Decorating Cookies with your Preteen!
Source: Tween Parent Staff
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Whether you enjoy heading into the kitchen for an extended session of baking or you find yourself looking for corner-cutting tactics to save time, making and decorating cookies with your tween can be a lot of fun! We combed the archives and gathered a few fun cookie recipes and activities to enjoy together.
But first, it might be fun to play a little game with your tween! Perhaps you can ask if he/she knows when the cookie was first "invented"? Then, you can dazzle with your knowledge that prevailing lure suggests that the first cookies were created by accident - by early Dutch bakers who were testing oven temperatures before baking their final cake. The test cakes were "koekje," meaning "little cake" in Dutch.
Another morsel...in England and France, a cookie is called a biscuit; in Spain, a galleta; in Germany, a platzchen and in Italy, a biscotto.
On to cookie making...below is a recipe that's quite simple and tasty. In addition, we included a link to a video from Martha Stewart's Show featuring how to make the perfect sugar cookie and royal icing! If getting to the decorating is your priority, your might consider buying pre-made dough, such as Pillsbury Refrigerated Sugar Cookies. Once you have your cookie baking plan under control, there are several decorating options: before baking, you can sprinkle raw dough with colored sugars or edible candies (from a supermarket or baking supply store) or you can "paint" them (see instructions below); or, after your cookies are baked, you can frost them.
Make Your Cookies
Refrigerator Cookies
(adapted adapted from How to Cook Everything, by Mark Bittman)
2 sticks (1/2 lb) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
3 cups flour
pinch of salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Cream butter and sugar together until light; beat in egg. In separate bowl, combine flour, salt, and baking powder; then mix together with butter-sugar-egg mixture, adding a little milk at a time as necessary. Stir in vanilla. Shape dough into two disks for rolled cookies or a single log for sliced cookies. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Preheat oven to 400°F. For rolled cookies, lightly flour work surface and rolling pin, then roll out dough until about 1/8" thick, adding flour as necessary to prevent sticking. Cut with any cookie cutter or knife. For sliced cookies, simply cut 1/8" slices from log. You can now choose to "paint" your cookies or sugar the tops with color prior to cooking (see Decorate Your Cookies, below); or you can bake first and decorate later. If baking first, place cookies on lightly greased baking sheets, then bake for 6-10 minutes, until the edges are lightly brown and the center is "set." Remove from oven, let stand no more than 2 minutes, and remove cookies with spatula. Makes 3+ dozen cookies.
Decorate Your Cookies
Cookie "Painting" - prior to baking cookies, beat 2 eggs and ¼ teaspoon water together; for each color of "paint" desired, separate into small bowl (or coffee mug) and add food coloring to create color option. Using clean craft paint brushes or damp cotton swabs, dip into any color and make a design. Bake cookies.
Decorative Icing -- once your cookies are baked and cooled off, mix 1/2 cup of confectioner's sugar with 1/2 tablespoon of water; add more water, 1/2 tablespoon at a time until the icing has the consistency of glue. Spread a base coat of icing on top of your cookies, place in the refrigerator for an hour until the icing hardens. Mix another batch of icing (above), separate into small bowls (or coffee mugs) and add food coloring to create color options. Using clean craft paint brushes or damp cotton swabs, dip into any color and make a design on the already hardened icing base. Let dry.
Marbelized Icing -- follow directions for Decorative Icing above, including spreading a base coat of icing and letting it harden. Then, as above, mix another batch of icing, separate into small bowls (or coffee mugs) and add food coloring to create color options. With a spoon, drizzle colored icing(s) on top of base coat. Then, swirl colors with tip of toothpick. Don't overmix, or colors will turn muddy.
Sponge Painting -- follow directions for Decorative Icing above, but instead of using a paint brush, use sponge cut into 1-inch squares to apply decorative colors (and consider using 2-3 shades of the same color).
Connect with other parents and share your thoughts about baking fun with your tween:
Family Life section of TweenParent Community
Additional Creative Cookie Recipes and Tips:
Pillsbury Snowman Cookie Recipe
Holiday Cookies on a Stick Recipe
Nestle Crunch Snowball Cookie Recipe
Christmas Candy Cane Cookie Recipe
Peanut Butter and Jelly Mittens Recipe
