BASEBALL MITT CUTTER
Each of these cookies features an example of how to give a flat cookie dimension. The baseball looks like its popping off the glove, an illusion I achieved by piling on the icing; the swan’s beak is outlined and painted in on top of the white flooding icing; the placement, size, and scale of the sesame seeds on the hamburger bun make the bun look curved; re-outlining just the underside of the handle on the cookie jar makes it look like you can actually grasp it.
BASEBALL MITT
beginner 
intermediate advanced
MAKES 18
what you need
TO MAKE THE COOKIES
3¾-inch baseball mitt cutter
Cookie dough of choice (here), prepared, chilled, and rolled out
Cooling racks
TO DECORATE
3 cups Royal Icing (here)
Pasteurized egg white or water
Gel food colors: chocolate brown, sunset orange, super black, whitener, bright red
5 plastic or parchment paper piping bags (here)
4 #1 tips
1 #1.5 tip
Assorted paintbrushes
- 1. Make the cookies. Cut out 18 cookies from the dough. Bake and cool as directed.
- 2. Make brown lining and flooding icing for the mitt; outline and paint in. Mix 1¾ cups royal icing in a bowl with chocolate brown and sunset orange gels to make leather brown. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency and cover with plastic wrap. Using the lining icing, outline the silhouette of the mitt, making the hand first, followed by the web between the thumb and first finger. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a paintbrush and the flooding icing, paint in the mitt. Let set until hard, 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
- 3. Make dark brown lining icing to re-outline the mitt; re-outline and make details. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Mix ¼ cup icing in a small bowl with chocolate brown gel to make dark brown for the outline. Thin to lining consistency and spoon all of it into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Re-outline the silhouette of the mitt, then make a second line running along the bottom from the pinkie to the thumb. Outline the fingers of the mitt.
- 4. Make black lining icing for the stitching and lacing; draw in the details. Mix ¼ cup royal icing in a bowl with super black gel to make black. Thin to lining consistency and spoon it all into a piping bag fitted with a #1.5 tip. Draw the stitching and lacing on the mitt, squeezing hard and moving slowly to make fatter lines.
- 5. Make white lining and flooding icing for the baseball; outline and paint in. Mix ½ cup royal icing in a bowl with whitener gel to make white for the baseball. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to thicker flooding consistency and cover with plastic wrap. Using the lining icing, outline a circle in the center of the mitt. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a paintbrush and the flooding icing, paint in the baseball, using ample icing so that it is rounded. Let set until hard, 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
- 6. Make red lining icing for the stitching; draw in. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Mix ¼ cup icing in a bowl with the bright red gel to make bright red. Thin to lining consistency and spoon all of it into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Draw the stitching on the baseball. Let set for 5 minutes.
SWAN
beginner intermediate advanced
MAKES 18
what you need
TO MAKE THE COOKIES
3¾-inch baseball mitt cutter
Cookie dough of choice (here), prepared, chilled, and rolled out
Cooling racks
TO DECORATE
2½ cups Royal Icing (here)
Pasteurized egg white or water
Gel food colors: whitener, sunset orange, super black
4 plastic or parchment paper piping bags (here)
4 #1 tips
Assorted paintbrushes
- 1. Make the cookies. Cut out 18 cookies from the dough. Bake and cool as directed.
- 2. Make white lining and flooding icing for the swan, reserving about 2 tablespoons for the eyes; outline and paint in. Mix 1¾ cups royal icing in a bowl with whitener gel to make bright white. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to lining consistency and cover with plastic wrap. Using the lining icing, outline the silhouette of the swan, making bumps for the feathers along the top and left edge of the cookie. Outline the tiny triangular space below the head and along the neck as well as the petal shape beneath where the two wings overlap. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a paintbrush and the white flooding icing, paint in the swan. Let set until hard, 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
- 3. Make lining and flooding icings: orange for the beak and black for the face. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Spoon ¼ cup into each of two bowls. Cover one with plastic wrap. To the remaining, add sunset orange gel to make orange for the beak. Thin to lining consistency and spoon 2 tablespoons into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining to flooding consistency, add whitener, and cover with plastic wrap. To the second bowl, mix in super black gel to make black for the face. Spoon 2 tablespoons into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency and cover with plastic wrap.
- 4. Outline and paint in the beak and face. Using the orange lining icing, outline the beak, using the photo as a guide for positioning it. Using the black lining icing, outline the black part of the swan’s face. Reserve the black lining icing. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a paintbrush and the orange flooding icing, paint in the beak. Using another paintbrush and the black flooding icing, paint in the black part of the face. Let set until hard, 4 to 6 hours or overnight.
- 5. Make gray lining icing and re-outline the swan and make the feathers and eye. Refresh the royal icing at medium low for 30 seconds. Mix ¼ cup icing in a bowl with super black and whitener gels to make light gray to outline the feathers. Thin to lining consistency and spoon it all into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Re-outline the swan, then draw the feathers, working in sections, beginning with the head and neck, then making the center wing and finishing with the outer feathers. Make a small dot on the black part of the face for the swan’s eye.
- 6. Make the nostril. Using the reserved black lining icing, draw a small dash on the beak for a nostril. Let set until hard, about 2 hours.
CHEESEBURGER
beginner intermediate advanced
MAKES 18
what you need
TO MAKE THE COOKIES
3¾-inch baseball mitt cutter
Cookie dough of choice (here), prepared, chilled, and rolled out
Cooling racks
TO DECORATE
4½ cups Royal Icing (here)
Pasteurized egg white or water
Gel food colors: chocolate brown, egg yellow, sunset orange, gold, ivory, whitener, lemon yellow, super black, buckeye brown, bright red, leaf green, neon green, red red
10 plastic or parchment paper piping bags (here)
9 #1 tips
1 #1.5 tip
Assorted paintbrushes
- 1. Make the cookies. Cut out 18 cookies from the dough. Bake and cool as directed.
- 2. Make golden brown lining and flooding icing for the bottom bun; make beige flooding icing for the cut side of the bottom bun. Mix 1½ cups royal icing in a bowl with chocolate brown, egg yellow, sunset orange, and gold gels to make golden brown for the bun. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency and cover with plastic wrap. Mix ½ cup royal icing in a bowl with ivory, gold, and whitener gels to make beige for the cut side of the bottom bun. Thin to flooding consistency and cover with plastic wrap.
- 3. Outline and paint in the bottom bun, including the cut side. Turn the cookie on its side so that the tip of the mitt’s thumb is at 12 o’clock. Using the golden brown lining icing, outline the side of the bottom bun, including the line that defines the cut side. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a paintbrush and the golden brown flooding icing, paint in the side of the bottom bun. Using another paintbrush and the beige flooding icing, thinly paint in the cut side of the bun, as in the photo, butting the icing up (see here) to the brown outline and thinning it out into the area where the onion and top bun overlap. Let set until dry to the touch, about 2 hours.
- 4. Make lining and flooding icings: white for the onion, dark brown for the patty, and red for the tomato. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 minutes. Fill each of three bowls with a generous ½ cup icing each. Cover two with plastic wrap. To the remaining bowl, add ivory and lemon yellow gels to make off-white for the onion. Thin to lining consistency and spoon 2 tablespoons into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency, add a little whitener, and cover with plastic wrap. To the second bowl, add chocolate brown, super black, and buckeye gels to make dark brown for the patty. Thin to lining consistency and spoon 2 tablespoons into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency, add a little whitener, and cover with plastic wrap. To the third bowl, add bright red and sunset orange gels to make tomato red. Thin to lining consistency and spoon 2 tablespoons into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency, add a little whitener, and cover with plastic wrap.
- 5. Outline the onion, patty, and tomato. Using the off-white lining icing, outline the onion, going over the bottom bun and leaving the top of the onion unlined where the patty overlaps it. Reserve the off-white lining icing. Using the dark brown lining icing, outline the patty with a jagged line, stopping where the tomato overlaps the patty on the top and the top of the bun overlaps on the right. Using the red lining icing, outline the tomato, thinning out where it overlaps with the bun. Let set for 5 minutes.
- 6. Paint in the onion, patty, and tomato. Using a paintbrush and the off-white flooding icing, paint in the onion, butting the icing up to the brown line of the patty. Using another paintbrush and the dark brown flooding icing, paint in the patty, butting the icing up to the red line of the tomato. Using another paintbrush and the red flooding icing, paint in the tomato, thinning it into the area where the bun overlaps it. Let set until hard, 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
- 7. Make more golden brown lining and flooding icing for the top bun; outline and paint in. Refresh the remaining royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Mix ¾ cup icing in a small bowl with chocolate brown, egg yellow, sunset orange, and gold gels to make the same golden brown as above. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency and cover with plastic wrap. Using the golden brown lining icing, outline the top bun, going on top of the right edges of the tomato, patty, and onion. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a paintbrush and the golden brown flooding icing, thickly paint in the top bun so that it is slightly puffy.
- 8. Make lining and flooding icings: green for the pickles and yellow for the cheese. Make lining icings: dark brown to re-outline the patty and dark red for the tomato. Fill four bowls with ¼ cup royal icing each. Cover three with plastic wrap. To the remaining, add leaf green, neon green, and chocolate brown gels to make pickle green. Thin to lining consistency and spoon 2 tablespoons into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency, add a little whitener, and cover with plastic wrap. To the second bowl, add lemon yellow and egg yellow gels to make orange-yellow for the cheese. Thin to lining consistency and spoon 2 tablespoons into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency, add a little whitener, and cover with plastic wrap. To the third bowl, add buckeye brown and super black gels to make dark brown to re-outline the patty. Thin to lining consistency and spoon all of it into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. To the fourth bowl, add bright red and red red gels to make dark red. Thin to lining consistency and spoon all of it into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip.
- 9. Outline and paint in the pickle and cheese. Re-outline the onion, patty, and tomato and make details. Using the green lining icing, outline the pickles on the bun. Reserve the green lining icing. Using the reserved off-white lining icing, re-outline the onion then draw concentric exaggerated ovals within it for the rings. Using the orange-yellow lining icing, outline the slice of cheese including the edges along the tomato. Using the dark brown lining icing, re-outline the patty, drawing jagged lines to make it look three-dimensional. Using the dark red lining icing, re-outline the tomato, then draw a second dark line just inside it to make the side of the slice. Draw the cross section of the tomato within that. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a paintbrush and the orange-yellow flooding icing, thinly paint in the cheese slice. Using another paintbrush and the green flooding icing, thinly paint in the pickles. Let set until hard, 3 to 4 hours.
- 10. Re-outline the pickles; make lining icing for and draw on the sesame seeds. Using the reserved pickle green lining icing, re-outline the pickles. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Mix ¼ cup royal icing in a bowl with ivory and whitener gels to make off-white for the sesame seeds. Thin to slightly looser than lining consistency. Spoon the icing into a piping bag fitted with a #1.5 tip and draw the sesame seeds on the top of the bun by holding the tip close to the cookie, squeezing very gently, and then pulling away quickly. Let set for 5 minutes.
COOKIE JAR
beginner intermediate advanced
MAKES 18
what you need
TO MAKE THE COOKIES
3¾-inch baseball mitt cutter
Cookie dough of choice (here), prepared, chilled, and rolled out
Cooling racks
TO DECORATE
3 cups Royal Icing (here)
Pasteurized egg white or water
Gel food colors: chocolate brown, gold, whitener, bright red, super black
6 plastic or parchment paper piping bags (see here)
6 #1 tips
Assorted paintbrushes
- 1. Make the cookies. Cut out 18 cookies from the dough. Bake and cool as directed.
- 2. Make golden brown lining and flooding icing for the cookies; outline and paint in. Mix ½ cup royal icing in a bowl with chocolate brown and gold gels to make golden brown for the cookies. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency, add a little whitener, and cover with plastic wrap. Using the lining icing, outline the silhouette of the cookies, using the fingers of the glove as a guide to make four cookies. Do not outline the cookies where the jar overlaps. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a paintbrush and the golden brown flooding icing, thinly paint in the cookies, thinning the icing where the jar overlaps. Let set until hard, 3 to 4 hours.
- 3. Make red lining and flooding icing for the jar and stripes; outline and paint in. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Mix ½ cup icing in a bowl with bright red gel to make bright red. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency, add a little whitener, and cover with plastic wrap. Using the red lining icing, outline the cookie jar, leaving the right side of the jar unlined where the lid overlaps it. Outline the stripes on the jar with four lines equidistant from one another and stopping where the lid overlaps the jar. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a paintbrush and the red flooding icing, paint in the red stripes on the jar, thinning them out where the lid overlaps the jar. Let set until hard, 4 to 6 hours.
- 4. Make dark brown lining icing to re-outline the cookies and make the chocolate chips. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Mix ¼ cup icing in a bowl with chocolate brown gel to make dark brown for the chocolate chips and to re-outline the cookies. Thin to lining consistency and spoon all of it into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Re-outline the cookies. Draw the chocolate chips by touching the cookie with the piping tip, squeezing the bag, and moving the tip slightly to make an irregular chip shape.
- 5. Make white lining and flooding icing for the stripes and lid; paint in stripes only. Mix 1¼ cups royal icing in a bowl with whitener gel to make bright white. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip; set aside. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency and, using a paintbrush, use it to paint in the white stripes on the jar, thinning out the icing where the lid overlaps. Reserve the white flooding icing. Let set until hard, about 2 hours.
- 6. Make red lining icing to re-outline the red stripes and jar. Outline and paint in the lid with white icing, re-outline the jar. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Spoon ¼ cup into a bowl and mix with bright red gel to make bright red to re-outline the stripes. Thin to lining consistency and spoon all of it into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Using the reserved white lining icing, outline the lid, going over the stripes of the jar. Using the red lining icing, re-outline the cookie jar. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a paintbrush, paint in the lid with the white flooding icing. Let set until hard, 6 to 8 hours or overnight. Reserve the white flooding icing.
- 7. Make gray lining icing and re-outline the lid and make details. Outline and paint in the handle. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Mix ¼ cup icing with super black and whitener gels to make medium gray to re-outline the lid. Thin to lining consistency and spoon all of it into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Re-outline the lid, then draw a second line just inside it to make the side of the lid. Outline an oval for a handle. Let set for 5 minutes. Stir the reserved white flooding icing well to refresh it. Using it and a paintbrush, paint in the handle. Use the gray lining icing to make a slightly thicker line on the underside of the handle. Let set for 2 to 4 hours.