Some Like it Hot

Lately I have been reading a lot of blogs that have some of the most beautiful cookies you have ever seen. This week, I decided to try my hand with the technique they use to decorate the cookies. Now, I have done this way of decorating once before, just never on a cookie. So, with a special person's birthday coming up, I went to work on the cookies. My sister-in-law, who has a birthday this Thursday, recently moved to Flagstaff, Arizona. To celebrate that and her birthday, I made some cactus and chile pepper cookies (not in taste, just in looks). Now I know that I usually don't post pictures of things I have made for people before they get to see them, but I'm sure Katie has seen these, as I sent them out a little early for her birthday (just wanted to make sure I didn't miss it).

Anyhow, here are the cookies, and how to decorate by flooding your cookie.


First, with a stiff royal icing, pipe your outline of the cookie. Let this dry to form your border.

With the chile peppers, I worked with two colors to make them look real.

Two tone borders. Pretty, but not quite done yet...

Now, thin your royal icing with some water. If you apply the 5-10 count rule, you will know if you consistence is right. What I mean by this is, after mixing in the water, run your spatula through the icing and count to 10. If the icing comes back together and looks smooth while you are counting from 5 to 10, it's good. If it is under 5, add a little more powdered sugar to thicken it up. If it takes longer then 10, add more water.

Fill your borders with the royal icing. Give your cookies a little shake to help smooth out the icing. If you have any air bubble, pop them with a toothpick or pin. If you let them pop on their own, they will create a hole in your design.

And there you have it. Cookies with a smooth glossy finish that look as good as they taste.

I liked doing these cookies, and plan to make more, as there are other tricks with this type of decorating that I would like to try...stay tuned.