Two-Bite Sugar Cookies

I know that you won't read further than this sentence.

I know that you just came here to look at some pictures of tasty food and imagine possibly baking something like it someday. But chances are you won't. Chances are you will probably get hungry, go get a snack, a cookie or maybe a sandwich, and then browse the internet some more.

In fact, the only only person still reading right now is probably just my Mom. Hi Mom. Yes, I know that's not how English people spell mom but that's how I spell it so whatcha gonnna do? Report me to the spelling police? Eh? Didn't think so.  

So all of these ramblings are an attempt to distract you from the fact that these cookies did not turn out as fabulous as I would have liked. Don't get me wrong they still tasted yummy. Hence the name, two-bite cookies because they were gobbled up in two bites or less. This may be due to the small sized cookie cutter but I like to think it is because they are buttery and soft and delicious. In fact when I put them on the table at a friends house they all disappeared in about two minutes. It was very satisfying. 

I think the only reason that the cookies didn't look as great as they tasted was because I tried to make royal icing for the first time. MAJOR FAIL. But more about that later.

This recipe is from The Hummingbird Cookbook that my auntie gave me as a leaving present. Yes I am flying the coop, no tears now. (I will explain more next week.)   

200g Butter

280g Caster Sugar

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

1 egg

400g plain flour

1/2 tsp cream of tartar

salt

All the ingredients you need for these cookies

1. Remember in this post where I discovered how fun poking butter is?
Well I'm at it again. 
Your butter needs to be at room temperature, or of a poke-able nature. So chop it up and let it warm up or if you are impatient like me throw it in the microwave for a few seconds. 

Poke worthy butter

2. Cream the butter and the sugar until it is light and creamy.

Lemon yellow colour and gritty texture . Bad

Keep mixing......

Lemon yellow colour and creamy. Better

and mixing....

Cream colour and creamy texture. Good

4. When it has reached the right consistency add the egg and beat on high. 

5. Add the flour slowly or quickly. But if you add it quickly be prepared to be covered in flour. Unless you mix it in slowly. Morale of the story, mix slowly. 

6. Don't over beat the mixture. Scoop it all up in your hands play around with it a bit. When you and the dough have had your fun, ball it up into a big lump lyk dis:  And then put ball-y in da fridge for 30 mins.

7. When the dough is chilled roll it out. If your are wondering why there are chopsticks next to my dough its because I like to snack in the dough while I bake.
I'm joking. 
Or am I?
I use them to rest the rolling pin on while I roll to ensure that all the cookies are all the same thickness.

8.  Use any ol' cookie cutter and go crazy. I only had 3 clean ones; hearts, butterflies and teddy bears.

If you are using a cookie cutter with very narrow fiddly bits be careful when transferring them from your counter top to the baking tray.  

Poor little teddy didn't make it.

Then put them bad boys in the oven, leave a little space between the cookies to let them expand when they bake.

You shouldn't discriminate against deformed cookies,
 this little cookie still deserved some oven  lovin'. 

9. Bake for 10 minutes. They should be slightly puffed and golden at the edges.

Try not to eat them just yet

10. Put em on a cooling rack and let the cookies chill out while you mix up the icing sugar.

Cool em like a cucumber

11. I warned you about the fiddly cookies.....
Two little butterflies didn't make it onto the cooling rack. Don't worry though, they found a better place. 
My tummy.

Poor broken butterfly

At this point I had been out of my bed for far too long so I boxed up the cookies and took a little nap. 

Butterflies and hearts and stars, oh my

12. Now this is were it all went wrong. As I mentioned earlier I attempted Royal Icing for the first time. So there I was, just me and the egg white, whisking and whisking and whisking and whisking. And it just would not fluff up properly. 
So after half an hour of whisking I gave up. I just added icing sugar powder and called it a day.

Failed Royal Icing

13. I filled the piping bag with tip 1 to pipe the outline of the cookies. 

Outline them bad boys

BUT it turns out the icing was too still and thick and so I had to use a LOT of pressure on the piping bag which made the outline shaky and messy. BOO.

Do it neater than me

I made up some pink icing to flood it with using 2 table spoons of icing sugar and a teaspoon of water. Or maybe more water. I'm not sure. I made it up.

Flood 'em and let them dry

Then decorate them however you want. 

Teddy love

This batch made a lot of cookies.

Many 

Many

Many cookies.

Even my mom and sister pitched in.

Guess whose is whose?

Then I got funky. To tie-dye the cookies flood half and half with both colours and use a tooth pick to drag one colour into the other. Simples no?

Tie dye skillz

Many pwetty cookies

Now if any of you follow me on twitter, you will know that last week I went out and bought a new icing tip, which was VERY exciting. Not only did I leave my house for the first time in a long time, I went to visit the bakers section of the department store John Lewis. They had EVERYTHING even teenie tiny little cake pans which where smaller than my fist! 


So I finally got to try out my new icing tip. I didn't really know what I was doing so it was more messing around than anything else but some of them turned out OK.

Royal icing rose

This recipe does make a LOT of cookies but they get eaten up in about as long as it takes to make them.

Enjoy!