A. is not for me
B. is not as easy as it looks (for me)
C. both A. & B.


"C"!! I had issues with cake tonight that I didn't even decorate yet--it needs to be baked yet!--and also with cookies. I did the No Fail and I am not one for sugar cookies but they are good. Made them a little too thick and they spread like mad. Had too many shamrocks, the shamrock cutter I didn't like much to start with (6 clover leaves and not 3) and they were not salvageable. I like metal cutters too and I had Wilton plastic heart and flower and the flower wasn't always coming out clean after cutting (cooled dough again and dipped cutter).

I made Antonia's icing, have not tasted it yet but I will say--those of you who make cookies, kudos to you because while I *usually* can bake cookies well, my decorating was extremely basic and I am wanting to get this royal icing business down pat. You really have to have the right consistency--too thick and it won't flow (I don't want to outline then fill, I'd rather do it all at once with one consistency), too thin and it runs. Every one of my flowers have runs down them. I used a bottle to do the basic color and a tip to do some writing and that was a little thin and ran some on the cookies. Ugh.

Besides babbling and ranting, I guess I am just looking for some tips!

I say "B". (am I right? )

I have to say I bake pretty darn good. I can ice a cake with the best of Moms and can thrill my small children often. I'm so frustrated with cookie decorating. If I use Toba's icing, I get little white bumps the next day (sugar crystallizing I'm told). If I use royal icing, I get the dreaded air bubbles or air pockets. It occurs when I thin the icing down. I add a few drops of water, stir slowy, and I can almost see the air getting sucked in. Think I might have a kitchen-witch hanging around.

How exactly do you color your frostings or thin them down without getting air bubbles? I've tried tapping the bowl, banging the bowl on the table and I get air bubbles to rise but I still get them once I decorate. I also notice that the cookies look fine and when I come back an hour later, major potholes have developed. I need someone to come over and see what I'm doing wrong.

kos

I have a ?...If I want to add a different color to the cookie is it ok to still use thin icing? I wasnt sure if I used another thin icing if it would run together..Should I wait for the first icing to dry then do it. Example..Putting someones name on the cookie

jmcakes

KitchenGifts has a nice site for answering FAQs on decorating cookies. You might find your answer there. http://www.kitchengifts.com/faq.html
When I use different color icings, I outline first with a thicker icing and let set before flooding it with the thinner. If I do detailing on top of the iced cookie, I wait several hours or the next day to prevent the top color from bleeding. That's also the same time I notice all my air bubbles.

kos

Cake Princess, good tips, thank you! Kos, the only bubbles I had were when I put the icing on the cookies and that only happened maybe three times. I used a toothpick to pop them. Sometimes bubbles come from overbeating? The cookies I made, which I didn't photograph even though I said I would photograph even ugly stuff went to my parents, they liked them alot and my husband took the rest to his friend's for a poker game tonight. Big, burly card sharks eating pink and yellow flower sugar cookies! Ha!

Forget the picture of the cookies, I want to see a picture of the guys playing poker and eating them, LOL!

Haha! You gals are funny! Sorry, I don't have any pics of big burly cute men eating dainty flower sugar cookies. They were a hit, though! I was happy. I didn't like the way they came out but my husband said everyone said they were very tasty and only crumbs were left. Beer & sugar cookies....