Rango Cookies {How-to}


Recently we took our kiddos to see the movie Rango.  First of all, let me say, although I LOVED it myself, it might have been a little too "adult" for my kids.  If they had watched it instead of spending most of their time fighting over the lone pickle, I might have had some explaing to do.

Aside from that, Rango was pretty darn hilarious.  So, I cookie-fied him! 

This is kind of a two or three day project, so start early.

The day before, you should bake your cookies.  To cut these, I used a metal dog bone cutter that I stretched out a little.
After the cookies were baked, I spent the rest of the morning making royal icing accents to use as Rango's eyes.  For more information on how to do this, read my post on what to do with leftover royal icing.


I didn't really make the disks an EXACT size, I just used my mangled cookie cutter to gauge how big to make them.

Once you make it here, you are at a standstill until they dry.  This is when I do laundry and other un-fun stuff like that.

The next day, I used Wilton Foodwriters to make the markings around Rango's eyes.
In this tutorial, I used the neon green color, but I'd recommend the dark blue or green below.  Those colors will show up a lot better on the finished product.


Using a Google Image as reference, I made the appropriate markings on the disks.


Now for the decorating

To make Rango cookies you will need:


Begin by attaching the eyes


Then, outline his face...


Then, fill.  When you fill, you are going to want to flood in sections.  Fill one area and let it dry a bit, THEN, move onto another.  This gives your cookie dimension and texture.


See?


 Now, let this part dry completely.  It may take a whole day. *Is anyone beginning to think I am insane yet*

Notice his icing is a little flawed in places.  This wasn't by mistake. The good thing about being a lizard is a bumpy face actually makes you look better, so instead of removing any air bubbles that came up, I left them. 

Too bad this doesn't apply to my complexion!


Pardon the photo gap...I accidentally erased a few important ones, so I had to improvise.  At this point, use a #13 tip to add the ridge above his brow and food color markers to add lip wrinkles...pardon the disgusting description...lip wrinkles was all I could come up with.


Here comes the cool part.  I needed a way to keep the bright yellow color around his eyes "safe" while I sprayed him.  So, I used a regular old hole punch, and applied these dots to the area I wanted to protect.

I made them stick by using the very tip of a toothpick to apply a tiny speck of corn syrup as an adhesive and then attached the dot.  I didn't worry about the corn syrup because ultimately, it ends up hidden.


This is where things get FUN!  Have you ever seen this stuff?!  I use it all the TIME!  It's how I get the airbrushed effect without actually owning an airbrush. {BTW, I plan on changing that REALLY soon}

 I've used it for on many projects like my fruit cookies and my sunset baby feet cookies  it to get a beautiful shaded effect.


SPRAYTIME!

First the blue, then the green.  Don't get carried away.  A little goes a long way.  And word to the wise, do this in a well ventilated area.  It smells pretty ROUGH!


Let them dry a bit, this goes pretty quickly, and then use tweezers or another toothpick to pop off the dots.  See?  I told you it was cool!


Then using your yellow and black flood icing, add little eyes.  Use the #1 tip, and first make a yellow dot, then quickly come back and add a black dot, wet on wet style.


Then use the yellow {still with a #1 tip} to add the last little details...I did nostrils and more lip wrinkles.


I mentioned referring to Google Images before...this is what I meant.  The WHOLE time I am working, this little guy is not far from my side.


Oh yes, and my hubby came up with this idea right after I finished these.  I thought it was cute, so I am throwing it out there.  I even baked a few with some leftover dough, with good intentions of decorating them.  BUT, I ran out of steam and they ended up in the freezer.  I'm sure they will end up making a cameo at some point...

And there you have it...

RANGO cookies

These could look so adorable with bandana print cookies, cactus, or any other Western themed cookies.


Have fun with these.

If you want to make matching cupcakes, my friend Kristan has the cutest Rango cupcakes on her blog.  You should definitely check them out!

· How-To, Rango cookies, Tutorial, Wilton

Angry Birds Cookies Part 1 {Pig}

Since Easter is about to come and go, if you haven't snagged these from Target, you better do it quick.  Besides being cute Easter cutters, I also used the bunny to make the first cookie in my Angry Birds collection.


If you don't already know what Angry Birds is, don't feel bad.  Neither did I until my seven year old son enlightened me.  Long story short, it's a cell phone game where killer birds are on a mission to destroy little green pigs hiding in random structures...

Okay, maybe that makes the game sound a little violent, but in reality, it's very cute and from what I hear, VERY addictive.

To make the Angry Bird Pig I used the bunny cutter from my Target Easter set, and trimmed him up a little.


After allowing my cookie to completely cool, I prepared my icing.  For this I needed:
  • black icing for piping outline
  • red, white, lime green, leaf green and black flood icing

To begin, outline the cookie as shown.  Then, using light green flood icing, add the snout and use black for the insides of the ears.


Let the first steps set for about five minutes, then using black flood icing, quickly add eyeballs, and nostrils.  If you are worried about bleeding, skip the black areas and add them LATER after the cookie is completely dry.

To finish up the flooding steps, fill in the remaining areas with leaf green flood icing, and add a small drop of red for a mouth.  Let dry overnight.


To finish up Mr. Pig, use food color markers to add the final details.
I outlined his eyes and mouth, and went around his snout with green, although it was okay without it {I tend to get a little hung up on details like that}

When you are finished, you will have this little guy...

who happens to be cookie #1 of this set.

For Part 2, Click {HERE}

Easter will be here tommorrow! I hope everyone is safe
 and spending time with the people they love the most!


· angry birds, button cookie tutorial, decorating, Easter Cutter, How-To, pig

Another Fun Tutorial!

Want to learn how to make beautiful snowflake cookies? Hop on over to University of Cookie for my latest tutorial! Believe me, a platter of these will steal the Christmas show! Happy Decorating!




· How-To, piping, Snowflake cookie, University of cookie

Nutcracker Ornaments

Want to learn how to make these adorable ornaments?  Check back tomorrow for {part 2} of my tutorial on making cookie ornaments.  The possibilities are endless and they make the best gifts.  I already have two pages of notes on these in my "Little Black Book" of cookie ideas.

Today I tried a variation of my gingerbread recipe that was SOOOOO good, I had to share...

SweetSugarBelle’s Orange Gingerbread

*START YOUR OVEN NOW!!! 375°*

  •  ½ c butter flavor Crisco
  • ½ c butter
  • ½ c granulated sugar
  • ½ c dark brown sugar
  • 1 ¼c unsulphured molasses (do like Giada says, and Pam it first.  It pours much easier)
  • 1 tsp orange extract
  • 1 tsp ornage zest (save the orange to flavor your RI)
  • 2 eggs
  • 5-5 ½c all-purpose flour (sometimes even six)
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp ground ginger
  • 3 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 ½ tsp ground cloves
  • 2 tsp ground nutmeg
  • ¼- ½ tsp ground white pepper (optional for some, a must for me)


Cream together shortening butter and granulated sugar. To that, add the molasses and eggs.

*remember to crack your eggs into a separate dish and beat them a little before adding them to the mix so you don't end up with egg shell or scrambled egg in your cookies*

Whip that until it’s light and fluffy…then sift all of your dry ingredients into a large bowl. When you get that all incorporated, use a measuring cup to add the dry ingredients about a cup at a time.
This dough NEEDS to be chilled for AT LEAST an hour. Its sticky and wet, so if it isn’t cold, rolling and cutting is misery. 

To cut out the cookies, use flour and parchment paper. Working with small pieces of dough, dust the paper with flour and roll out to somewhere between a quarter and half inch. You will have to dust the top of the dough with flour also. If you want to freeze them a little before baking, that's okay...Bake 375°for 9-11 minutes.

These smell and taste wonderful.  I have saved a fortune in candles since gingerbread season began =)





· Christmas, gift, gingerbread, gingerbread cookie, How-To, Ornament, recipe, Tutorial

It's Gingerbread Time!

The cool thing about blogging is that it’s my world, and I can make it what I want it to be! So today in SweetSugarBelle’s world, we are going to pretend like today was yesterday, and we are starting out the week with Gingerbread cookies, like I had planned. I am also going to announce the winner of my first give away, like I planned, but that will come a little later.

Gingerbread is my second favorite cookie, after those soft sugar cookies you get in the mall. Yes, I know…I’m not a very discerning cookie eater, but I sure do like those things.

I love it when Christmas time comes around and I can break open the old recipe binder and make batch after batch of gingerbread. I know my sugar cookie recipe so well, that I don’t need to read it, and I can make royal icing without measuring, but I use this recipe so infrequently, I forget what’s in my gingerbread from year to year.

I have been thinking about starting my holiday baking for a week, especially after my friend Glory made the prettiest gingerbread garland. However I didn’t really get the umph to do it until after the cookie decorating party I went to on Saturday. (More about that later) When I walked in the door, the air was heavy with the telltale scent of gingerbread. And to make matters BETTER, it tasted as good as it smelled! I had to ask Mrs. B, my friend J’s mom, and my third grade teacher =) where she got the recipe. I was thinking mom, grandma, something along those lines…I was pleasantly surprised to learn she got the recipe straight from Glorious Treats, my friend Glory’s blog.

I was so excited to have tasted her recipe, I called G on the way home and we spent some time talking about our recipes. They really are VERY different! One major difference between my recipe and hers is that she uses butter, and I use butter flavored shortening. Because it’s bad reputation for being unhealthy, Glory prefers not to eat shortening, which is perfectly understandable, so for the sake of experimentation, *and the experience that Glory is always right* I baked a batch when I got home, substituting half of the shortening with butter. My heart may hate me for this, but I have to say, I still like the shortening texture wise, but I think butter adds flavor that wasn’t there before, so, my original recipe changed a little =)

Just in case you are interested, all three variations work...shortening, half and half, or all butter. I just thought I would mention that substitution is fine, for anyone else who prefers not to bake with shortening.

I came up with this recipe in the early years of my cookie obsession. Since it was Christmas, and Christmas meant gingerbread, I decided I really needed to make some, even though almost no one in my family cared for it. *that has changed* As an inexperienced baker, I had no idea what recipe to use. So, basically, I printed out about four recipes, took the things I liked, made sure the ratios were okay, and tweaked it until I came up with something I liked.

The thing about gingerbread is that I like the dough, just about as much as I like the actual cookies. I like to tell myself it’s not that bad  for me since it tastes so earthy, but, my waistline says different. Regardless, the dough sure is pretty!



So here it is, my personal favorite gingerbread recipe. I feel like I should warn you, I like spicy gingerbread. Whatever quantity of spice you are used to seeing in a cookie, double it, that’s about where I like it.  So, if you aren’t one for spice, keep in mind you can definitely adjust it to your personal preference.



*do not, I repeat, DO NOT use those nasty ten year old spices in your cupboard! It makes a difference, and this is coming from the girl who likes mall cookies! Invest in fresh ones =)*


SweetSugarBelle’s Gingerbread
 (PS, this is written in the order I prefer to read recipes, just in case anyone was wondering)

*START YOUR OVEN NOW!!! 375°*

½ c butter flavor Crisco
½ c butter
1c granulated sugar
1 ¼c unsulphered molasses
2 eggs
5-5 ½c all-purpose flour (sometimes even six)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 tsp ground ginger
3 tsp ground cinnamon
1 ½ tsp ground cloves
 2 tsp ground nutmeg
¼- ½ tsp ground white pepper (optional for some, a must for me)


Cream together shortening butter and granulated sugar. To that, add the molasses and eggs. *crack those eggs into a separate dish and beat them a little before adding them to the mix. No one likes egg shell or scrambled egg in their cookies*Whip that until it’s light and fluffy…then sift all of your dry ingredients into a large bowl. Don’t even bother with those crazy hand sifter things unless you like having hand cramps. Those things are basically scrap metal! Run out to Wal-Mart and pick up one of those giant sieve/strainer things. You will thank me later! When you get that all incorporated, use a measuring cup to add the dry ingredients about a cup at a time. *Trust me on this one too*. My hubby does a lot of baking for me, and I sometimes get annoyed that even when I am in a hurry, he ALWAYS does this. It takes longer, but, that’s why he’s back on the couch watching football right after he mixes, and I am usually in the kitchen covered in flour and cleaning it off the floor.
I guess I should have mentioned to start early, because this dough NEEDS to be chilled. Its sticky and wet, so if it isn’t cold, rolling and cutting is misery. So, go watch a nice holiday movie (my personal favorite is National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation), and by the time it’s over, you will be ready to roll!
For this step use flour and parchment paper. Working with small pieces of gingerbread, dust the paper with flour and roll out to somewhere between a quarter and half inch. You will have to dust the top of the dough with flour also. Then use whatever cutters strike your fancy to cut out cookies until all the dough is gone. After that, pop the cut out cookies into the freezer for ten minutes or so before baking. *This is also a new step for me, but it was another Glory-ism, so I tried it and liked it.  You should too!*

*Did I mention this takes forever? Suddenly I remember why I only do this once a year!*

After that, bake at 375°. The times I have written in my book are: 6-10 minutes for small cookies, 10-15 for large. Whole lot of help that is, LOL! This is very broad because, honestly, I don’t really know. Ovens vary and gingerbread has to be watched. This year, my baby cookies took about 8 minutes and medium-ish ones ten. I really watch them. It’s kind of hard to tell when gingerbread is done because you cannot see browning. However, if you wait until you do, you have gone too far and will have hockey pucks rather than cookies. So, watch those baking times, stay near the oven until you figure out what it’s going to do.

After this is FINALLY done, let them cool completely. I like to let mine rest for a day, but if you still feel like decorating after all that work, it will be fine.


*Now you're ready to go!*



Cookies can be decorated with royal icing (I’ll post a recipe before the week is out) or glaze, which I will also talk about later this week. I have been decorating mine with orange icing all week. I guess that’s my kick this year. Here are some of the collections I have made to kick off the season...

A whimsical Santa set to put in my cookie jar =) *note, I prefer less icing on gingerbread, so I decorate them simply. I think too much icing takes away from the cookie in this case*




I made a bunch of itty-bitty pretty gingies to give as gifts to my cookie deserving friends...





And I made these to include in a care package headed to my cousin in Afghanistan. I have more for him coming later this week!



As for the book give away (yes, I made you read all of that to find this), the winner is IZZY!  I will be contacting you later today or tomorrow to get your information so you can have this book in your hands and get to making Christmas cookies AS SOON AS POSSIBLE!  You can also give us reviews.  For those of you who didn't win, I will post my favorite recipe from the book later this week, and I will also be announcing another giveaway  this week, don't you just love Christmas-time? 

If you start baking today, *or not*, you'll be ready for tomorrow's post about cookie decorating for non-bakers and busy moms. I'll be sure to post my recipe (I say mine loosely, it's really Wilton's with a kick) for royal icing.  Happy baking, friends!

· Christmas, gift, gingerbread cookie, gingerbread recipe, How-To

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