Best Ways to Frost Holiday Sugar Cookies

Consider this the sequel to my last post which discussed my favorite sugar cookie recipe. Now, we are on to the real fun part- Frosting the Sugar Cookies!

My favorite way to frost Sugar Cookies is with Royal Icing- Royal Icing is a frosting made up of Confectionery Sugar, Meringue Powder with Water and this icing dries super hard thanks to the Meringue Power. Simply mix these 3 ingredients in a stand mixer until you achieve a smooth glue like texture and you having Royal Icing. There are many great recipes available on the Internet, but I always start with this Martha Stewart Recipe (yes, If you haven't guessed it yet, I am a huge fan of Martha Stewart's recipes.)

Now, there is a reason I said that I "start" with using the Martha Stewart Recipe for Royal Icing. When I am making icing for my base or first layer of icing, I prefer it a bit thinner than what M.S. suggests, and I add a bit extra water. This helps create a super smooth base of icing and makes it easier to pipe. I always start with the same method as well... Create a damn by outlining the cookie with icing piped through a piping bag, then fill in the center of the cookie. I let this dry for at least a couple hours before I add any details on top of the cookie.

When I am prepping icing for doing smaller details, I stick to pretty closely to Martha's Recipe. When the icing is a little bit thicker- you have greater control over the smaller details. And, I always use the smallest round piping tip I have on hand... this yields great results.

Here are a few other tips and things I keep in mind when I am frosting Cookies....

-I always keep the frosting not in using in the fridge covered with a damp cloth- The icing will tend to dry up quickly, and this helps keep it as moist as possible.

-Always burp your piping bag after you refill... Not sure what I mean?... When you refill your piping bag with frosting, twist off the top and squeeze all the frosting down to the tip until you hear an air bubble pop and see the splatter of icing come through the tip--- better that this happen in the icing bowl than on your cookie!

-Gel-Paste food coloring I find lends for the most vibrant and bright colors. No need to mix colors according to ratio on a box. Though- one work of caution... keep in mind that when you are adding food coloring to Royal Icing you are adding a liquid- this will thin out your icing a bit. Keep a little extra powder sugar on hand in case things get too thin...

-Need black icing? Start with Chocolate! Simply add cocoa powder to the base dry ingredients of your icing, then add the black gel-paste coloring. This will help prevent your frosting from getting too thin, yet will get you a nice rich dark black.

-It's better to refill your piping bag frequently, then load it up with lots of icing... the heat from your hand will thin your icing and may make it too runny... so frequent refills will prevent this from happening.

-Looking to work with Sprinkles? Think back to your elementary school crafting days with sparkles! Pipe on your icing, sprinkle with sprinkles, then shake the excess sprinkles off onto wax paper- super fun and super easy!

-Lastly- set aside an afternoon, turn up your Christmas carols-  experiment a bit and have fun with this! I love piping decorating Sugar Cookie- there's so much creativity involved and is a great way to get in the holiday spirit!

Thanks for reading and happy decorating!

It's Christmas Cookie Season!

Christmas is one of my favorite times of year, primarily because Christmas and Cookies go hand in hand. (Can you really have one without the other?! I think not!)

One of my favorite and most classic cookies to make this time of year are sugar cookies. The Ornament Sugar Cookie above was one I made last year for my sister's holiday party and were given out as party favors. You simply can't go wrong serving them for dessert, giving to friends, family or neighbors, or enjoying one with an afternoon latte (my favorite kind of 3pm break!).

I have two go-to sugar cookie recipes that I have shared below. I like each recipe for different reasons and use each for different purposes.

The first is a classic Martha Stewart Sugar Cookie Recipe with Royal Icing. I first found this recipe in the December 2009 Issue of Martha Stewart Living. I still have the magazine, and have made this recipe so many times that the pages are stuck together with sugar (Thank goodness I have it memorized)! But, here's what I like about it- It's simple, straightforward, and yields a perfectly sweet and sturdy sugar cookie. Though I personally prefer the texture of a super soft sugar cookie, these cookies are not overly crunchy or crumbly, but hold up exceptionally well for traveling or even shipping. For the Ornament cookie above, I used this recipe and royal icing recipe- and out of the 40 cookies I shipped from Los Angeles to Boston to my sister, only 2 broke or cracked. So if you plan on shipping cookies this year- this is an excellent recipe choice.

My second favorite sugar cookie recipe was a great online find: Mama's Soft Sugar Cookie. As I mentioned before, I prefer cookies, particularly sugar cookies, to be soft to the bite, yet cooked through. This sugar cookie recipe incorporates sour cream into the dough and these cookie rise and puff up quite a bit while baking. I love how moist, soft and sweet these cookies are. I prefer this recipe for when I am serving cookies in my house, or if I know I do not have to travel far with them. Though they will last about a week in an air tight container (same as the Martha Stewart Recipe above) they are a bit more delicate and will break a bit easier. I also top and decorate these cookies with Martha Stewart's Royal Icing.

I hope you find these two recipes helpful during this holiday cookie season and do Stay tuned! My next post will be on tips and tricks for decorating these Christmas favorites!

3 Simple and Essential Cookie Baking Tips

These bad boys just came out of the oven... Chocolate Mint Chocolate Chip- Look delish?!?

With holiday baking season in full swing, I though I would share 3 cookie baking tips that I swear by.

First, I always use room temperature ingredients. I know, I know, this requires thinking ahead, but it is so worth it. Using ingredients like eggs, butter or other dairy products straight out of the fridge will cause lumpiness, and your batter or dough won't bind properly- no bueno! If you are taking the time to bake from scratch, set yourself up for success with this first crucial step. Take your butter and eggs out of the fridge 30 minutes to an hour before hand. You'll thank yourself later! Also, if you are looking for a more detailed explanation on this step, check out this Real Simple Article and Video.

Second tip, after you roll out your drop cookies, or cut your dough with a cookie cutter, pop the cookie sheet with the dough on it in the freezer for 5-10 minutes. This prevents the butter from frying the bottom on your cookies and also helps bind the cookies. I have even found I sometimes get a plumper cookie with this step. Plump cookies make me very happy!

Lastly, I always use parchment paper (or you could use a Silpat). This not only makes clean up a cinch, but also helps cook the bottom of your cookies evenly, and prevents sticking. I've been know for baking all night long (literally, till 3 or 4 in the morning!)- so anything that makes clean up easier is necessary in my book!

Do you have a cookie baking tip that you swear by? Or do you completely disagree with my tips? I would love to hear it! Post it in the comments below!

Thanks for reading- and Happy Cookie Baking!

Welcome to 'My Cookie Soap Box"

Welcome to my blog, "My Cookie Soap Box."

How this all began is an important story. I consider myself to be a sweets connoisseur, most specifically a cookie expert. I eat, sleep and dream cookies, having been baking and enjoying them since I was a child. I love developing my own recipes, and making the challenging sacrifice of tasting most any cookie (and sweet) that I can get my hands on. Though the other side of it is this... Nothing grinds my gears more than spending my money and calories on a sweet treat that doesn't live up to basic standards.  I am known to get on my proverbial "Soap Box" and call out exactly what went wrong. I simply have high expectations and think sugar and sweets should be held to the same standard we expect of any dining experience. To lay it out for you, here's what I believe...

I believe in indulgence.

I believe my indulgence should be worth every calorie and penny.

I believe in butter, sugar, flour and eggs.

I believe sweets should be made with only the best ingredients.

I believe in desserts made from scratch.

Therefore, the purpose of my blog is this... I hope to educate and inspire you to expect more from your desserts, whether it be cookies, cake, pies, tarts or whatever your favorite indulgence is. Though I promise to be kind, I also promise not to hold back!

Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy what I have to say!