Some people (like Korey, Sue and Liana) are incredibly gifted and able to create masterpieces on an edible canvas, and some people struggle to even follow a recipe so the cookies will turn out correctly (it's me, I'm people). They're undercooked, they're overcooked, they cave in the middle, and no way could the untalented "baker" (me again) decorate them to resemble anything recognizable.
No matter the desire to turn out dozens of showpieces worthy of posting across all social media platforms, my creations end up looking much like a four-year-old's.
But isn't she the most adorable 4-year-old? The look on her face of proud accomplishment is worth the price of a messy kitchen for sure!
Those of you who are blessed with the ability to mix and apply your icing consistency and colors just right keep me fascinated by all the variety you bring to life! My Little Bakery painted a picture on a leaf-shaped cookie that is worthy of framing (if one could find a tiny, leaf-shaped frame) and hanging on the wall. She captured all the fall colors at their peak and nestled a cozy-looking house into the scene. On a cookie!!!
Livsweetbakery put a fall twist on one of everyone's favorites, the latte.
Look at her clean lines and puffy, shiny accent on the design. You can almost smell the pumpkin spice! The amount of detail these artists can pack into such a small canvas never ceases to amaze!
All hope is not lost for those of us who are more like Godzilla in the kitchen than June Cleaver (you do know who that is, right? Maybe I'm like Godzilla in more than one way-destructive and old!). If we can read, we can follow a recipe; if it doesn't turn out the first time, we can try again. I don't know about yours, but the worms in my garden love burnt or underdone cookies that end up in the compost.
I digress.
If we cannot wrangle royal icing even after reading all the blogs, we can try making colorful, uniced cookies. Do they have the wonderful detail like the artists'? Not by a long shot, but it's a good place to start, and they are still a feast for the eyes as well as good tasting.
To make uniced treats, follow these directions:
1. Other recipes exist, and you are welcome to search them, but in our completely biased opinion, my mom's is the best; start with that one.
2. After you mix your batch of dough but before you chill, separate it into a bowl for each hue (most bakers use three or four, but some of us are rebels), then add a few drops of your chosen food coloring to each bowl.
3. After chilling, roll each color into balls of various sizes and squish together.
4. Roll out with a rolling pin. The colors will blend, so be careful not to work the dough too much or it may look like mud.
5. Cut out with a detailed cutter if you'd like the veins of the leaf to show or simply an outline to emphasize the marbling.
6. Sprinkle with sanding sugar if desired and bake as directed.
Leave us a comment with your successes, failures or cute stories of memories made with your favorite helper(s)!