Valentine Sugar Cookies

                                                        Royal Icing Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tsp vanilla extract
 2 TBSP light corn syrup – you can try increasing this by 1-2 TBSP if you desire more shine!
2 lbs powdered sugar
 60 grams meringue powder
• Warm Water—start w/ 1/2 cup, increase as needed per directions below – warm water helps the meringue powder incorporate faster and better
• Optional, but helpful: either 1⁄2 tsp cream of tartar OR 1 tsp white gel icing – this seems to help with color bleed, color retention
• Optional 10 grams vegetable glycerin may be added if you want your icing to dry with an EVEN softer bite, DO NOT go overboard on this as it’s possible to keep your icing so soft it will never dry.
Directions:
1. Combine water and meringue powder, beat with a mixer attachment at medium until frothy (30 seconds – 1 minute).
2. Add vanilla extract and mix for 5 seconds just to incorporate.
3. Add all the powdered sugar, corn syrup and vegetable glycerin, gel food coloring/cream of tartar (if using) at once, mix on low, the mixture will be VERY STIFF, and may not come together yet.
4. Add water, a tiny splash at a time, with mixer on low, until you get a THICK toothpaste consistency – still very stiff.
This is your base icing! IF you are going to create 3D elements such as flowers, I highly recommend beating this on high for a few extra minutes, until it becomes fluffy, almost resembling buttercream. This makes the icing WAY easier to pipe, but also results in a much airy, hole-y icing when dried. It will kind of crumble like a meringue cookie! Icing that has been over beaten like this, which is much easier for 3D elements, is NOT good for stacking.
5. When you are ready to use the icing, take out the amount needed, color with gel, and water it down a little bit at a time until you get the desired consistency. Use your judgement and common sense, if you added to much water, add a bit more powdered sugar.
6. Store in an airtight container, in the fridge for up to 2 weeks (though I haven’t tested beyond this .. should be fine), or freeze. Use only the amount needed for projects & put the rest away. Give the batch a big stir before using since it may have settled or separated a bit from being stagnant.

 

 

Fluffy Roll-Out Cookie Recipe – 

Vanilla Bean Base version (recipe yields approx. 2 doz 3-inch cookies rolled at slightly thicker than 1/4 inch)
Ingredients:
2 cups or 450 grams all-purpose flour
1.5 sticks (6 oz) salted butter, room temp
3/4c or  200 grams granulated sugar
3⁄4 tsp baking powder (approx.. 3 grams
 2 medium eggs, room temperature
 1 TBSP vanilla bean paste or approx. 15 grams – I love the Nielsen-Massey brand from my Amazon shop

Directions:
1. Sift dry ingredients together, set aside. Depending on your flour, you may be able to skip this step—use your judgement!
2. Using the paddle attachment, cream together: butter, sugar, vanilla, together on low at first, then medium. Beat until well incorporated, and you notice that the mixture is starting to fluff a little bit—you are essentially starting to incorporate air at this stage.
3. Add eggs to mixture, combine on low until a very viscous mixture is formed, about 30-45 seconds on low. Increase speed to medium and beat until this mixture becomes lighter and fluffier. It doesn’t need to be precise but we want to make sure everything is well combined and there is SOME air in the wet batter.
4. Add the dry ingredients all at once, mix on low until all ingredients are combined, and the dough comes away from the bowl naturally. You MAY need to scrape the bowl clean once.
5. Divide dough into 3 portions and roll each portion between two pieces of plastic wrap—roll out to about half an inch thick, stack and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before cutting—cold dough is easier to handle. Yes—if stored in the fridge, like any dough that contains butter, it will get hard. Take it out of the fridge for a few minutes and it’ll become easier to roll.
When ready to bake, roll out the dough to your final preferred thickness (for example 1⁄4 or 3/8 inch if you use rolling guides.. I use the a stainless steel rolling pin HERE and roll to 3/8”) cut out dough using cookie cutter and place on non-stick silicon mat. Bake while dough is still chilled. You can still roll dough in between the same sheets of plastic wrap you stored the dough in—you don’t want to use any more extra flour during this phase and this also helps reduce cleanup!
Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for approx. 10 minutes for mini cookies (approx. 2 inches), and 11-12 minutes for larger cookies (3-4 inch cookies). Depending on the cookie thickness, you will need to adjust your baking time. You may need to adjust the baking time as each oven is different