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Cookies

Snowflake Iced Sugar Cookies


Go challenge yourself; do something unexpected; something that you’ve always wanted to do, but you’ve always thought you couldn’t.  Oh, by the way, it better be something really awesome.

Like sugar cookies.

They might not be perfect the first time, or the second, or the third.  But, I promise, that by the fourth time you will be marvelous at sugar cookie making.  You’ll be making pretty snowflakes, and giving them to all of those special people in your life for the holidays, who will look at them and say “How do you get your piping so straight?” and you will smile to yourself and feel like a goddess.  Ok, not so much, a goddess per say, but something of the sort.  Others may ask “Where do you learn to do these things?” or “Did you work in a bakery?” And then your little secret might come out: you are a food blog addict.  You have spent an innumerable amount of hours just reading and watching videos on how to perfect your sugar cookies.  Hours that should have been spent cleaning the apartment or making that wedding album that you still haven’t gotten around to doing (and, yes, it has been a year and a half since we got married) or ordering those nail polishes for your aunt that you promised her three months ago.


But, in your defense, it has all amounted in being able to create the perfect sugar cookie.  All of this is hypothetical, of course.

Let’s get serious here, and empower you with all of the tools needed for a sugar cookie revolution.

The absolutely number one and bestest sugar cookie blog is SweetSugarBelle.  She is amazing, and makes it all look so easy. I use both her sugar cookie recipe and royal icing recipe.  Follow her instructions to the T.  To find merengue powder for the royal icing you can visit your local bakery/cake store or go to Williams and Sonoma or online.


Aside from the ingredients these are the other the basic things you need:

–          Pastry bags
–          Piping tips #1 and/or #2 (bakery/cake store)
–          Rolling pin
–          Parchment paper
–          Cookie cutters
–          Squeeze bottles (optional for flooding or can use piping bag with a tip #5)
–          AmeriColor food coloring (bakery/cake store or via the internets)


Now, on to the cookie talk.  The royal icing recipe that I’ve linked to is the base for getting to the right consistency for piping and flooding.

Shoot, I already have you confused.

Let me explain piping and flooding.  Piping is when you outline a shape, the thin lines. For example, in the snowflakes I first piped the outline of the snowflake.  And I also piped the snowflake design on top. Then there is flooding. Flooding is when you fill in what you piped.  So, the consistency needed for piping is much thicker than the one for flooding.  Think chocolate pudding for the consistency needed for piping.  To get there you add a couple of drops of water at a time to your royal icing and stir until you get to pudding.  For flooding you want it more shampoo consistency, a.k.a. more water than the piping consistency.


Trust me; it isn’t easy to get the perfect consistency, but trial and error will get you there. Also, if you add too much water and the piping is looking droopy or the flooding is looking too flat just throw in more royal icing and stir.  Mix in a couple of drops of food coloring and get your icing into that piping bag with a tip or squeeze bottle if you are using one for flooding.

When you are piping your tip might get clogged here and there, sometimes you just need to wipe the tip and problem solved, other times you might need to remove the tip and clean it out. Also, when you are flooding there will be some bubbles that rise up to the surface. Get a toothpick out and pop them with a vengeance.  Because no one will want to eat a cookie with bubbles on its surface. No one.

Now you’re ready to start practicing.  Go do it and make me proud.

Oh, wait, there is a video I want to share that will make it all so much easier: go here.

Wishing you a wonderful and very happy Christmas!


11 replies on “Snowflake Iced Sugar Cookies”

Is there room in your suitcases to bring what is required to Iowa? I don’t think we have all that you describe–and, to be honest, while the cookies look awesome, I’d be most interested in testing their frosting carrying capacity ….

Yeah, I will bring all of the goods to Iowa! Lisa and I are also planning on doing a cookie party so there will be plenty of taste testing that will be done. 🙂

Beautiful cookies! I was inspired by your blog post to bake & decorate some snowflake cookies, and I must say that mine look decidedly homemade compared to yours. Do you find yourself having to convince people that you actually made them yourself???

Nicole, I am sure your cookies were gorgeous and tasty. People do wonder about my cookie abilities, I have been honing them for some time now. 🙂

Jennifer! You found the blog all on your own. 🙂 I am glad you enjoyed them. It has been a true pleasure getting to know your lovely family. 🙂

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