Cookie Monsters

My sister puts the fun in cookies. 

I remember when I was very young the production of Christmas cookies was an all-afternoon artistic blitz.  My older sisters would spend hours on their colorful sculptural creations…or at least the first dozen or two were works of art, then as everyone grew weary (and full of sugar) the remaining cookies became a little more of an assembly line of decoration.  But as a young’en I was always in awe.

These current little critters are made with cookie cutters for the main shape then my sister Alice does her magic on them to develop more elaborate characters.  We enjoyed these buddies last weekend at a sisters gathering and could not stop eating them even though they were so cute.  They are basically the Bob’s Red Mill GF Shortbread mix with a few tasty additions, and assembled with a lot of creativity.

Alice’s Shortbread Art has been going on for a few years. 

Check out her other cookie artwork from 2012, 2015, and 2016.

She made the pony-cookies with their unique personalities— jumping and kicking, or standing stubbornly still and refusing to move.  We grew up with four ponies and I’m pretty sure I know which cookie represents each pony.  One doesn’t forget the ponies one grows up with, we probably spent as much or more time with them as we did any other member of the family.  One also doesn’t forget which pony kicks.

Alice’s Shortbread Cookies with Bob’s Red Mill Mix

Prep Time: 20 minutes, or much longer if you’re really getting into it!

Bake Time: 12-18 minutes, depending on the shape and size of cookies

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Beat approximately 30 seconds in a bowl or until smooth:

6 Tablespoons Butter

6 Tablespoons Coconut oil

Beat in:

1 Egg Yolk (save the egg white for brushing)

2 Tablespoons Water

1/2 teaspoon Almond Extract

In three stages slowly mix in:

1 package Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Shortbread Cookie Mix

It will be crumbly.  Add a few drops at a time to help make it more pliable and hold together:

a little Water

With your hands knead the dough until fully mixed and you can form a ball.  Divide in two balls and wrap one with plastic wrap.

Place the other dough on a silicone mat or parchment paper, then cover with plastic wrap and roll out the dough to about 1/2 inch.  This is thicker than Bob’s Red Mill recommends but they hold together better and are less likely to crumble.

Cut out cookies and carefully transfer with a metal spatula to a parchment lined baking sheet.  If the cookie cutters have a tight corner (like the tip of the star) the dough tends get stuck in the crevices—dip the cutter in a gf flour mix before each stamping to prevent sticking.  Feel free to add eyes, lines, or even gently change the shape of the cutouts to meet your vision.

Repeat with the second ball, then re-roll the edges and scraps to make more cookies. 

Brush the cookies with egg white.  Bake 12-18 minutes depending on the size of the cookies, or until the edges begin to turn light brown.

Thoroughly enjoy.

That is one cute monster head.

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“But perhaps the monsters needed to look out for each other every now and then.”

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― Sarah J. Maas, Queen of Shadows