Snowball Cookies!

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Here are some fun winter cookies I think you will like! I call them snowball cookies because they are dipped in white chocolate, and then dipped in edible crystal flakes that look like glistening snow. They also have a surprise ingredient in the center~a chocolate kiss! So you can throw them at someone you love!

SNOW BALL COOKIES

1 cup Butter

1 cup Confectioners Sugar

1 cup Granulated Sugar

2 large Eggs

1 teaspoon Vegetable Oil

2 teaspoons Vanilla

1 tablespoon Lemon Juice

5 1/4 cup Flour

1 teaspoon Cream of Tartar 

1 teaspoon Baking Soda

1/4 teaspoon Salt
White Chocolate or White Candy Melts
or White Chocolate Chips
Sparkly Clear Sprinkles


Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Beat your butter on medium until it is fluffy.

Add both sugars, and mix well.

Add your eggs, oil, vanilla and lemon juice.

Beat until blended.

In a separate bowl, mix together your flour, cream of tartar,

baking soda and salt.

Add the flour mix to your egg mix and beat until blended.

Using a small scoop, Scoop out the cookie mix.

Place it on your parchment paper.

Unwrap your chocolate kisses and......

place the chocolate kiss upside down into your dough.

Mold the dough around your chocolate 
and form into a ball.
Place on baking sheet and bake for 9-11 minutes.
Don't worry about browning the cookies.
They will get a little brown on the bottom only.

Let your cookies cool completely.
(They taste really good right now with the melty kiss inside!)

While your cookies are cooling, chop your white chocolate,
and melt it in a double boiler or microwave if you prefer.

Once the chocolate is melted, place the top of 
the cookie in the chocolate to coat the top.

Then dip the top of the chocolate covered cookie 
into the sparkly sprinkles.
Set them back on your cooling rack to dry. 

They look so pretty, .....

and here is your surprise inside!

I hope you enjoy these snowball cookies. This recipe is originally from
an adaption of the thumbprint cookies that I love to make from
a Southern Living recipe. I love when recipes are so good they
can be used as several different items, don't you?!

Thanks for stopping by!


 

Cookie Journey ~ Day 4

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Today is the last day of our mini cookie journey. Today I decorated cookies while they were still wet. I have done this in the past, but I used a little different technique in the past.

This is really simple to do. The hardest thing to do is to get the 

dots all the same size. In the past when I made these, I used 

a stylus to make the dots. This time I put the icing in 

decorating bags. I think the stylus lets you have much more control,

and I plan to go back to doing it that way.

Here is how I did this.

I outlined and filled in the cookie, just like we did 

in the last couple posts.

I had my bag of yellow icing ready to go. The icing will

dry quickly, so all your colors must be prepared before 

you start. Then, I dropped dots of yellow onto the 

cookie in random spots. The problem is that the 

yellow came out fast. When I used the stylus, I could 

go a little slower. Let them dry overnight.

These would be pretty for spring, or for cookies where you need 

a pop of color to match decor.

Thanks for joining me today.

The Random Acts of Kindness Giveaway Blog Hop
is ending shortly. I will let you know the winner within
24 hours!!
Good Luck, and Thank You so much to everyone that entered!!

My Cookie Journey! and A Giveaway!!

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Today I am starting on my journey to be a better cookie baker and decorator. I originally said that I would be posting about my attempt to improve my lack of cookie decorating skills throughout the 5 days of participating in the Random Acts of Kindness Blog Hop. I will do that, but I am also going to continue to work on  improving my limited skills by practicing whenever possible and posting my accomplishments and failures on my blog every Thursday. This ensures that I will make a step toward fulfilling my goal of becoming a cookie decorator, because I will at least be practicing once a week! That day will forever be known as Cookie Journey Thursday!
So, let's get started. Today I am posting the cookie recipe and the icing recipe I usually use. It is very possible that both the cookie recipe and the icing recipe are ones you use. They are all over the internet, and I have read many blogs where cookie decorators use these recipes. The cookie recipe is called "No Fail Sugar Cookies". I found the recipe on the Kitchen Gifts blog. I love the recipe, and I have used it for years, but I made one change that has made it a great recipe for me. The original recipe calls for 6 cups flour. I use only 5. For some reason it just makes a better cookie for me.

NO FAIL SUGAR COOKIES

5 cups Flour

3 teaspoon Baking Powder

2 cups Butter

2 cups Sugar

2 Eggs

2 teaspoon Vanilla or Almond Extract

1 teaspoon Salt

Cream butter and sugar.....

until light and fluffy.

Add eggs and almond extract, and mix well.

Mix dry ingredients a little at a time to butter mixture.

Mix until flour is incorporated and the dough comes together.

The dough needs to be chilled. On the Kitchen Gifts web site

they recommend this great idea so you can start cutting out

your cookies sooner than later. Take a spatula full 

of dough, and put it in the middle of  a piece of

 parchment paper. Cover the dough with the same size

parchment paper. Roll out the dough to 1/4" thickness.

Place the dough on a baking sheet, cover with plastic, 

and let it chill in the refrigerator. Repeat the process

 until all the dough is used, and all the sheets of 

parchment are in the fridge. By the time you are done,

the first sheet you put in should be done. If not, wait about

1/2 hour. They should be done by then. 

Take out the first batch, cut out, and start baking at

350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

The best thing is that you are not adding any additional 

 flour to your cookies.

If covered properly with the plastic, these can stay in

the fridge overnight. Many times I have made the recipe

before I go to bed, and then I cut them out and 

bake them in the morning.

ANTONIA74 ROYAL ICING

6 ounces warm Water

5 tablepoons Meringue Powder

1 teaspoon Cream of Tartar

2.25 pounds Confectioner's Sugar

I have been using this recipe for a little over a year,and I 

really like it. It makes up quick, and I have

had lots of comments of how good it tastes.

I found this recipe on the Cake Central website. I love this site.

I can truly spend hours browsing the cookies that bakers have

posted. It's a great site to see what's new and what everyone else is 

baking! There are so many talented people out there!! 

In the mixing bowl from your mixer, pour in the warm water

and the meringue powder. Mix it with a whisk until it is frothy

and has thickened a bit, about 30 seconds.

Add the cream of tartar and whisk for another 30 seconds.

Pour all of the confectioners sugar in the bowl, 

and place the bowl on the mixer.

Use your paddle attachment on low speed, and mix 

for 10 minutes. I usually stop the mixer at least one time 

during the 10 minutes to push down the icing that gathers

on the wall of the bowl.

Your icing will get smooth, thick and creamy.

Place in a sealed container until you are ready to use.

That's it. Tomorrow we will talk about some cookie 

decorating basics like how to outline and fill in.

Don't forget about the

 Random Acts of Kindness Giveaway Blog Hop!

We are giving away a cookie decorating kit full of

useful things you are sure to use!

Click on the link for your chance to win.

Our giveaway ends Monday!!

Thanks for joining me today!

Hope to see you tomorrow!