Coffee Break and a Giveaway!

 

 

 

After a very busy month, I figured I deserve a coffee break.  With donuts.  So, using my new Latte cutter from Plastics in Print (fondly known to the cookie world as "PIP") I thought I would cheat just a little & make coffee and donut cookies.  Pretty simple, except when you are doing a bajillion other things at the same time and decorate your one main cookie all wrong and have to scrape it off and decorate the back of the cookie... Nope, that didn't happen here... ok, so what if it did... (if I was smart I would have made an extra, but I really wasn't expecting to completely ruin it!)  Speaking of which, I used a Boo-Boo stick from Karen's Cookies to scrape the icing off - I love those sticks!  I really like how this set eventually turned out... and in a BRPBoxShop cookie box, too cute not to send to someone who needs a coffee break in life!  I guess I could have done the Starbuck's logo on there but after my icing mishap, I decided not to test my luck...  Here's a quick tutorial, IKEA style - pics only, minus the little guy...

 

 

 

 

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So, do you have someone in mind to send a Coffee Break box to?  I thought so... that's why I'm going to do a Coffee Break Giveaway!  Here's what you'll get to help you make this set, should you be the lucky winner:

• a PIP 3.5" Latte cutter, generously donated by Plastics in Print - thanks Patrick!
• 2 CK icing bottles with couplers and caps, and a pack of Boo-Boo sticks, generously donated by Karen's Cookies - thanks Mike & Karen!
• 6 (7X4.5X1") white window cookie boxes & lids, generously donated by BRPBoxShop - thanks Connie!

...AND some treats from yours truly...

• #1, #2, #3 and #4 Wilton tips to go on those icing bottles
• Tip Covers to, well, cover your tips
• a 3-pk of circle cutters to make the donuts
• 3 bottles of  AmeriColor Gel paste in Bright White, Chocolate Brown and Soft Pink to color your icing
• Cookie bling - Jimmies and Non-Pareils to top off your donuts
• a bottle of Wilton Glycerin, should you like to try making my Royal Glaze
• ...and last but not least, a $5 Dunkin' Donuts gift card, to give yourself a coffee break while your cookies are drying ; )

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4 Ways to Enter:

• Post a comment here on my blog - feel free to say something sweet about Karen's, BRP, PIP and/or yours truly;

• Post a comment on my Facebook wall - make sure to mention this giveaway;

• Follow my blog.  (If you follow by email, post it to tell me since I can't tell that you're following.  If you follow by Google, I can see that, and you get an automatic entry);

• Like my FB page, and post on my wall that you're a new fan from my blog.

 

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Enter thru Wednesday 10/3, winner will be posted by 10/5  - good luck!

 

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And be sure to visit Karen's Cookies, BRPBoxShop and Plastics in Print for your cookie needs!

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Ok, I'm finally off to my coffee break!

Pressed (for time) Flowers

 

One of the reasons this mini flower is among my favorite go-to cutters is that I can make some pretty flowers, pretty quickly.  If I have a lot of cookies to do things on my plate and need something sweet and quick, these flowers are it.  And it's not like they are something I just "threw" together - remember, there's still the making of the dough, the icing, the cutting, baking, etc. that goes in to the whole process.  So, if you are the recipient of these flowers, although my schedule may have been crazy, and I was pressed for time, know that lots of love went into them,  and I wanted you to have something pretty from me : )

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So, you've made the dough and icing, & cut and baked your cookies.  You will need 2 colors in Royal Glaze consistency (somewhere between flood and piping, where it will settle on its own, without any help) - I really like white and yellow for these.  This flower cutter has 6 petals on it which makes things easy.  You are going to flood every other petal, and let those set for 5-10 minutes, more for glazers. (I know, at this point they look really weird, but not for long...)  I did a few dozen here, so by the time I was done with the last, the first was set enough for the next step.  Now, flood the last 3 petals on each cookie.  Since the first petals aren't really dry yet, make sure you don't dig the tip into them when moving your icing around.  (yes, I know they still look weird...stay with me...)  Let them set for 5-10 again, or if you did a lot, the first one should be ready.  Take your second color and holding the tip straight over the center about 1/8" above the cookie, squeeze straight down until the center is big enough to "separate" the petals.  The tip will eventually be "in" the icing as you are squeezing - that's fine, don't move the tip and it will build a nice big puffy circle.  That's it - you're done!  Let 'em dry, then pack 'em up for someone special! 

 

 

 



 *You may notice on the dried cookies that the centers of the petals are slightly recessed - I actually do that on purpose because real petals are actually like that. The way I flood to get this is to outline the petals with a little more pressure than I flood the centers - if I leave the icing to settle on its own, they just dry that way.*

 

 

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Some of these are going to a a very special friend of mine who recently lost Cupid, her best buddy in the whole wide world of almost 15 years, and I wanted to cheer her up.  And because she made me the sweet platter I have the cookies on at the beginning of the post...

 

I hope she doesn't see this post before she gets the cookies, but if she does... Hey, Jodi - watch for these, they should be there by Monday.  And don't worry, you don't have to eat Cupid - I won't mind : )  Love you girl!

 

RIP Cupid.