Cookie Decorating with Kiddo
These crayon cookies were my bake for the reddit 52 weeks of baking challenge (Week 38 Decoration Challenge: Royal Icing or Fancy Glaze). It was the first time we made royal icing for cooking decorating with kiddo.
I share, not because they are beautiful cookies, but because it was fun. Kiddo had a grand time baking and decorating. And somehow she discovered this comic overlay on my phone…
We both need more practice, but there were some initial lessons learned:
- Freezing the cut out cookies for a short time prior to baking helps prevent them from spreading and losing their shapes.
- My piping icing and especially my flood icing needed to be less thick to make it easier for kiddo to work with and to have a thinner layer of icing on the cookies. So. Much. Sugar.
- It would have helped us to start with even simpler decoration and fewer colors than these crayon cookies. I’m glad we didn’t make the five-color apples!
- And, most importantly, in the end it doesn’t matter what they look like. They were delicious, fun was had, and we both gained new skills. A yummy win for all.
The final product…
What’s next?
If you make cookies with your kiddos or have questions about cooking and baking with kids, please leave a comment here or share a pic with me on Instagram!
Check out some other recipes I’ve made with my kiddo like her fig bacon jam pasta, these strawberry heart pop tarts, or watch her braid my raisin challah.
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Previous challenges:
Week 1: New Year new recipe – blueberry galette
Week 2: seasonal – Smitten Kitchen’s grapefruit pound cake
Week 3: Great British Bake Off – Kate’s sticky toffee apple caramel cake
Week 4: Australia – sausage rolls
Week 5: bite sized – bite-sized cookies
Week 6: Chinese New Year – mushroom bao
Week 7: new tool – baguette baker
Week 8: chocolate – chocolate peanut butter bonbons
Week 9: timed bake – under 1 hour! chocolate chip scones
Week 10: allergy/diet restriction – macarons
Week 11: quick breads – kale bread
Week 12: signature bake – purple cow bread
Week 13: enriched breads (kale and cheese babka fail)
Week 14: childhood favorite –fudgy triple layer chocolate cake with chocolate ganache frosting
Week 15: decorating challenge – purple velvet cake
Week 16: crispy crunchy – bacon cheddar popcorn
Week 17: p52 of a favorite cookbook, or your favorite blog – chocolate peanut butter drip cake
Week 18: pâte à choux – bacon cheese puffs
Week 19: veggies turned sweet – red velvet beet waffles
Week 20: plating – mini chocolate chip cookies
Week 21: Birthday Party! – chocolate orange cake
Weed 22: Scandinavian – Swedish apple cake v sourdough apple cake
Week 23: Layers – Pecan apple oat bars (post is pending)
Week 24: Tarts – rainbow fruit tart
Week 25: Bagels and donuts – maple donut cake
Week 26: Surprise inside – surprise heart yeast bread (pending)
Week 27: Local favorite – Rainier cherry crisp
Week 28: Seasonal ingredients – blackberry lemon bread
Week 29: French dessert – peanut butter banana clafoutis (a classic with non-classic flavors!)
Week 30: Savory baking – Ooni pizza dough recipe
Week 31: Unusual ingredient – juniper lime drizzle cake
Week 32: Gelatin (homemade marshmallows) and 33: Picnic – peanut butter Rice Krispie treats
Week 34: Brunch – spinach and feta muffins
Week 35: Laminated dough – puff pastry cinnamon twists
Week 36: Friendship challenge – chocolate chip marshmallow cookie bars
Week 37: Sweet and salty – salted caramel chip chocolate cookies
Next week: Buns or biscuits
