17
December

Cute Christmas Penguin Cookies

Categories:Biscuits and Cookies, Christmas, Edible Gifts
Tags:, , , ,
madnad

Cute Christmas Penguin cookiesThere are dozens and dozens of websites out there showcasing the best in sugar cookie decoration. I confess I have been trawling through them a lot recently with envious eyes. I wish I had a fraction of their skill, but to be fair, they have been doing it a lot longer than me.

Icing sugar cookies like this is relatively new for me, and my icing skills leave something to be desired. I don’t yet have the steady hand that is required, but like all things, I am sure it will come with practice.

I have created some sugar cookies with cute little winter penguins on as part of my gift hamper this year. All you need is my basic sugar cookie recipe as below, some royal icing, piping bags and tips, and a little creativity.

Here are the various stages I went through to create my penguins.

peguin cookie stage1

Outline and flood fill your cookie

Penguin cookie stage 2

Outline the shape of your penguin in black, then dot a few snowflakes in white

Penguin cookie stage 3

Fill the black and white areas in

Penguin cookie stage 4

Add some little black dots for eyes, and a small V in orange

Penguin cookie final stage

Final stage is to give your little guys some cute hats and scarfs, or ear warmers. I’ve stuck to just two colours, a soft pink and lilac.


Basic Sugar Cookie

Print recipe
Basic Sugar Cookie

Ingredients

  • 350g Plain Flour
  • 100g Self-Raising Flour
  • 125g Unsalted Butter
  • 125g Caster Sugar
  • 125g Golden Syrup
  • 1 Egg (large)
  • 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Directions

1. Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy
2. Mix the vanilla essence and golden syrup into the egg & add to the butter/sugar mixture a little at a time (throw in a handful of the flour to stop the egg and butter separating if needs be)
3. Gradually add the rest of the flour
4. Wrap the dough in cling film and refrigerate for about 2 hours
5. Preheat the oven to 350°F / 176°C / Gas Mark 4
6. Roll out the dough evenly on a lightly floured surface
7. Cut out cookies using a cutter – do not wiggle the cutter, just press down firmly. Try to make the best use of the dough in one go, as each roll incorporates more flour which can create flour pockets that cause bumps to form while cooking. If this happens, you can usually press the lumps down before the cookie is lifted off the baking sheet.
8. Place your cookies on a buttered or lined baking tray. Chilling the cookies again at this stage for 3-5 minutes will ensure they keep their shape while cooking (unnecessary if cooking from frozen).
9. Bake for 10-12 minutes (maybe less if your cookies are small) until the edges start to turn slightly golden.
10. Leave to cool for one minute on the baking tray for it to firm up before transferring carefully to a cooking rack
11. Ensure your cookie is fully cooled before icing.

Note

  • When decorating Sugar Cookies, lay your cookies on baking parchment. Pipe thick royal icing around the edge of the design, then fill with a slightly runnier royal icing and decorate. Leave for about 12 hours to set before storing.
  • Once baked, store for a week in an airtight container. They may last up to 2 weeks if you substitute half the butter with Trex (vegetable shortening).
  • To save yourself even more time, prepare your dough in advance, cut out cookies and place on lined baking sheets and freeze. Once frozen, layer the frozen cut outs with baking parchment and bake when needed. Allow 5 minutes at room temperature before baking.
  • You can freeze most cookie dough mixtures for about 12 months, or even the baked cookies for about 4 weeks. Ensure they are fully defrosted before icing.

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