TEACUP CUTTER
Two cookie designs in this group—the Teacup and the Stork—feature wet-on-wet dots, a technique used when you want dots to appear as part of the material and not rise above it.
You can use this technique on other cookies in the book such as the Heart (here), Wedding Cake (here), and Easter Bunny (here).
TEACUP
beginner 
intermediate advanced
MAKES 24
what you need
TO MAKE THE COOKIES
2¾-inch teacup cookie 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: whitener, sunset orange, chocolate brown, gold
5 plastic or parchment paper piping bags (here)
4 #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 white lining and flooding icing for the saucer; outline and paint in. Mix 1 cup royal icing in a bowl with whitener gel to make white. 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 white lining icing, outline the saucer, leaving the area bare where the teacup overlaps the saucer. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a medium paintbrush and the flooding icing, paint in the saucer, thinning the icing where the teacup overlaps. Let set until hard, 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
- 3. Make orange lining and flooding icing for the teacup; make white icing for the polka dots. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Mix 1 cup royal icing with sunset orange gel to make orange for the teacup. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining to flooding consistency, add whitener, and cover with plastic wrap. Mix ¼ cup royal icing with whitener gel to make white for the polka dots. Thin to a consistency that’s slightly looser than lining icing but not as loose as flooding icing. Spoon into a piping bag fitted with a #1.5 tip and set aside.
- 4. Outline and paint in the teacup. Make the dots. Using the orange lining icing, outline the silhouette of the teacup without the handle, going over the top of the saucer and including the foot of the cup. Next, outline the handle. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a medium paintbrush and the orange flooding icing, paint in the teacup including the handle. While the icing is still wet, use the loose white lining icing to drop dots into the orange icing of the teacup, spacing them to create a polka-dot pattern—you can make them where the tea will go because they will be covered. Let set for 4 to 6 hours.
- 5. Make lining and flooding icing for the tea. Make orange lining icing and re-outline the cup; make details. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Mix ½ cup icing with chocolate brown and gold gels to make light brown for the tea. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to thin flooding consistency, add whitener, and cover with plastic wrap. Mix ¼ cup royal icing in a bowl with sunset orange gel to make darker orange to re-outline the teacup. Thin to lining consistency and spoon it all into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Using the darker orange lining icing, re-outline the teacup, including the foot and handle, and pipe an oval for the mouth of the teacup. Re-outline the saucer and pipe another oval inside the saucer around the foot of the teacup.
- 6. Outline the tea and paint in. Using the light brown lining icing, outline the top edge of the tea, just below the back lip of the teacup. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a medium paintbrush and the light brown flooding icing, paint in the tea, butting the icing up (see here) to the outline of the front lip of the teacup. Let set until hard, 2 to 3 hours.
ROTARY PHONE
beginner intermediate advanced
MAKES 24
what you need
TO MAKE THE COOKIES
2¾-inch teacup cookie 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: royal blue, 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 lining and flooding icing for the phone; outline and paint in. Mix 1¼ cups royal icing in a bowl with royal blue and whitener gels to make light blue for the telephone. 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. Turn the cookie upside down so the teacup’s saucer is at the top. Using the lining icing, outline the silhouette of the phone, including the receiver, taking care to leave space under it. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a medium paintbrush and the light blue flooding icing, paint in the phone. Let set until hard, 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
- 3. Make lining icing to re-outline the phone and make details; make flooding icing for the dial pad. Re-outline and paint in. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Mix ½ cup royal icing in a bowl with royal blue and whitener gels to make a darker blue to re-outline the phone. 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 ¼ cup royal icing with royal blue and whitener gels to make lighter blue for the background of the dial. Thin to flooding consistency and cover with plastic wrap. Using the darker blue lining icing, re-outline the phone, then make the details on the receiver, the rectangles that hold it up, the curved line at the bottom of the phone, and the cord. Draw a big circle in the middle of the phone. Let set for 5 minutes. Reserve the darker blue lining and flooding icing. Using a small paintbrush and the lighter blue flooding icing, paint in the circle. Let set until hard, 3 to 4 hours.
- 4. Make white lining and flooding icing for the dial; outline and paint in. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Mix ½ cup icing with whitener gel to make white for the dial. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining to flooding consistency and cover with plastic wrap. Using the white lining icing, draw a smaller circle inside the lighter blue circle. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a small paintbrush and the white flooding icing, thinly paint in the circle. Let set until hard, 2 hours.
- 5. Draw details; paint in. When the white flooding icing is set, use the reserved darker blue lining icing to draw a small circle in the middle of the white circle. Use the tip to draw the finger holes on the white icing. Using another small paintbrush and the reserved darker blue flooding icing, paint in the small circle.
GRADUATION CAP
beginner intermediate advanced
MAKES 24
what you need
TO MAKE THE COOKIES
2¾-inch teacup 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: regal purple, whitener, egg yellow
Black fine-tipped edible marker (optional)
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 lining and flooding icing for the cap; outline and paint in. Mix 1¼ cups royal icing in a bowl with regal purple gel to make deep purple for the cap. Thin to lining consistency and spoon ¼ cup into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining to flooding consistency, add whitener, and cover with plastic wrap. Turn the cookie upside down so the teacup’s saucer is at the top. Using the purple lining icing, outline the silhouette of the cap, leaving space on the left side of the cookie for the tassel. Let set for 5 minutes. Reserve the purple lining icing. Using a large paintbrush and the purple flooding icing, paint in the cap. Let set until hard, 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
- 3. Make white lining icing to re-outline the cap and make details; make yellow lining and flooding icing for the tassel. Re-outline, outline, and paint in. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Mix ¼ cup icing with whitener gel to make white for re-outlining the cap. Thin to lining consistency and spoon all of it into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Mix ½ cup royal icing in a bowl with egg yellow gel to make orange-yellow for the tassel. 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 whitener, and cover with plastic wrap. Using the white lining icing, re-outline the cap and include the detail to square off the top. Make an oval in the center of the top of the cap for the button. Let set for 5 minutes. Using the orange-yellow lining icing, outline the silhouette of the tassel, then connect it to the cap with a line to the button. Let set for 5 minutes. Reserve the orange-yellow lining icing. Using a small paintbrush and the orange-yellow flooding icing, paint in the tassel. Let set for 1 hour.
- 4. Re-outline the tassel and draw in details. Using the reserved orange-yellow lining icing, re-outline the tassel and draw in the lines for texture. Let set for 15 minutes. Using the reserved dark purple lining icing, make a line across the tassel for the tie. Alternatively, use a black fine-tipped edible marker to draw the line.
STORK
beginner intermediate advanced
MAKES 24
what you need
TO MAKE THE COOKIES
2¾-inch teacup cookie cutter
Cookie dough of choice (here), prepared, chilled, and rolled out
Cooling racks
TO DECORATE
2¾ cups Royal Icing (here)
Pasteurized egg white or water
Gel food colors: whitener, royal blue, sunset orange, super black
7 plastic or parchment paper piping bags (here)
6 #1 tips
1 #1.5 tip
Black fine-tipped edible marker (optional)
- 1. Make the cookies. Cut out 24 cookies from the dough. Bake and cool as directed.
- 2. Make lining and flooding icings: white for the stork and light blue for the bag; outline and paint in the stork. Mix 1 cup royal icing in a bowl with whitener gel to make white. 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 royal blue and whitener gels to make light blue for the stork’s sack. 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. Position the cookie so that the teacup’s handle is at the top. Using the white lining icing, outline the silhouette of the stork, not including the beak. Follow the curve of the top and right edge of the cookie for the head, neck, and wing. Draw bumps along the bottom right edge of the cookie for feathers. Leave enough space on the left side of the cookie for the sack. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a medium paintbrush and the white flooding icing, paint in the stork. Let set for 4 to 6 hours.
- 3. Outline the sack and paint in. Make loose white lining icing for the dots; make dots. While the white flooding icing sets, use the light blue lining icing to outline the sack so that it reaches the bottom left edge of the cookie. Let set for 5 minutes. Mix ¼ cup royal icing in a bowl with whitener to make white for the polka dots. Thin to a consistency that’s slightly looser than lining icing but not as thin as flooding icing. Spoon all of it into a piping bag fitted with a #1.5 tip. Using a medium paintbrush and light blue flooding icing, paint in the sack. While the icing is still wet, use the bag of looser white lining icing to drop small white dots of icing into the light blue flooding icing. Space the white dots apart so they make a polka-dot pattern on the sack. Let set until hard, 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
- 4. Make orange lining and flooding icing for the beak; make gray lining icing to re-outline the stork. Outline, paint in, and re-outline. Refresh the royal icing on medium low for 30 seconds. Mix ¼ cup royal icing in a bowl with sunset orange gel to make bright orange for the beak. Thin to lining consistency and spoon 2 tablespoons into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Thin the remaining icing to flooding consistency and cover with plastic wrap. Mix ¼ cup royal icing with a toothpick each of super black and whitener gels to make light gray for re-outlining the stork. Spoon it all into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Using the orange lining icing, outline the silhouette of the beak, going over the sack for the top of the beak and stopping at the sack for the bottom of the beak. Let set for 5 minutes. Using a small paintbrush and the orange flooding icing, paint in the beak. Let set for 1 hour. Meanwhile, using the light gray lining icing, re-outline the stork, then make the feather details and the lines indicating the wing and the head.
- 5. Make lining icings: darker orange to re-outline the beak and darker blue for the sack. Re-outline and make details. Spoon 3 tablespoons royal icing into each of two bowls. Cover one with plastic wrap. To the remaining, add sunset orange gel to make a darker orange to re-outline the beak. Thin to lining consistency and spoon it all into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. To the second bowl, add royal blue and whitener gels to make darker blue to outline the sack. Thin to lining consistency and spoon it all into a piping bag fitted with a #1 tip. Using the darker orange lining icing, re-outline the beak and make a line to separate the top and bottom and a dot for the nostril. Using the darker blue lining icing, re-outline the sack, moving around the beak. Using the darker blue or lighter gray lining icing, make a dot for the stork’s eye. Alternatively, use a black fine-tipped edible marker to draw in the eye. Let set for 10 minutes or until dry.