Red Velvet Grave Cakes

Yep! Those crappy Party City commercials are back on TV...Halloween must be right around the corner!! I know I say it every year, but it really is the best holiday. I haven't figured out what my costume will be this year, but I can assure you it won't be a "slutty" fireman, or cop or toll booth worker, or whatever. At least I don't have to worry about creating a spooky Halloween dessert! These Red Velvet cakes are topped with a cookie crumble to mimic a dirt grave and accented with royal icing bones and spiders. Get the simple tutorial over at PopSugar Food.

Christmas Cookie Gift Tags

Is it me, or did stores switch out the Halloween candy for peppermint candy canes over night? We all better snap out of that Thanksgiving turkey tryptophan-coma before the holidays pass us by! This time of year is insanely busy for us all, so I've decided to knock out a couple birds with one stone. These tasty Christmas cookies can double as gift tags, place settings or even ornaments! (Just keep your dogs and toddlers away from the tree or your ornaments will go missing) 'Tis the season for over-eating and giving, so happy holidays and happy baking.

This FOOD & WINE Christmas sugar cookie recipe is incredibly simple and the lemon zest makes them extra delicious. 

Christmas Sugar Cookies

From FOOD & WINE Magazine

INGREDIENTS

2 1/4 cups bleached all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 sticks (6 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 large egg
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest (optional)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Colored sugars and silver dragées

DIRECTIONS

1. In a small bowl, whisk the flour with the salt. Put the sugar in a food processor and process until very fine. Add the pieces of butter and process until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Add the egg, lemon zest and vanilla and process until smooth. Add the flour mixture and pulse just until a dough forms.

2. Transfer the dough to a sheet of plastic wrap and pat it into a disk 1 inch thick. Chill until firm, about 1 1/2 hours.

3. Preheat the oven to 350°. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough 1/8 inch thick. Stamp out shapes, cutting the cookies as close together as possible. Transfer the cookies to nonstick or greased baking sheets, leaving 1 inch between them. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until lightly browned around the edges. Transfer the cookies to racks and let cool.

MAKE AHEAD The cookies can be stored in an airtight container between sheets of wax paper for 1 month.

Download the tag template here, then just cut the cookie dough around them to make perfect shaped cookie tags!

Now that the cookie "gift tags" have baked and cooled, it's time to decorate! You'll need to make a batch of royal icing. 

Royal Icing

INGREDIENTS
1 lb. (about 4 cups) confectioners sugar

3 tablespoons meringue powder (you can find it at baking supply and craft stores)
6 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
food coloring

zip lock or piping bags

DIRECTIONS

1. Combine all ingredients in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat until smooth and lump free. The icing should be able to drip, but not run. If it's too thick, add more water and if it's too runny, add more confectioners sugar. Divide and color, then place in piping bags for decorating.

Melt the white chocolate, spread on the cookie and sprinkle crushed candy canes on top!

To make the "To: and From:" on the cookie tags, you'll need small rubber stamps (make sure you clean 'em). They can be found at most stationary or craft stores. I tried stamping the cookies with liquid food coloring, but I found that the black AmeriColor edible markers worked best! They allow you to apply an even coat of color on the stamp, and you can fill in any imperfections on the cookie.

What will my mom do first...eat her gift tag or open the gift?

Election Day Candy Button Ballots

This week has been absolutely insane here in New York: Hurricane Sandy showed her ugly face and now we're gearing up for a nasty nor'easter. If we weren't paying attention, election day might have passed us by. Luckily, we haven't forgotten how important this day is–so if you haven't voted yet–stop reading this and get out to your polling place. Once you've rocked the vote, you can sit back and wait with your eyes glued to the TV. If you're headed to an election party, don't you dare show up empty handed! Bring these candy button ballots and liven up the voting process. This election day treat lets you cast your vote (and eat it, too). They're basically a spin on those nostalgic candy button paper strips, made with royal icing and parchment paper. There's no complicated voter instructions, just eat your vote! I've included templates that you can download for the ballots and the traditional paper strips. Here's how you make 'em...

Royal Icing Candy Button Ballots
YOU'LL NEED

1 lb. (about 4 cups) confectioners sugar
3 tablespoons meringue powder (you can find it at baking supply and craft stores)
6 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon vanilla, almond, or lemon extract
red and blue food coloring

zip lock or piping bags
Several ballots printed on 8.5x11" parchment paper or vellum 

    Download the ballots here (print on parchment cut into 8.5x11" sheets")

Candy buttons template 

    Download the template here (print on regular 8.5x11" paper)
parchment paper strips
tape
scissors

DIRECTIONS

1. Combine all ingredients in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat until smooth and lump free. The frosting should be able to drip, but not run. If it's too thick, add more water and if it's too runny, add more confectioners sugar. Scoop 1/3rd of the icing into a zip lock bag and seal bag. Divide remaining icing into 2 bowls. Color one batch red, the other blue, then scoop into separate zip lock bags and seal.

2. Cut printed ballots out of parchment. Cut strips of parchment and tape on top of the candy buttons template.

3. Use scissors to snip a tiny whole off the corner of the bag. Carefully pipe "dots" on the ballots and parchment strips. Let dry completely.

Not sure how my dog managed to get his name on the ballot, but I guess he'd be good in public office.

Whichever side you lean towards this election day, just make sure your voice is heard and you've got these sweet treats by your side.

Baby Shower Cut-Out Cookies

The big news is that my sister is having a baby next month. The other big news (although not as important) is that I've discovered the best cut-out cookie recipe and you'll be surprised what makes it so delicious. Drumroll please....The secret ingredients are cardamom and honey! Although many cultures love this spice for savory cooking, Nordic people take credit for discovering cardamom's true calling in baking. Now I have something else to thank you for, besides Eric Northman from HBO's True Blood:)

I've been waiting for a while to use this set of adorable baby shower cookie cutters and Haley's shower was the perfect opportunity! I wanted to enhance the traditional cut-out cookie recipe that I use every year around the Holidays, but I also wanted to please the palates of all the guests expecting a sweet and traditional cookie. Most guests could't point out the use of cardamom and honey, but they knew there was something extra special about these cookies. Here's the recipe along with some shots from the shower!

Cardamom-Honey Cut-Outs with Lemon Royal Icing

Makes 3 dozen cookies

INGREDIENTS

2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

1/2 tsp. ground cardamom

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup honey

1 large egg

1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

1. In a bowl, combine the flour, cardamom, salt and baking soda. Set aside. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the honey, egg and vanilla. Continue mixing on medium speed until well blended, about 1 minute. Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until the dough comes together. Scoop out the dough ball onto a sheet of plastic wrap and smooth into a flattened disk. Wrap tightly in the plastic and refrigerate until chilled, at least 1.5 hours. Dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for 1 month. 

2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 or more baking sheets with parchment paper or non-stick baking liners. Working with your chilled disk, roll out the dough on a floured work surface to about 3/16 inch thick. Use cookie cutter to cut out shape and place 1 inch apart on the lined cookie sheets. Gather and re-roll scraps to make more cookies. Bake one sheet at a time for even cooking for 8-10 minutes or until the edges turn golden brown. Let the cookies cool on the sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack.

Lemon Royal Icing 
Makes 6 cups

INGREDIENTS

2 lbs. confectioners' sugar

5 tablespoons meringue powder

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1/4 warm water (as needed)

Red, Yellow, Blue and Green Food coloring (for pastel colors, use just one drop)

DIRECTIONS

1. In the bowl of your electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or with a hand mixer), beat the confectioners' sugar, meringue powder and lemon juice until combined. Beat on medium to high speed, adding water as needed, until until very glossy and stiff peaks form (5 to 7 minutes). This is the proper consistency to pipe a border around your cookie. 

2. Separate the icing in your mixer into 4 equal batches, leaving one batch in the mixer and placing the other batches in smaller bowls (one for each color). Add a small drop of food coloring into the bowl and beat the icing until the color is fully incorporated. Use a rubber spatula to scrape all of the icing into a small bowl, and cover. Repeat with the 3 other colors, cleaning your mixing bowl between batches. After mixing, you should have 4 bowls with colored icing. Place half of each batch into a prepared piping bag with coupler and no.3 tip on it. Note: If you don't have a piping bag and piping tips, you can use a sturdy sealable sandwich bag and snip the very tip of the corner with scissors.  

3. Using a whisk, thin down the remaining batches of icing with water. The proper consistency is when you lift the whisk, the ribbon of icing that falls back into the bowl remains on the surface of the icing for a few seconds before disappearing. Cover the icing immediately as exposure to air will harden it. 

4. Assemble the cooled cookies on a cookie sheet covered in parchment paper (for easy clean-up). Pipe borders around the perimeter of each cookie with the colored icing. Set piping bags aside and let dry completely. 

5. Using a small spoon, cover or 'flood' the entire surface of the cookie with the thinned icing. Use a toothpick to push icing into hard to reach areas. Let dry completely before decorating with remaining icing in piping bags.  

(Left) A snapshot of the invite. (Right) I dressed up the dessert table with some nostalgic candies. 

These colored paper flags were easy to make and a festive addition for the baby shower. 

We all decorated onezies for the mom-to-be. I picked this idea up at a friends baby shower a few years ago. It's easy to do and lets everyone at the shower design a personal message for the baby.

My sister lives in Baltimore, so I had to include a National Bohemian Beer onesie. Natty Boh! And I had to represent for NYC!

Even Tom got in on the decorating. He took the shower motif literally with 

his black lab onesie.