Cookie decorating with the neighbours

We are unashamedly obsessed with hanging out with our next door neighbours. In January last year the Hayes family moved in next door and after getting to know them really well, really quickly, it's been more or less a non stop riot ever since. If I am missing, the kids assume I am next door and are more often than not right... Joseph is always next door with Gracie, Maddie and Charlee hang out all the time - and little Kinsley and Alex love each other too. Could not have possibly worked out better if we had ordered them from a catalogue. When Luke and Karalee listed their house I was so worried, because we got along so well, but it has worked out like a dream. We are constantly passing things back and forth, lending things, passing on clothes, sharing cooking - and laughing all the time.

On Monday, it was Valentine's Day and the older girls came over to decorate cookies with Madeline. I have no idea what happened to the photos of the decorated cookies, but this one photo is all I have. Day after day these kids can be found hanging out together and there is nothing that brings them more joy.

valentine's day cookies with the madi's

doug and i never really celebrate valentine's day, but i think it's something fun for kids, you know "the day of love" and all that. so when we had to stop by madeline's friend madison's house to collect some ballet shoes, i decided to be nice to the girls and make some cookies for them to decorate. we took over pink icing and some things to top them with and the girls got to work. they were having so much fun, all i could hear was giggling and lots of talking as i chatted to madison's mum on the other side of the bench. really the cookies were just a distraction so i could have some adult conversation...shhh. haha

i used my favourite cookie recipe from here (i love it cause it's no chill and can be used straight away) and let madeline cut them all out

baked at home...

then threw them in a box to take over.

for the icing, we just used the free icing mix that comes with store bought cupcake mix with pink food colouring added - and whatever we could find in both my cupboard and theirs.

they got pretty inventive though, i was impressed.

and little brother was even allowed to taste test!

i had the best afternoon with these little valentines. ❤

holy ghost cookies

i am a weirdo. i like to pull off little unexpected fun things for a laugh. today was no exception. it was halloween yesterday and i decided i was going to make some cookies and decorate them for the girls i minister to and some other close mates.

here's the quirk - i decided to make them religious halloween style hahahaha.

i came across this little picture on the internet and decided holy ghost cookies were a go - and used the recipe i've been using as a go to for years, going all the way back to the pineapple cookies i did for madeline's fifth birthday!

best sugar cookies from in katrina's kitchen

Ingredients:

226 grams unsalted butter

1 cup granulated white sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1 egg

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 cups plain flour 

Instructions

Preheat oven to 160 degrees celcius (fan forced).

In a mixer, cream butter and sugar until smooth, at least 3 minutes

Beat in extracts and egg. Almond extract can be switched out for more vanilla, lemon, maple, peppermint…

In a separate bowl, combine baking powder and salt with flour and add a little at a time to the wet ingredients.

If the dough looks crumbly keep mixing for 30 seconds to 1 minute longer. The dough should be pulling away from the sides of the mixer.

Dough does not need to be chilled. Divide into workable batches (2-3 chunks), roll out onto a floured surface, and cut. You want these cookies to be on the thicker side (closer to 1/4 inch rather than 1/8).

Bake at 160 degrees for 6-8 minutes. Let cool on the cookie sheet until firm enough to transfer to a cooling rack.

so easy and even easier to decorate - i simply spread them with melted white chocolate and then stuck little candy eyes on while it was still soft.

into bags and out to friends. so easy and so. much. fun! i can live up to my weirdo status for yet another year hahaha.

holiday cookie decorating

my favourite little mates did some hard core cookie decorating as part of their holiday hang out. hannah and hayley unfortunately couldn't make it to madeline's birthday party on the weekend, so we organised a little holiday catch up with cookie decorating. i don't know who was more excited, the kids or us mums. probably us. haha.

i baked up some cookies this morning and then julia turned up with some too so we had plenty to decorate and oh did we have a good time.

jen left the last of the icing bags she had used to make the cookies and cake for madeline's birthday behind and we sure put them to good use.

they giggled, they talked non stop and they made one heck of a mess

but ended up with some pretty amazing creations.

us mums were allowed to participate when they realised how many cookies they actually had and these are mine on the left haha.

this was the aftermath. it took quite some time to clean all the icing off of the bench.

highly recommend cookie decorating for a holiday activity. we had a ball and have enough cookies to last for weeks!