cinnamon sugar cookies . . . and apples, apples, apples for Teacher!

I'm re-sharing this post from last year's back-to-school week.

Our 6 and 7-year-old will be attending a new school this year, and it starts a few weeks after the rest of the school district, so we're enjoying these last few days of Summer break . . . and prepping for back-to-school!

I hope you enjoy this first tribute to apple season!

.     .     .     .     .     .     .     .     .

WARNING . . . There are a lot of photos of apples!

I like to send a "Welcome back!" gift with my kids on their first day of school to give to their teachers.

Last year, I sent a big bag of home-made chewy chocolate chip and toffee cookies.

And this year, we baked cinnamon sugar cookies in the shape of apples!

I bought several varieties of apples at the Farmer's Market earlier in the week . . . Gala, Pink Lady, Braeburn, Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, and Red Delicious.

The kids had no idea that there are so many varieties. We even had an apple taste-testing!

Pink Lady and Granny Smith were our favorite!

We decorated our cookies based on the apples we brought home from the Market.

And these were the home-made APPLES our 5- and-6-year old brought their teachers on the first day of school . . .

I packaged them in clear cellophane bags and then tied them with rustic rope. We carefully placed them in a simple brown gift bag cushioned with brown shredded paper.  They were darling!

Here are the kids' interpretations of the apples. They did a great job!

Braeburn 

Golden Delicious & Granny Smith 

Gala

Pink Lady

Did you notice the pink sanding sugar?

This was the girls' favorite apple!

I used my favorite sugar cookie recipe, and added cinnamon and a little nutmeg to give the dough warm hints of Fall. These spices were a great addition!

cinnamon sugar cookies

.     .     .     .     .     .     .     .     .   

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

¼ teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

12 Tablespoons (1 ½  sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 egg, room temperature

 powder sugar (instead of flour) for rolling out dough
.     .     .     .     .     .     .     .     .    

Preparation

To make the cookies, in a bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt . . . set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat the butter and granulated sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in the vanilla and egg. Reduce the speed to low and add the flour mixture in three additions, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Mix until just combined.

Form the dough into a flattened ball, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or as long as overnight.

Preheat an oven to 350°F.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. 

On a lightly floured powder sugar surface, roll out the dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Using cookie cutters, cut out desired shapes. Transfer to the prepared baking sheets, spacing cookies about 2 inches apart, and bake until just golden around the edges, 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the size of the cookies. Transfer the pans to wire racks and let cool for 5 minutes, then remove the cookies from the pans and let cool completely.

Makes 10 to 20 cookies, depending on cutter size.

Sugar Cookie GLAZE

2 ¼  cups confectioners' sugar, sifted

2 Tablespoons light corn syrup

1 Tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

.     .     .     .     .     .     .     .     .

Combine ingredients and mix until smooth
Using a small paint brush (or the tip of your finger), spread on top of cookies

Sprinkle sanding sugar on top of GLAZE when it's wet

The secret to a 'clean' sugar edge is not letting the glaze drip down the sides of the cookie.
A thick glaze is also key.
After the glaze has been mixed, add 1 Tablespoon of confectioners' sugar at a time, 
until you get the desired consistency.
Have fun!

LET'S STAY in touch!

Simply Suzannes at Home

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LET'S STAY in touch!

Simply Suzannes at Home

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North Star sugar cookies . . . and the Nativity story

I am so excited to share this cookie project with you!

It was inspired by my desire to remind our children through this holiday season why we celebrate Christmas.

It's so easy to get caught up in the "I want . . . " this time of year, and forget that we need to spend these weeks and days leading up to Christmas preparing for the coming of Christ.

During this time of Advent, I enjoy reading books about the meaning of Christmas to our children . . . as well as engaging in other enjoyable and memorable activities like cookie decorating, baking, and holiday crafts.

   

I enjoyed sharing the significance of the Star of Bethlehem with them, also known as the North Star and Christmas Star . . . and its importance to the Three Wise Men, or Magi, and the birth of Christ.

Although they are familiar with the story already, it was through an activity like this one that allowed me to share the beautiful story of Christmas again with our children.

Did you notice that I suspended one of the cookies from a string above the nativity?

I think it gives this well-known scene a visual exclamation mark . . . and I love that!

Here's how I did it . . . Using a large pin, I poked a hole into the top of the cookie and strung fishing line through it. I then secured it to a bare branch. The weight of the cookie gently tugged on the branch, which I positioned over the nativity.

This cookie-inspired nativity turned out better than I had imagined!

Although you don't see The Three Wise Men in the photo, they weren't too far away; each of my little ones was holding one of them while I took these photos.

Although I created this serene scene for, and with, my children . . . I think that it would be a beautiful scene for any holiday gathering. You can individually wrap/bag the cookies and invite guests to take one home . . . and then they, too, can take home a small piece of the Christmas story.

 

sugar cookies

.     .     .     .     .     .     .     .     .   

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

¼ teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

12 Tablespoons (1 ½  sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 egg, room temperature

 powder sugar (instead of flour) for rolling out dough
.     .     .     .     .     .     .     .     .    

Preparation

To make the cookies, in a bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt . . . set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat the butter and granulated sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in the vanilla and egg. Reduce the speed to low and add the flour mixture in three additions, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Mix until just combined.

Form the dough into a flattened ball, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or as long as overnight.

Preheat an oven to 350°F.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. 

On a lightly floured powder sugar surface, roll out the dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Using cookie cutters, cut out desired shapes. Transfer to the prepared baking sheets, spacing cookies about 2 inches apart, and bake until just golden around the edges, 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the size of the cookies. Transfer the pans to wire racks and let cool for 5 minutes, then remove the cookies from the pans and let cool completely.

Makes 60 3-inch North Star cookies.

I bought the North Star cookie cutter from here.

Sugar Cookie GLAZE

2 ¼  cups confectioners' sugar, sifted

2 Tablespoons light corn syrup

1 Tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

.     .     .     .     .     .     .     .     .

Combine ingredients and mix until smooth
Using a small paint brush (or the tip of your finger), spread on top of cookies

Sprinkle sanding sugar on top of GLAZE when it's wet

The secret to a 'clean' sugar edge is not letting the glaze drip down the sides of the cookie.

A thick glaze is also key.

After the glaze has been mixed, add 1 Tablespoon of confectioners' sugar at a time, 

until you get the desired consistency.

LET'S STAY in touch!

Simply Suzannes at Home

 on Facebook

.      .      .      .      .

& Pinterest

Thank you for stopping by!

I love reading your comments and appreciate them so much!

reindeer marshmallows, crock pot hot cocoa . . . and sugar cookies

One of my favorite holiday family activities is hosting a small cookie decorating party for . . . and with . . . my 4 beautiful children.

We gather around a 6-foot long table that's covered with 120+ Christmas shaped sugar cookies, frosting and sprinkles galore, and mugs of hot cocoa  . . . and we decorate cookies for hours and hours while listening to Christmas music and spending quality time with each other.  
You can see photos of this year's cookies here.

I try to mix it up every year, by adding new cookie shapes, or serving a new hot cocoa, and by introducing new, fun icings and sprinkles.

I made these adorable reindeer marshmallows for our hot cocoa mugs this year.

They're so simple to assemble . . .  and look festive perched atop a paper candy stick and placed into a cup of hot cocoa.

Although you could use cloves for the eyes, I like the simplicity of just the antlers (rosemary) and nose (cranberry secured with a toothpick).

 

Have you ever heard of Crock Pot Hot Cocoa? 

I discovered it earlier this year . . . and love it!

One of my favorite things about it is that you pour everything into a crock pot and let the ingredients marry together . . .  so simple! And then a few hours later, you have a wonderfully rich and delicious home-made hot cocoa that's made with real chocolate. YUM!

crock pot Hot Cocoa

Serves 12 - 1 cup servings

.     .     .     .     .     .

  6 cups milk

1 14-ounce can of Sweetened Condensed milk

1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 cups of semi-sweet (or milk, or dark) chocolate chips

.     .     .     .     .     .

In a slow cooker, stir together heavy cream, milks, vanilla and chocolate chips.

Cover and cook on low for 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until mixture is hot and chocolate chips are melted.

Stir again before serving.

Top with your favorite fixings and enjoy!

Refrigerate any left overs.

.     .     .     .     .     . 

Whipped cream is an important topping when serving hot cocoa . . . and so are sprinkles when you're hosting a cookie decorating party (smile!).

I also served  Starbuck's Vanilla Brulee. It reminds me of a mild cocoa that's infused with warm vanilla and caramel notes . . . YUM!

So often, it's the simple gatherings with our loved ones that are so much fun.

I hope that you feel inspired to bake sugar cookies and make reindeer marshmallows this weekend . . .  and spend some quality time with the ones that you love most!

LET'S STAY in touch!

Simply Suzannes at Home

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& Pinterest

Thank you for stopping by!

I love reading your comments and appreciate them so much!

raven sugar cookies . . . a Halloween treat

I wanted to create a unique sugar cookie for the Halloween season, and had the idea to make a flock of black ravens.

There's something about these little black birds that remind me of harvest, pumpkins, and Halloween.

So I went on the hunt for a raven cookie cutter, and found one online.

I used my trusty sugar cookie recipe (below), a simple glaze, and a whole bottle of black sanding sugar to make this haunting flock of birds.

I nestled them among a few bare branches and freckled pumpkins for a finishing touch.

                 Be sure and pair them with pumpkin ice cream or shakes for a little festive fun!

raven sugar cookies
.     .     .     .     .     .

Ingredients

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

¼ teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

12 Tablespoons (1 ½  sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 egg, room temperature

 powder sugar (instead of flour) for rolling out dough
black sanding sugar, for decorating

.     .     .     .     .     .

Preparation

To make the cookies, in a bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt . . . set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat the butter and granulated sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in the vanilla and egg. Reduce the speed to low and add the flour mixture in three additions, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Mix until just combined.

Form the dough into a flattened ball, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or as long as overnight.

Preheat an oven to 350°F.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. 

On a lightly floured powder sugar surface, roll out the dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Using cookie cutters, cut out desired shapes. Transfer to the prepared baking sheets, spacing cookies about 2 inches apart, and bake until just golden around the edges, 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the size of the cookies. Transfer the pans to wire racks and let cool for 5 minutes, then remove the cookies from the pans and let cool completely.

Makes 10 to 20 cookies, depending on cutter size.

Sugar Cookie GLAZE

2 ¼  cups confectioners' sugar, sifted

2 Tablespoons light corn syrup

1 Tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

.     .     .     .     .     .     .     .     .

Combine ingredients and mix until smooth
Using a small paint brush (or the tip of your finger), spread on top of cookies

Sprinkle sanding sugar on top of GLAZE when it's wet

The secret to a 'clean' sugar edge is not letting the glaze drip down the sides of the cookie.
A thick glaze is also key.
After the glaze has been mixed, add 1 Tablespoon of confectioners' sugar at a time, 
until you get the desired consistency.
Have fun!

LET'S STAY in touch!

Simply Suzannes at Home

 on Facebook

.      .      .      .      .

& Pinterest

Thank you for stopping by!

I love reading your comments and appreciate them so much!