Cookie Press Butter Spritz Cookies

I like to make these cookie press butter cookies with Madison for 4th of July. They come out looking like fireworks and we decorate them with red, white & blue sprinkles.

I made my own red, white & blue sprinkles. 

What is a cookie press?

 This is my cookie press.

I bought it on eBay for $3 and it is awesome.

 You fill the canister with cookie dough and squeeze it out, like playdoh.

Classic Wilton Spritz Cookies 

First beat butter & sugar.

Then add vanilla, egg & milk. (I omitted the almond extract.)

 Madison pouring in the vanilla. We used our homemade vanilla!

Stir together dry ingredients. Then gradually add flour mixture to butter mixture.

Voila - cookie dough.

Roll cookie dough into a log.

Push into cookie press.

Push it down & get it as full as possible.

I squeeze out the first little bit & wipe it off into the bowl.

This ensures that the first cookie comes out even. 

The cookie press should be flat against the cookie sheet. Give the top handle a nice twist until the cookie comes out. I need to turn mine about once & a half to make a good size cookie.

This picture is Madison making a cookie. :)

Bake for 10-12 minutes.

I added sprinkles right after they came out of the oven. You can add the sprinkles before putting the cookies in the oven too.

Note: Jimmies sprinkles will melt in the oven - add after or halfway through baking.

Another idea I tried was drizzling buttercream icing over the cookies. Mmm.

Some other July 4th sweets:

Sugar Cookies with Buttercream Frosting & Sprinkles

Rice Krispy Treats with red, white & blue jimmies sprinkles.

The Jimmies melt in the hot marshmellow mix and leave a cool stream of color in the treats.

Brownies :)

http://www.wilton.com/recipe/Classic-Spritz-Cookies

Adam's Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies

My brother Adam likes to come up with new variations to traditional cookie recipes. One of his latest inventions: he asked my mother to make him a chocolate chip cookie dough recipe, but to use his favorite trail mix in the cookies instead of chocolate chips. They came out pretty interesting!

Most recently, he asked us to make him oatmeal cookies, but instead of raisins to put in chopped up apples and butterscotch chips. I used a traditional oatmeal raisin recipe, but swapped the white sugar for brown sugar to give the cookies more flavor. I also reduced the amount of sugar in the recipe since I assumed the apples & butterscotch chips would be bringing extra sweetness to the cookies.

I'm very tempted to try this recipe with maple syrup or honey, but I'd have to play around with the recipe a bit since I'd be substituting liquid for solids. I also would like to try it with toffee pieces rather than butterscotch chips.

Cookies by the cookie jar

Freshly picked Michigan apple

Ingredients:
2 sticks butter, softened
1 1/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp sea salt
3 cups rolled oats
1 medium apple, peeled & chopped into very small pieces
1 cup butterscotch chips

Butterscotch Chips

Directions below:
Preheat oven to 350F.
Beat together butter, sugar & vanilla until creamy. Add eggs one at a time, beat after each. Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Then add to butter mixture gradually while mixing.
Stir in oats, apples & butterscotch chips.

Cookie Dough

This is my awesome cookie dough scoop.
It's similar to an ice cream scoop, but only one tablespoon in size.
It makes this part of cookie baking so much easier.

Madison getting a taste of cookie dough

Into the oven they go.
Bake 10-12 minutes

...until golden brown.

Let cool on the cookie sheet for 2 minutes.


Then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Enjoy!

Easter Cookies!

Sugar Cookies:
1/3 cup melted butter
1/3 cup shortening
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour

Preheat oven to 375F.
In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients.
Mix well and chill for 3 hrs.
Roll dough out on floured surface and cut.
Place cut cookies on a cookie sheet.
Bake 7-8 minutes, until lightly browned.
Let cool completely on a cooling rack,
then decorate with butter cream frosting.

Madison cutting out the cookie shapes.

We made Easter eggs, butterflies, tulips and swans.

Decorating time

Madison wanted to make a hand cookie too - so we did :)


Madison decorated this cookie

Madison admiring our lovely decorated cookies