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Thursday, June 28, 2012
Photo Cookies 101
Photo Cookies 101
I spent a lot of time trying to figure out photo cookies and a lot of time being totally frustrated! I am here to help you avoid the frustration and get straight to fabulous photo cookies!
Some of the problems I encountered in my learning process were
- If the edible paper (EP) got too wet it would rip or the edible image (EI) would smear.
- If I didn't wait long enough for the EI to dry they would stick to the cello bag when packaged and rip off the cookie, very frustrating!
- Or the opposite, not sticking to the cookie once it was dried.
Step 1
There are a lot of suppliers out there. I buy my supplies from Kopy Kake. They are always so helpful when I have questions about the product or settings for my printer. I use the 8" x 10.5" frosting sheets and MSWord. I also occasionally use Kopy Kake's Decorator program, but I prefer Word, which gives me more creative freedom.
Step 2
I cut my Edible Images (EIs) by hand. I use to use a Cricut Trimmer, but the blades dulled quickly and replacement blades always seemed to be out of stock at Michael's.
Sometimes I didn't line up my images exactly right in Word and when using the trimmer I would accidentally slice off a needed edge of my image....DOH!
Hand cutting works much better. After cutting them I put them in a sandwich bag to keep them from drying out.
Step 3
After I have cut out all my EIs, by the way, I leave the backing sheets on them if possible when I have cut them out, keeps them from sticking to each other in the sandwich bag, I take my corner rounder that I bought with my 40% coupon at Micheal's (NEVER shop without it!).
I round all the corners on my EI. This helps keep the edges down on the cookie and gives it a clean, professional look when finished.
Step 4
(Personal Note: In the next pictures you will notice my hands, I have vitiligo. Harmless, noncontagious autoimmune disease, but I HATE IT!)
Step 5
I place the EI on the cookie and run my finger across the top and around the edges to make sure it is securely on the cookie.
Ta Da!
The finished product! I let the cookies dry overnight at the very least, but preferably 24 hours.
Feedback
I would love to hear from others how they put their images on cookies. I know there are many different ways. I hope you learned something you didn't already know!
Tracy - The Queen Bee @
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Photo Cookies
I get requests all the time for photo cookies. They are a great way to make a very big impact on the recipient. I struggled for a long time trying to find the right way to put the paper on the cookie without ruining it. Finally, after about 3 years, I got it right (yep, I can be a slow learner sometimes! LOL).
I want to share with you what I have learned to help you cut down your learning curve! So today I will be making some photo cookies and photo documenting the process so that I can post it here tomorrow. Watch for it!
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Memorial Day 2012
I wanted to do cookies as a way to say Thank You to those who have served our Country in the Armed Forces. I found an Armed Forces Service Medal and used that as the inspiration for this set.
I really had fun making these!
Friday, May 18, 2012
What do you see?
These cookies were being decorated as logos for a car dealership, but the order was cancelled. There are 24 mini white ovals.
2012-05-18_10-51-32_979, a photo by Sugar Beez on Flickr.
Here is your opportunity to get creative! Post your comment with a suggestion for these cookies. The best idea picked by Sugar Beez's staff will win the cookies!2012-05-18_10-51-32_979, a photo by Sugar Beez on Flickr.
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Why is cookie dough like a man?
Why is cookie dough like a man? It's gonna make a mess you're gonna have to clean up...because it certainly isn't going to clean up after itself! Baaahhhhaaaa! Oh so true..
It took me a lot of trial and error (and really bad cookies) before I learned how to make cookie dough well. I think this process is worth sharing. Now I'm not saying I'm any kind of expert, there are probably as many ways to make roll out cookie dough as there are recipes on the web. This is just the way I do, but I would love to see/hear from others on how they do theirs. I will post my recipe down at the bottom.
If I forget to take it out of the fridge and I don't have time to wait for it to come to room temperature I soften it in the microwave. Remove it from its wrapper, place it on a microwave safe dish, and heat it for 10 seconds. Then turn it on it's side, (I always rotate it in towards the center of the microwave so I don't keep microwaving the same sides over and over.) and microwave it again for 10 seconds, rotating each time. I usually use 1-pound blocks of butter so if you are using a quarter stick microwave for 5 seconds instead of 10.
I usually beat it a little so that it is ready for the sugar.
Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Here is a trick I learned years ago, and I wish I could remember who to give the credit to, but alas my memory has failed me...sigh. I take a kitchen towel and wrap it over the mixer and bowl like so....
This will keep the sugar (or flour) from "poofing" all over the counter, the coffee maker, the mixer, the baker...
Add the flavor and eggs. And if you forgot to take the eggs out of the fridge too, no worries I have a link below with great instructions on how to bring them to room temperature quickly. These are the remainder of the "wet" ingredients...mix them until they are totally incorporated.
Not like this
But like this
Make sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl before adding the dry ingredients so that you don't end up with butter at the bottom of the bowl that didn't get integrated into the dough.
Then scrape the dough into a bowl, or some folks flatten it into disks, do what ever works for you, and let it rest for at least 30 minutes. If I'm going to roll dough right away I let it rest on the counter covered. If I'm not going to roll cookies until the next day I let it rest in the fridge.
I hope you found this post helpful, I sure wish someone would have done something like this when I was first starting out.
It took me a lot of trial and error (and really bad cookies) before I learned how to make cookie dough well. I think this process is worth sharing. Now I'm not saying I'm any kind of expert, there are probably as many ways to make roll out cookie dough as there are recipes on the web. This is just the way I do, but I would love to see/hear from others on how they do theirs. I will post my recipe down at the bottom.
Step 1 - Butter
- 1 pound at room temperature
If I forget to take it out of the fridge and I don't have time to wait for it to come to room temperature I soften it in the microwave. Remove it from its wrapper, place it on a microwave safe dish, and heat it for 10 seconds. Then turn it on it's side, (I always rotate it in towards the center of the microwave so I don't keep microwaving the same sides over and over.) and microwave it again for 10 seconds, rotating each time. I usually use 1-pound blocks of butter so if you are using a quarter stick microwave for 5 seconds instead of 10.
Once the butter is nice and soft, dump it into the mixer bowl.
I usually beat it a little so that it is ready for the sugar.
 |
| This is what light and fluffy should look like. |
Step 2 - Sugar
- 2 cups powdered sugar
Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Here is a trick I learned years ago, and I wish I could remember who to give the credit to, but alas my memory has failed me...sigh. I take a kitchen towel and wrap it over the mixer and bowl like so....
This will keep the sugar (or flour) from "poofing" all over the counter, the coffee maker, the mixer, the baker...
Step 3 - Flavor / Eggs
- 4 tsp any flavor
- 2 eggs at room temperature.
Add the flavor and eggs. And if you forgot to take the eggs out of the fridge too, no worries I have a link below with great instructions on how to bring them to room temperature quickly. These are the remainder of the "wet" ingredients...mix them until they are totally incorporated.
Not like this
 |
| The mixture should not look like scrambled eggs. |
But like this
Make sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl before adding the dry ingredients so that you don't end up with butter at the bottom of the bowl that didn't get integrated into the dough.
Step 4 - Dry Ingredients
- 5-1/2 cups flour.
- 2 tsp baking soda.
- 1/2 tsp salt.
Add all the dry ingredients at one time. Don't forget to use your kitchen towel to cover the mixer and bowl so you won't have flour everywhere! Take a peek under the towel to see when it is safe to remove it and check the dough. The finished dough should look like this.
Then scrape the dough into a bowl, or some folks flatten it into disks, do what ever works for you, and let it rest for at least 30 minutes. If I'm going to roll dough right away I let it rest on the counter covered. If I'm not going to roll cookies until the next day I let it rest in the fridge.
Step 5 - Baking Instructions
First off, I highly recommend an oven thermometer, because let me tell you from experience, that oven dial LIES! It says it's at 350, but it never really is, sometimes it's closer to 375...so invest in one of the inexpensive oven thermometers that hangs off the rack...one of the best baking investments I have bought!
I bake my cookies at 350 for 12-15 minutes. Meaning I set the timer for 12 minutes and check on them every minute after that point until they are lightly golden.
I hope you found this post helpful, I sure wish someone would have done something like this when I was first starting out.
Recipe
1 pound butter
2 cups powdered sugar
2 eggs
4 tsp flavor
5-1/2 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
Helpful Links
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Baby Buggy Cookie
I had a request for baby carriage cookies. I have done some in the past, you can see them on my website. I wanted to do something different and I came across a baby carriage on a site and I used it as my inspiration for this cookie.
I added the ruffles with a 101 tip (boy, my hand hurts from squeezing that extra stiff icing). I learned to put less in the piping bag so I didn't have to squeeze so hard.
Also, a trick I used starting with these cookies that I learned from Lisa The Bearfoot Baker is o use a fondant smoother (click here) to smooth the cookies flat when they came out of the oven. This gave them a very flat surface to lay my base icing down and really helped to add a professional look to the finished cookie.
Thanks for letting me share!
Monday, March 26, 2012
Spring Bouquet
I have set some goals for the business...1. I will make $1000 in sale in April, then today I got an order for $770...wow...big jump on the $1000 goal!
2. I will post photos at least 3 times a week of cookies. So, here is the one I did today.
Spring flowers are popping up in my yard...love the burst of color and the wonderful scent of flowers in the air.
I used a seashell cookie cutter as the base for this cookie. My goal also is to grow my creative side by trying to see multiple uses for each cookie cutter. I like the way Alton Brown thinks about kitchen tools/gadgets, they should all be multi-taskers...well my cookie cutters should be too, right?
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