Baby Girl is About to Arrive

The blankets requested on the gift registry were just too cute not to make into cookies!  Loved the colors and the cute little animals in this set. 

It's St. Patrick's Day. . .

. . .and if you are a Chicagoan you are Irish, at least for the day.  I'm Irish on my Mom's side, so we did grow up with all the traditions of this festive day. 

I had some left over dough so I used it to make a Leprechaun, my first attempt at creating a 3D cookie.  Thanks Susan, GeminiRJ, for the cutters.

The 3D cookie didn't quite fit into the plastic boxes I received as a gift from  Donna, so I placed the cookie in a bag, cut the top off the box and put the cookie inside a gift bag with tissue and ribbon.

Cookie Classes

Diane R., Diane (Cookie Friend), Kathy, Joan)

Last week I had the opportunity to get together with some friends who wanted to learn how to decorate sugar cookies.  I baked some cookies, decorated a few as samples and prepared a few that they could use to practice piping.  All of these women cook and bake far more than I do, so it was a fun afternoon of sharing.  We all went home with new recipes and new ideas.  In addition, Joan borrowed my onesie cutter to make cookies for a baby shower.  I'm looking forward to seeing her creations.

We may be retired teachers, but we still have a passion for learning!

 

I used a few basic spring cutters in an effort to show them how you can change the look of a cookie by using different colors, techniques and sugar add-ons.   I had fun using LilaLoa's tutorial to make the rainbow shamrock.  Their favorites were the Fuzzy Bunny and the Gingham technique from Glorious Treats.

In addition to teaching my friends the basics of decorating sugar cookies, I also had the opportunity to take a class this week on making Springerle and Frankfurter Brenten cookies at House on the Hill.

The credit (blame?) for my new interest in cookies molds is the result of a photo posted on Flickr by Parr's Pantry.  I started reading about cookie molds on the Internet and heard as many negative comments as I did positive regarding the flavor.  When I discovered that House on the Hill was located just a few miles from my house, I decided to enroll in a class.

There is definitely a learning curve to mastering these cookies, but I'm going to keep working on it.  Connie, the owner of House on the Hill, has a "how to" video on her website, but I learned so much more through her class. The first cookies that I baked are far too puffy, so I will have to keep trying.  If I can't master the cookies, I can try making paper craft from the 2 molds that I purchased.

Megan is a State Champ

Congratulations to my great niece, Megan, who is now a state champion.  She is a member of her  high school Certamen team that recently won the state championship in a quiz-bowl style competition for Latin students.  Everything old is new again--when I was a Freshman in high school we were all excited that the Latin requirement had been dropped from the curriculum!

Whooooo Knew?

 Last September a friend asked me to make owls for a baby shower.  Who knew that the next time a friend wanted cookies for a baby shower that it would be a second request for owls AND trees!  I decided that I would change up the owl design and try to give their feathers a textured appearance.  Once again, I used a large tulip cutter and shortened the outer points of the flower for the owls ears.  

I made RI transfers for the eyes with off white edible pearls. For some reason the white pearls absorbed the brown icing and took on a marbled look, but I think they look just fine on the finished cookie. 

Laurie (Cookie Bliss) graciously gave me permission to use her designs as inspiration for my trees.  Since I did not have a tree cutter, I used a flower cutter for the tree top and a template to cut the trunk.

New Leadership

A good friend, former colleague and wonderful high school teacher, has accepted a new position as the Division Head for Social Science and World Language at his school.  I made  "Congratulation" and "Good Luck" cookies to take to a party in his honor. 

It's Leann's 5th Birthday

Big sister, Mary Grace, always plans elaborate in home parties for her birthday, but when Mom asked Leann what she wanted to do for her special day, she replied, "can't we go to Chuck E. Cheese's like everyone else?"  This was my first trip to the mad, Mouse House and it reminded me of a Las Vegas Casino for kids--loud, crowded and non-stop fun.

Leann loves puzzles and she asked me to make Snowman puzzle cookies for her party favors.  I modified a design I made last year that was based on instructions I found on The Decorated Cookie blogspot.  Thanks to my dear friend, Donna, http://carrollscookies.blogspot.com/, for help with creating the poem for the cookie tags:

                        
    

Although I do not usually bake many cakes or cupcakes, I agreed to make the cake for the party this year.  It was not difficult, but I will not be a convert to cake or cupcake baking, cookies are my passion.











The Snowman noses from The Partiologist were also a nice addition to the party treats.

Love and hugs to a very, special great niece.

Fun with friends and family!