How-to Texas Cookies...part two

Alrighty, let's talk about the rest of those Texas Cookies.

(Remember the cookies?  And part one?  Ok...good.)

By far, I've gotten the most emails and comments and "how'd you do that" about the Texas map cookies.  The cookies that I took approximately zero pictures of while I was making them.  Don't worry, they're easy.

1. You'll need an icing printer, or access to one.  Many grocery stores and baking supply shops have them and will print images for you.  I bought a compatible printer recommended by Icing Images and their edible ink cartridges.  I also used Icing Images frosting sheets and I recommend them highly.
2. No matter if you print them yourself, or have the sheets printed, you'll need an image.  You can either find one online or scan an image.
3. Once you have a digital image, view it at 100% and hold your cookie cutter up to the screen.  I know it sounds silly.  Scale your image to be just a bit smaller than your cutter.  You'll see that the Texas cookie image doesn't line up exactly with my cookie cutter, but I was ok with that.
4. Print the image, or save to a flash drive and have printed.  Put as many images on one sheet as you can.
5. Cover the cookie with thinned royal icing and gently press the image onto the icing, making sure the edges are pressed down.  
6. Allow 24 hours to dry.  Add a border to finish the cookie.  Here, I outlined the image in black to coordinate with the rest of the set and added a star for Jim's hometown.
7. More tips for working with images printed on frosting sheets are here. (Note: this is an older post...the tips are the same, but I now have a different printer, inks and paper. See #1 above.)

The hats, boots and stars were just simple outline and fill cookies with a little details added at the end.
To make them, you'll need:

• sugar cookies in hat, boot and star shapes.
• royal icing, divided and tinted with AmeriColor Super Black, Chocolate Brown, Bright White, and Egg Yellow
• disposable icing bags
• coupler and tips: #2, #1
• squeeze bottles 
• toothpicks
• silver luster dust
• vodka
• small (clean) paintbrush
• small ramekin

Outline all of the shapes using a #2 tip in black icing.  Pipe a heel on the boot.  Because we're using black icing, let the cookies dry for 1 hour before filling.  Reserve some of the black and yellow icings before thinning for adding details later.

Thin the brown, yellow and black icings with water, a bit at a time, stirring with a silicone spatula, until it is the consistency of a thick syrup.  (Reserve some of the blue icing for piping details later.) You'll want to drop a "ribbon" of icing back into the bowl and have it disappear in a count of "one thousand one, one thousand two." Four is too thick, one is too thin.  Count of 2-3 is good.  Cover with a damp dishcloth and let sit for several minutes.

Stir gently with a silicone spatula to pop and large air bubbles that have formed.  Pour into squeeze bottles as needed.

Flood the cookies, filling in the outlines. Use toothpicks to spread the icing and pop any large air bubbles that have formed.  Let the cookies dry at least one hour.

Add details:

• Pipe a star on the cowboy hat in yellow with a #1 or #2 tip,
• use a #1 tip to add a star and spur on the boots in white,
• use a #2 tip to add black detailing to the boots,
• use a #1 tip to add lines to make a "Texas Star" on the yellow.

Let the cookies dry, uncovered, 6-8 hours or overnight.

The next day, mix a bit of luster dust with vodka.  Brush onto the star and spur on the boots.  The alcohol will evaporate, just leaving the silver...and it will dry very quickly.

The Texas flag cookies are a simple outline and fill as well using the same black food coloring, Super Red, Royal Blue and Bright White.

Sing it with me now...

"The stars and night are big and bright

deep in the heart of Texas!

The prairie sky is wide and high

deep in the heart of Texas!"
♥

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How-to Texas Cookies : part one

Here's one thing I learned about making Texas-themed cookies: people not from Texas don't necessarily know about bluebonnets.  They do, however, know about armadillos.

So, when Jim (don't you love how I throw that out there like it happens everyday?) wanted Texas cookies for his party, he kind of gave me carte blanche as far as the designs went.  My mind raced.  Even though there would be several different designs, I wanted them to coordinate somehow, so I went with a black outline.

I love a black outline for several reasons. 1.) It really makes colors POP.  2.) I think it brings out the whimsical and fun in cookies. 3.) It's an easy way to coordinate a set of cookies that don't have other colors in common.

Right away, I knew that I wanted to break out my armadillo cookie cutter (I mean, how often do you get an opportunity to make armadillos? Thank you, Terri!), AND I remembered some fabulous bluebonnet cookies made by Jennifer, an incredibly talented local cookie decorator.

{This little guy may be my favorite cookie EVER. I'm not sure what that says about me.}

To make armadillo and bluebonnet cookies, you'll need:

• sugar cookies cut with an armadillo cookie cutter and another cutter with a cone shape, I used the gnome cutter, but a Christmas tree also works
• royal icing, divided and tinted with AmeriColor Super Black, Bright White, Royal Blue & Leaf Green
• disposable icing bags
• coupler and tips: #2, #1
• squeeze bottles 
• toothpicks
• green food coloring pen

Outline the cookies in black using a #2 tip.  Because we're using black icing, let it dry for an hour before filling.

Make a two shades of grey icing using black food coloring. Thin the all of the icings, except black, with water, a bit at a time, stirring with a silicone spatula, until it is the consistency of a thick syrup.  (Reserve some of the blue icing for piping details later.) You'll want to drop a "ribbon" of icing back into the bowl and have it disappear in a count of "one thousand one, one thousand two." Four is too thick, one is too thin.  Count of 2-3 is good.  Cover with a damp dishcloth and let sit for several minutes.

Stir gently with a silicone spatula to pop and large air bubbles that have formed.  Pour into squeeze bottles as needed.

For the armadillos, flood the entire cookie with the darker shade of grey icing, working 6-8 cookies at a time.  Come back to the first cookie flooded and add lines and dots with the thinned lighter shade.  Let the cookies dry at least one hour, then add eyes and a mouth with black icing, using a #1 tip.

For the bluebonnets, working 6-8 cookies at a time, fill in the top petals with white and the rest with blue icing.  Starting with the first cookie filled, drop small dots of thinned white icing at the top of each petal.  Place a toothpick in the center of each white dot and pull down.  Do not wipe the toothpick off between pulls...you want a bit of blue icing on the toothpick.

Flood the leaves with green icing.

Let the cookies dry, uncovered, 6-8 hours or overnight.

The next day, use a green food coloring pen to add variegation to the leaves.

In the next post, the rest of the Texas cookies.  See y'all then!
{update: Here's part two.}

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The Stars at Night, are Big and Bright...

...{clap, clap, clap, clap} Deep in the Heart of Texas (and LA!)

Yes.  Please do a little *squeal* with me.  That IS Jim Parsons.  Eating a cookie.  Eating a cookie made in my little ol' kitchen.  Seriously.

Jim Parsons and I went to the same high school.  I believe he was a freshman when I was a senior, so with class sizes of 700+, we probably passed in the halls, but never met.  BUT, I *know* people who *know* him.

{It's kinda like that whole 6 degrees of Kevin Bacon thing, kinda.}

When someone from your hometown makes it big, you root for them.  When someone from your hometown makes it big...and is gracious, and kind, and funny, and down-to-earth, you root for them even more.

AnyWAY...I had the opportunity to make cookies for Jim's 40th birthday party.  (Yes, he's 40.  No, I don't know what kind of face cream he uses...it's working, whatever it is.)

Jim is a Texas boy, and like any good Texas boy, wanted Texas theme cookies.  So, that's what he got.

Texas cookies all around: Texas, Texas maps, Texas stars, Texas bluebonnets, armadillos, boots and hats.
{More details on the decorating later this week.}

People, put the Spring/Klein area of Texas on your radar.  We're home to Lyle Lovett; we're home to Shelly of Cookies and Cups; and yes, we're home to Jim Parsons.  And we couldn't be more proud!

{Happy Birthday, Jim!  Welcome to your 40's.  It's good here.}

PS...coveting that tablecloth. 

{PPS...thank you, Todd!!!} 

See the How-to Texas Cookies posts: part one & part two.