Watercolor cookies are such a fun and easy way to decorate sugar cookies. This technique is new to me, and I was super excited to try it out. It is the end of January already, it is cold here in Wyoming, and I needed a little baking to perk up the long dark evenings. What a better way than heart shaped sugar cookies with red and purple watercolor decorations on top?
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Using my tried and true go-to sugar cookie recipe (below), and some white icing (recipe also below) that hardens as it dries, the perfect palate is created for using the watercolor cookie decorating technique.
Do you have the right tools to make these cookies? I am in love with this Cuisinart hand mixer. It makes easy work of anything, without pulling out my big Kitchen Aid stand mixer. And, my silicone rolling pin is the best rolling pin I have ever had! It is wonderful!
Worlds Best Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 Cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 egg
- 1.5 cups granulated sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 1.5 tsp vanilla
- 0.5 tsp almond extract
- 3 cups flour
Instructions
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Cream the butter and sugar together with a mixer, until light a fluffy. Add egg and mix well. Add extracts and salt and mix again. Add flour, one cup at a time, until will mixed.
Divide the dough into 2 balls. Roll out each ball to 1/4 inch thick and cut with cookie cutters.
Bake in a 400 degree oven for 6-8 minutes, or until just set. Let them cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes and remove to a cooling rack. Repeat with the remaining dough.
Decorate when cool.
Hardening Icing
Great icing for decorating sugar cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup powered sugar
- 1 TBS light corn syrup
- 1 TBS milk
Instructions
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Mix all ingredients. Place in a pastry bag, or ziplock bag (with a corner clipped) to apply to cookies. Add a bit more or less milk to get desired thickness. As icing dries, it will harden.
The supplies you need for watercolor cookies are icing colors, almond extract (or clear vanilla extract) and a mixing palate with clean paint brushes (craft type). That is all!
Take some icing color and put it on a plate (or mixing palate) and pour some extract on the icing. It will mix with the icing and create a thin watercolor paint (edible, of-course). Wet the clean paint brush with water, dip it in the extract/color mixture and paint away on your cookies. Make your creations any way you want. I tried different things – making stripes, outlining the cookie, splattering the ‘paint’, polka-dots, etc. Once you put your paintbrush to the icing, it doesn’t run very much, so you can make shapes too, like hearts.
Painting your cookies like watercolors is so much fun! I hope you try it soon!
