Oh man I can't believe its only 3 days until Christmas!
Every year I make the kiddos decorated gingerbread men and women cut out cookies. I almost didn't make it in time this year because its been so hectic and the time is flying by so fast.
BUT
I couldn't *not* do them this year so I made some time last weekend and got to decorating. Priorities right?!!
Picking what characters was hard this year - but we had just watched
The Nightmare Before Christmas recently with my little niece so I got into the Jack Skellington and friends mode!
In case you need a refresher from the top: Oogie Boogie, Jack Skellington, Sally, Zero, Mayor of Halloween Town, Barrel, Shock, Lock, Scary Teddy, Dr. Finklestein, Santa Jack
I think cut out gingerbread cookies are my favorite Christmas cookie of all time. This year my twins helped roll out the dough and cut out the cookies. It's fun to see them getting into cooking and baking as they get older!
Do you like Jack and Sally?
OR
Santa Jack and Sally??
Always love to see them all done and decorated. Can't wait to bring them to Christmas!
Oh and since I had some extras I also did my kids (and dog!) in gingerbread form!
Merriest of Christmases to those that celebrate and Happy New Year to you all!
Here are other gingerbread men and ladies from years passed!
My edible crafting with marshmallow PEEPS continues!
The fun people that work with the PEEPS brand were kind enough to send me some of their latest seasonal flavors! Sugar Plum Delight, Cinnamon Roll, Red Velvet, and Sugar Cookie. How fun are they??
Although they are already very festive, you can add some easy details and make them really ready for any holiday or Christmas party.
Make them into wintery polar bears!
Or give them fun little Christmas hats!
Birds get cold too so add some tiny ear muffs!
Or turn them into reindeer - or go directly to the most famous reindeer of all
I usually add PEEPS to cupcakes (which would be A.DOR.A.BLE) but this time went with a Christmas-y chocolate chip cookie cake.
I mean who can resist a huge chocolate chip cookie during the holiday season??
The cookie cake disappeared in no time flat last nite!
Holiday PEEPS Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake
by Michelle Clausen December 18 -2016
Ingredients
PEEPS chicks in assorted flavors (I used red velvet, sugar plum, sugar cookie, and cinnamon roll)
1 roll of refrigerated cookie dough ( I used chocolate chip)
Assorted sprinkles and candies for decorating: orange candy coated sunflower seeds, green m and m's, black and green dot sprinkles, holly and berry sprinkles, red-green-white candy corn, vanilla tootsie rolls, large red ball candy,
Purple candy melting wafers (cut in half)
1 cup of vanilla candy melting wafers
1/4 cup chocolate chips (or chocolate candy melting wafers) and green candy melting wafers
Green and red food writers
Vanilla buttercream (tint some red and green)
More holiday sprinkles for cookie cake
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
For Rudolph Reindeer PEEPs: Melt chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl and add to a freezer bag. Snip an end and pipe antlers onto parchment paper. Let harden 5-10 minutes before moving. Attach to cinnamon roll chick with melted chocolate. Attach large red candy to with melted chocolate as nose. Use melted vanilla candy and add detail around neck and add green sprinkle in center.
For Polar Bear: Melt vanilla wafers in a microwave safe bowl and add to a freezer bag. Snip an end and pipe ears and nose onto sugar cookie flavored chick. Attach black buttons and nose detail with more melted candy. Soften vanilla tootsie roll for 7 seconds in microwave. Roll out long strip for scarf. Cut to size with clean kitchen shears. Color with red and green food writers. Wrap around chick as scarf.
For Bird with earmuffs: Attach green m and m's to side of chick with melted candy. Add white band with more melted vanilla candy melts. Attach orange candy coated sunflower seed with more melted candy. Attach 1/2 of purple candy melt wafer to side as wings.
For Red Velvet chick with hat: Melt green candy wafers in a microwave safe bowl and add to a freezer bag. Snip an end and pipe small discs onto parchment paper. Add christmas candy corn. Attach small red ball sprinkle on top of hat with more melted candy. Let harden 5-10 minutes. Use more melted candy and attach holy around neck of chick. Add holy berries for detail. Attach hat to top of chick with more melted candy.
For cookie cake: Add cookie dough to a 9X3 springform pan. Spread cookie dough evenly. Bake for 30 minutes or until top of cookie is just browned. Let cool completely.
Remove cookie cake from pan and pipe buttercream around the outside top edge. Add christmas or holiday sprinkles.
Hey all! I'm trying to get myself into the holiday spirit since we're only about 2 weeks away from Christmas (and Hanukkah too!)
I've used jelly bean birds a bunch of times (scroll down to see more!) so I thought I'd try some little winter birds this time around.
I also love love LOVE mini things so thought they'd be cute on some mini chairs or trees.
The chairs are made from pretzel sticks "glued" together with some chocolate.
The chairs have a nice rustic look and are perfect perches for these little birdies!
I love Jelly Belly jelly beans because they have great colors and some look almost mottled and very much like bird colorings already. Add some little details - super easy with some melted candy - and you get some cute little winter birds. Don't forget to add simple eyes with a black food writer!
The trees are made from Hershey's Bells and Kisses stacked on top of each other. Use whatever flavor you like since it gets covered in green melted candy wafers. I used peppermint to go along with the winter theme.
Use your favorite cupcake recipe and white frosting as snow.
Put all of it together to make a fun little winter scene.
And don't worry about being perfect with you candy melt "piping"! Small details are needed and it doesn't take a lot of skill. Once you practice on one or 2 birds it gets easy and the results are super cute!
Making these cupcakes really did help to get me in the winter holiday spirit!
Thank you for swinging by and have an AMAZING weekend! Take time to enjoy the moments and don't forget to spread some kindness in the world!
Little Birds on Pretzel Chairs and Tree Cupcake Toppers
by Michelle Clausen December 9 -2016
Ingredients
Pretzel sticks
1 cup chocolate chips or chocolate candy melts
Assorted color jelly belly beans
1/4 cup of black, blue, red, and yellow candy melts
Black food writer
Hershey's Kisses and Hershey's Bells chocolate candy
1 cup of green candy melts
Star sprinkles
White non-pareil sprinkles
12 of your favorite cupcakes with white icing
Instructions:
To make chairs. Break or cut pretzel sticks into sizes (2 long and 9 smaller pieces)
Melt chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl and add to a freezer bag. Snip and end and add some chocolate to pretzel stick and attach as in picture to "glue" chair together. Let harden at least 15 minutes before moving. Repeat for as many chairs as you need.
For birds: Select jelly beans colors you like. I like Jelly Belly as they are a little mottled which make great birds! Melt each color wafer in a microwave safe bowl and add to a small freezer bag. Snip and end and add some details to birds (beak, wings, top feathers) as in pictures or use your creativity! Let harden at least 5-10 minutes or until candy is dry.
For trees: Melt green wafers in a microwave safe bowl and add to a small freezer bag. Snip and attach Kiss to Bell to make tree shape. Add more candy to outside of chocolate to make green trees. Before candy dries, add either bird or star sprinkle on top (candy must be starting to harden to easily attach or you can hold it in place until candy is firm enough to hold it in place). Before candy dries also add some white non-pareil sprinkles on outside of trees.
Once chairs are ready, use more melted candy and attach birds to chairs randomly.
Add trees, birds, and chairs to iced cupcakes as toppers.
