Tuesday Tip of the Week {cooling cookies}

Welcome to another Tuesday Tip of the Week! Every week I'll let you in on a little secret that has helped me perfect my cookies....

Have you ever tried to lift your freshly baked cookies off the cookie sheet only to smoosh or otherwise mangle them? The solution: let your cookies cool ON the cookie sheet for about 5-10 minutes before removing them. This allows the cookies to firm up just enough so that you won't bend, break, or distort them when removing them to the cooling rack.

Once they are firm enough to move, place them on a cooling rack and allow the cookies to cool completely before icing them. My favorite cooling racks are THESE stackable ones from Wilton.

I have 2 sets of 3, so I can stack them high and cool lots of cookies while only taking up a small footprint on my counter, plus they collapse down making them easy to store.

Happy baking!

Place Card Cookies

If you want to make a statement at a party, consider place card cookies. They are simple and elegant, and are the perfect addition to your party table.

Place card cookies can be any shape and color imaginable. The guest of honor at this intimate dinner party likes blue and yellow, so Phyllis the hostess chose those colors.

I used my plaque cookie cutter, which I just love. It's from PlasticsInPrint and it's a nice substantial size, which makes for an impressive cookie.

Phyllis was kind enough to share a picture of one of the cookies on her table. Thanks, Phyllis! I hope Tina had a very happy birthday!

Fore!

OK, confession time. I don't golf. I don't like to play it and I don't like to watch it. I tried. I really did. Gerard tried to teach me and that nearly ended in divorce. :) I took lessons, too, but alas, golf is just not my game.

Of course that doesn't mean I can't love golf cookies. I put together 72 gift bags for a golf tournament and each bag included a ball and a golf green. I wish I could take the credit for the golf ball design, but I have Jennifer at The Bluebonnet Bake Shop to thank for that. Most people do little dots of white on top of a white cookie but of course golf balls do not have raised dots, they have dimples. Jennifer suggested "dropping light grey dots into your still wet base icing, then immediately drop in the white dots just a smidgen below each grey dot to create this cool "shadow effect" on the dimples".  I think she is a genius!

Tuesday Tip of the Week {cookie spread, part 1}

Thanks to my good friend Isabel, I've decided to offer a Tuesday Tip of the Week! This week's tip was one I learned early on and really changed my cookies.....

Have you ever baked some cookies that started out looking perfect, only to take them out of the oven and find they look like one giant glob? Spreading cookies may not be a disaster if you're baking circles, but if you're trying to make something with fine details, cookie spread can be the kiss of death.

There are two things that I've found that can help your cookies keep their shape. The first is in the recipe you use. I use only a little bit of baking powder to allow the cookies to rise slightly, but not enough to make them spread. Check back in a few weeks and I'll share my cookie recipe on another Tuesday Tip of the Week!

The other key to keeping your cookies from spreading is that they need to be cold. After you roll and cut out your cookies, place them on the cookie sheet and into the refrigerator for at least an hour. Then bake them straight from the fridge. They hold their shape much better when they're cold and baked on a cold cookie sheet.

Happy baking!

Ball Jars

Ball jars are all the rave these days. I've seen Ball jars made into lamps, candle holders, planters, Halloween decorations, soap dispensers, and much more. Just check out Pinterest to see what I'm talking about! Thanks to Jamie H. and THIS INSPIRATION, I made 60 Ball Jar cookies for her grandmother's 90th birthday party in Chicago. They were a labor of love, but I think the end result was well worth it.

A Halloween Birthday

I love Halloween so I was super excited to do Halloween-themed birthday party favors for two adorable girls. Of course I forgot to take pictures before I had packaged them all up, so these pictures will have to do. I hope you can get the idea!

Totally Custom

If you can dream it up, I can probably create it in cookie form. Part of the fun for me is turning what you've imagined into edible art. I love a challenge! Check out these custom cookies:

Rather be hunting

book club treats

mah jongg tiles

for a "trophy wife" with a sense of humor :)

13th birthday party favors

thank you gifts with a pirate theme

Scott's favorite things

for an awesome race car driver

baby gift with a John Deere theme

Memphis favorites

Sports cookies

Sports cookies are always a big hit. I've done favors for teams at the end of a season, sports-themed birthday parties and gifts for fans. The possibilities are endless!

baseball cookies

packaged baseball favors for the team

for a Detroit Red Wings birthday party

for an Arizona Diamondbacks fan

hockey jerseys

....and the rest of the team

the other team :)

soccer balls

soccer ball favors ready to go 

softball!

custom soccer balls and jerseys

Click HERE to see my other sports cookies in my Flickr gallery.

College Favorites

I've been on a college kick lately..... First LSU and Florida State and then Clemson. I felt a little guilty decorating Clemson cookies while they were destroying our Syracuse University, but alas I couldn't disappoint the customer. I wonder how she would've felt if I threw in one extra Syracuse orange cookie....

LSU gift box

LSU close-up

Florida State gift box

Florida State close-up

Clemson University

Click HERE to check out some of my older college-themed cookies in my flickr gallery.

Welcome!

Welcome to my cookie blog! I hope to share my latest cookie creations with you, as well as information on how to order your own custom cookies. To see my older cookies, please click on the GALLERY above to view my flickr page. Check back often for lots of yummy goodness!