FOOTBALL CUTTER
The only challenge I found with the football was deciding which of the many images I came up with to keep in this book. A horse’s head, an eyeball, a classic Thanksgiving turkey, a holiday ornament—these are the shapes that got away. Every cookie in this group is perfect for first-time decorators (or experienced ones with little time to spare). Take liberties with the Leaf. Ice it in orange and yellow for autumn. And try the lips in various shades. They’re perfect for Valentine’s Day.
FOOTBALL
beginner 
intermediate advanced
MAKES 24
what you need
TO MAKE THE COOKIES
3½-inch football cookie cutter
Cookie dough of choice (here), prepared, chilled, and rolled out
Cooling racks
TO DECORATE
2¼ cups Royal Icing (here)
Pasteurized egg white or water
Gel food colors: chocolate brown, super black, whitener
3 plastic or parchment paper piping bags (here)
3 #1 tips
Assorted paintbrushes
- 1. Make the cookies. Cut out 24 cookies from the dough. Bake and cool as directed.
- 2. Make dark brown lining and flooding icing for the football; outline and paint in. Mix 1½ cups royal icing in a small bowl with chocolate brown and super black gels to make dark brown for the football. Do not make it too dark or the color may dry splotchy. 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 the bowl with plastic wrap. Using the lining icing, outline the silhouette of the football, following the shape of the cookie but leaving the ridged section bare. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a paintbrush and the flooding icing, paint in the football. Let set until hard, 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
- 3. Make white lining and flooding icing for the stripes and lacing; outline and paint in. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Mix ½ cup icing with the whitener gel to make white for the stripes and lacing. 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 laces on the top of the football and the stripes at either end. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a paintbrush and the flooding icing, paint in the laces and stripes. Let set until hard, 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
- 4. Make darker brown lining icing for the seam and outline. Mix 2 tablespoons royal icing in a bowl with chocolate brown and super black gels to make a slightly darker brown for the seam. Thin to lining consistency and spoon all of it into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Make the horizontal seam on the football, dipping the line slightly in the middle. Let set for 1 hour.
LEAF
beginner intermediate advanced
MAKES 24
what you need
TO MAKE THE COOKIES
3½-inch football cookie cutter
Cookie dough of choice (here), prepared, chilled, and rolled out
Cooling racks
TO DECORATE
2 cups Royal Icing (here)
Pasteurized egg white or water
Gel food colors: leaf green, whitener, chocolate brown, bright red, lemon yellow, super black (or black fine-tipped edible marker)
4 plastic or parchment paper piping bags (here)
3 #1 tips
1 #1.5 tip
Assorted paintbrushes
- 1. Make the cookies. Cut out 24 cookies from the dough. Bake and cool as directed.
- 2. Make green lining and flooding icing for the leaf; outline and paint in. Mix 1½ cups royal icing in a bowl with leaf green gel and, if desired, a toothpick of chocolate brown to make a slightly dull green, for the leaf. 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 leaf, making the edges somewhat jagged. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a paintbrush and the green flooding icing, paint in the leaf. Let set overnight.
- 3. Make dark green lining icing to re-outline the leaf and make the veins. Refresh the remaining royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Mix ¼ cup royal icing with leaf green and chocolate brown gels to make dark green to outline the leaf and make the veins. Thin to lining consistency and spoon all of it into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Re-outline the leaf, then make a line down the center from tip to tip. Make the veins on the cookie from the center line to the edges.
- 4. Make red and yellow lining icings for the ladybug and caterpillar. Mix 2 tablespoons royal icing in a bowl with bright red gel paste to make red for the ladybug. Thin to slightly looser than lining consistency (you want the ladybugs to spread out a bit) and spoon all of it into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Mix 2 tablespoons icing with lemon yellow gel to make bright yellow for the caterpillar. Thin to slightly looser than lining consistency and spoon all of it into a piping bag fitted with a #1.5 tip.
- 5. Make the ladybugs and caterpillar; make black dots and lines. Using the red lining icing, make the ladybugs by setting the piping tip at a 45-degree angle on the cookie and squeezing the piping bag to make a small dot; make the dots slightly different sizes. Using the yellow lining icing, make the caterpillar using the same method and squeezing five or so narrow ovals onto the leaf in an arc, leaving a space after each one. Let set for 10 minutes. To finish the caterpillar, squeeze three additional yellow ovals in between the existing yellow ovals. Squeeze a slightly larger dot at one end for the caterpillar’s head. Let set for 30 minutes. Using either a small paintbrush and super black gel to make black watercolor (see here) or a black fine-tipped edible marker, paint or draw the dots on the ladybug as well as the stripes and antennae on the caterpillar.
LIPS
beginner intermediate advanced
MAKES 24
what you need
TO MAKE THE COOKIES
3½-inch football cookie cutter
Cookie dough of choice (here), prepared, chilled, and rolled out
Cooling racks
TO DECORATE
2 cups Royal Icing (here)
Pasteurized egg white or water
Gel food colors: bright red, whitener
2 plastic or parchment paper piping bags (here)
2 #1 tips
Paintbrush
- 1. Make the cookies. Cut out 24 cookies from the dough. Bake and cool as directed.
- 2. Make lining and flooding icing for the lips. Mix 1½ cups royal icing in a bowl with bright red gel to make 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.
- 3. Outline and paint in the lips. Using the red lining icing, outline the silhouette of the lips, making sure to shape the upper lip as in the photo. Let set for 5 minutes. Using the paintbrush and the flooding icing, paint in the lips. Let set until hard, 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
- 4. Make lining icing to re-outline lips and make detail. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Mix ¼ cup icing with bright red gel paste to make a slightly darker red for re-outlining. Thin to lining consistency and spoon into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Re-outline the lips, then make a horizontal line with a slight dip in the center from tip to tip. Let set for 1 hour.
LEMON
beginner intermediate advanced
MAKES 24
what you need
TO MAKE THE COOKIES
3½-inch football cookie cutter
Cookie dough of choice (here), prepared, chilled, and rolled out
Cooling racks
TO DECORATE
2 cups Royal Icing (here)
Pasteurized egg white or water
Gel food colors: lemon yellow, whitener, neon green, leaf green, chocolate brown
3 plastic or parchment paper piping bags (here)
3 #1 tips
Assorted paintbrushes
- 1. Make the cookies. Cut out 24 cookies from the dough. Bake and cool as directed.
- 2. Make yellow lining and flooding icing for the lemon; outline and paint in. Mix 1½ cups royal icing in a bowl with lemon yellow gel to make yellow. Stir in a drop of whitener. 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 lemon, disguising the ridges on the side of the cookie. Using a paintbrush and the flooding icing, paint in the lemon. Let set until hard, 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
- 3. Make green lining and flooding icing for the leaves; paint in. Mix ¼ cup royal icing in a bowl with neon green and leaf green gels to make green for the leaves. 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. Using the lining icing, outline two leaves on one end of the lemon, then draw a stem from the leaves to the point. Using a paintbrush and the flooding icing, paint in the leaves.
- 4. Make brown lining icing for the dots on the lemon; make the dots. Mix ¼ cup royal icing with chocolate brown gel to make brown. Thin to lining consistency and spoon it all into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Make a few small dots on opposite sides of the lemon, as shown. Let set until hard, about 3 hours.