It took me 3 days to make the templates, bake the cookies and trace the outlines, and another 3 days of intensive icing to complete decorating. My eyes and hands were really tired at the end of this project.
You may refer to this post for the cookie and royal icing recipe, and this post on how to make homemade templates for making cookies with complex designs. My brown sugar cookies always get rave reviews for taste so do give it a try. The cookies are very forgiving. I tend to overbake a little (not burn) as the cookies soften a little after icing. They taste better with age too.
Here are the freshly baked cookies! Can you guess which cookie is for which character? Roll the cookie dough to thickness of 5-6mm for these rather large cookies. They are at least 10cm in size. Bake at 160°C for 16-18 minutes or until firm and browned, rotating the tray halfway through baking.
I spent the first day of icing completing the outlines and black parts. I colour the icing black with charcoal powder.
Creating 3D pop-up features is actually easier than it looks. I have created 3D pop-up nose for my Elsa cookies last year and have chosen to do it again for the noses and cheeks of these vehicles.
Begin by adding a dollop of icing at the spot where you want the pop-up feature to be. I usually use white icing or the same colour as the icing that covers the face. Wait for the icing to dry before covering the face with more icing. When flooding the face with icing, use a toothpick to nudge the icing into place around the pop-up feature. Don't pile up too much icing around the feature or the border will not be clear.
Pop-up nose on Harold
Pop-up cheeks and nose on Toby!
End of day 2 of icing! I used edible marker for Harold's name and the blacks of the eyes as shortcut :p.
Finally finished on day 3!
Remember to dry the icing thoroughly before packing. These cookies can keep for a month in airtight condition and stored at cool and dry place. I like to use the oven to speed up the drying. I use the fan mode but turn on the heat only for several seconds to warm up the oven a little. Drying can take up to a couple of hours. If you stay at a dry climate, you may air dry the cookies overnight before packing them.
All packed and ready to party!
Thank God that these were very well received as usual!
With love,
Phay Shing
Bravo!! Very nicely done pop-up facial features =) I have no idea how anyone can bear to eat these pretty cookies. Thanks for sharing and keep up the good work.
ReplyDeleteHi Emlyn,
DeleteThank you for your kind words of encouragement :). Glad to share :). Cookies like these are not something I want to do too often!