Christmas cake lights with a small batch of royal icing and mini M & Ms as Christmas lights.
Recipe for small-batch kingdom icing on trial and error processes, because I want one that we can spread with a knife. I firmly believe cookies for children must not need a cookie bag. To achieve this, though, you need to make and use the icing kingdom right away. I spoon a small spoon of icing into the center of the cookie, and then spread it with an off-set spatula. Icing will spread a small amount of its own, but for the most part, it will dry in place.
Ingredients :
- 1 egg yolk
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
- 3/4 cup flour, plus extra for rolling
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- pinch of salt
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1/4 cup sugar
For the small-batch royal icing:
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 large egg white
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
For decorating:
- 1 small tube of black icing for writing
- handful mini M&Ms
Instructions :
- In a small bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt.
- In a medium bowl, beat together with an electric butter and sugar mixer. So light and soft, add eggs and vanilla and almond extract.
- Once well inserted, sprinkle more than half of the flour mixture and beat gently until combined, then sprinkle over the rest. Beat until the flourless lines remain, but be careful not to over the mixture.
- Counter top clean dust with flour, and throw the dough out onto it. Collect it into a ball and press it to 1/2 "thick round the disk. Flour the rolling pin, then roll the dough out big enough to cut the shape around 8. Place the shape on the baking sheet coated with parchment paper or silicone mat. Collect the pieces of dough and re- roll to cut 4 other forms and place them in the cookie sheet, you must get 12 cookies.
- Place the cookie sheet in the freezer for a minute while you heat the oven to 350.
- After the oven is hot, bake the cake for 10-12 minutes, until the edge of the cookie only starts to turn brown. Let them sit on the sheet a few minutes before moving the wire rack to cool it completely.
- After the cookie is completely cooled, make the kingdom of icing: in a small bowl, combine powdered sugar and lemon juice.
- Beat the egg whites in a small bowl to loosen them, and then measure 2 tablespoons of egg white and add them to the bowl with sugar.
- Shake it along with the icing, start slowly, and believe that the sugar will melt and it will become liquid. Resist the urge to add any more liquid to the bowl, and instead just keep the whisk slowly.
- When the icing comes together, spoons a small amount into each cookie, and using an off-set spatula spreads almost to the edge.
- Let the icing kingdom harden completely on the cookie before continuing.
- Pipe two thin black stripes into each cookie, and then press mini M & Ms sideways (see photo for reference).