleaning here.
{No one enter....I *need* that.}

You can follow along with That Works for Me:

• Like TWFM on Facebook (and follow the blog tour of 175+ reviews/giveaways!)
• Follow TWFM on Twitter (you might see your Tip of the Day!)
• Join TWFM on Pinterest and repin your favorite WFMW posts
• Earn money by becoming an Affiliate 

And, you can win a copy here!  
{yep, right here!}

To enter, just leave a comment with either your favorite WFMW tip (here are a few from moi), or share one of your own tips.

Contest runs through midnight, April 15th.  Good luck!

That Works for Me e-book?  It works for me! ;)