COOKIES, COOKIES, COOKIES, AT SARAH’S

          Even the Cookie Monster would be amazed at the 24 foot wall of cookie cutters at Sarah’s.  No other cake decorating store in Michigan provides such an extensive display of cookie cutters.  Customers browse the cookie cutter wall in amazement.  They constantly comment that they’ve never seen such an exciting display.  This enormous selection doesn’t even include our extensive display of seasonal cookie cutters.

          At Sarah’s you will find well constructed cutters ranging from bite-size to gigantic.  You can find the Wilton Cookie Presses at Sarah’s.  We have copper collectables as well as decorator cookie tiles for shortbread.  Sarah’s even carries Rosette Wands, Lintzer Cutters and the complete line of Wilton Comfort Grip Cutters.  There are many related shaped specialty sets as well as number and alphabet sets.  We also stock the Wilton 101 Piece Plastic Cutter set.

          Cookie cutters are far too versatile to use for only shaping cookies (see 50 Ways to Use Cookie Cutters).  Our professional quality cutters are sturdy enough to be bent into customized shapes.  If you can’t find exactly what you need just find a similar shape and bend it to your special needs.  On Sarah’s Quick and Easy Sweets we demonstrated bending an egg shaped cutter so that we could cut a chocolate plaque to put a cake.  On Sarah’s Quick and Easy Sweets we also showed that cookie cutters can be used to cut shapes from Rolled Fondant to simplify cake decorating.

          Cookie Bouquets make thoughtful gifts and very creative centerpieces.  Sarah’s offers classes in seasonal cookie bouquet decorating and design (see Class Schedule).  We provide cookies baked on professional rosewood sticks and all of the decorating supplies.  You take home the beautiful bouquet that you learned to make in class. 

          Cookies baked on sticks must be firm enough to keep their shape and cling to the stick.  The Designer Sugar Cookie Recipe that we use for our classes is as follows:

DESIGNER SUGAR COOKIES

Cream together the following ingredients at medium speed:

              1 Cup Margarine

              1 Cup Sweetex or Crisco

(Sweetex is a high density shortening that makes cookies crispier and helps them cookies hold their shape).

              3 Cups granulated sugar

              4 large eggs

              1 tablespoon vanilla flavor

              1 tablespoon butter flavor

Mix the following dry ingredients and add gradually to the above mixture.  Mix until blended

              7 cups all-purpose flour

              2 teaspoons baking powder

              1 teaspoon salt

Note:     You can add Baker’s Compliment, Almond or Lemon Extract and/or other flavors for variety.  Nuts, Raisins or chips will interfere with the stick.

Chill 6 hours or overnight.  The dough will be crumbly.   Let it stand for 15 to 20 minutes to make it easier to roll.

This dough keeps for 2 weeks if wrapped well and refrigerated

Bake cookies at 325 to 350 degrees for 8 to 12 minutes or until cookies look slightly brown at the edges.

Yield:  40 medium (3 inch) cookies

DIRECTIONS FOR QUICK AND EASY COOKIE CUTTING

1.  Roll out the cookies between two sheets of parchment paper.  They should be about ¼ inch thick to accommodate the stick.  2.  Remove the top sheet and cut out the cookies right on the bottom sheet.

3.  Gently twist the stick to the center of the cookie allowing equal amounts of dough over and under the stick.

4.  Place that sheet of parchment paper on cookie pan and bake.

5.  While that set is baking, prepare the next set on parchment.

6.  When the first set has baked lift that sheet off and place the next sheet onto the cookie pan.

You will save time and minimize cookie breakage.

     The dough for cookies on sticks must be very firm to cling to the stick and must not spread out of shape.  Basic Shortbread meets those requirements.  Compared to our Designer Sugar Cookie Recipe, Shortbread has fewer ingredients and it doesn’t take as long to chill.  Shortbread is, however, more fragile than Designer Sugar Cookies.  They should be handled more gently.  Shortbread can be colored before chilling.

BASIC SCOTCH SHORTBREAD

1.  Mix together thoroughly ¾ cup softened butter (1½ stick) and 1/4 cup sugar

2.  Add color if desired.

3.  Measure 2 Cups all purpose flour by dip level method or by sifting.

4.  Work the flour into the mixture by hand.  Dough will be crumbly.

5.  Form a ball and chill 1 to 2 hours.

6.  Let dough stand for 15 to 20 minutes before rolling.

7.  Follow Quick and Easy Cookie Cutting Directions.

8.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes.  The edges should not brown.

Yield:  1 dozen 2 inch cookies

Variation:

MOLDED 3-D SHORTBREAD COOKIES

Shortbread shapes can be formed in chocolate candy molds.

1.    Pinch off some shortbread dough

2.    Dip it into Superfine Sugar to serve as a lubricant.  Superfine sugar is granulated into very fine pieces.  It is not a powdered sugar.

3.    Cut off the excess dough with a small bent angle spatula.

4.    Tap the back of the chocolate mold until the dough releases onto awaiting parchment paper.

5.    Bake at 350 degrees.  Times will vary with the size of the cookie.

The cookie will retain all of the nuances of the mold.  They will be 3 dimensional and when decorated, they will be spectacular.

SARAH'S CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER BARK

1. Melt together one pound dark and one pound milk flavored chocolate.

2. Melt one pound Merckens Peanut Butter Flavored chocolate

3. Stir one 4 oz. bag mini Crispy Rice into the chocolate mixture ( use less for less crispness)

4. Spread chocolate and crispy mixture onto two parchment covered cookie sheets.

5.Pour the peanut butter chocolate over the chocolate & crispy mixture

6 With a knife, swirl the peanut butter through the chocolate and let it dry.

7. Breakup into pieces.

NO BAKE THIN MINT COOKIES

1.Melt one pound semi-sweet (dark) mint flavored chocolate

2.Dip Ritz Crackers into the melted chocolate.

3. top with a sugar royal icing decoration and let chocolate dry before serving.

GRASSHOPPER BARK

1. Melt one pound semi-sweet (dark) mint flavored chocolate.

2. Add 1/2 bag (4 oz.) Mini Crispy rice.

3. Spread chocolate and crispy mixture onto a parchment covered cookie sheet.

4. Melt one pound reen mint chocolate.

5. While the dark mint mixture is soft but not runny, geently spread the green mint on top.

6. Let the layers dry together and break into pieces to serve.

50 GREAT WAYS TO USE COOKIE CUTTERS