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Cookie Baking & Decorating
Tips & Ideas
From Our Customers
and
Answers to Baking Questions
NOTE: The Rycraft recipe booklet that reads
3 cups of flour (instead of 4 cups)
for Mrs Rycraft's Cookie Stamp Shortbread has a typo.
Only 3 cups of flour doesn't work in this recipe -
less flour makes designs melt away in the oven.
We have since fixed the typo and this recipe now reads 4 cups of flour.
TIP: FREEZING COOKIES
"Hi Donna,
Thank you for your email. Yes you can freeze them for up to 6 months (possibly longer) between layers of waxed paper in an airtight container or in layers in baggies. Be sure they are completely cool, then refrigerate to cool them down even more, then freeze. Some people prefer to put the cooled cookies in the freezer (on the cooling rack or a cookie sheet) for an hour or so, and then put in the containers after they're frozen hard and won't crumble. We've done it both ways and they come out fine. We used to take dozens of cookies to the trade shows, and we'd bake them months in advance and freeze in tupperware. We had to transport them from OR to SFO or Las Vegas and so we would put paper towels inside the tupperware between the layers to cushion the cookies. The paper towels will absorb a little of the butter from the cookies. The cookies were always delicious and tasted fresh months later when we opened them. They were a hit at the shows. We hope yours are a hit too! Feel free to contact us any time with your questions. Best regards,"
Carol Rycraft
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"I am baking your recipe for cookie stamp shortbread which are delicious. I will be freezing them for 1 month. Will they be OK? Thanks,"
Donna S
From emails exchanged 10/7 and 10/8/10.
TIP: BET ON BUTTER
Start
with the right stuff. Use only butter or margarine that comes in
sticks; don't use whipped, reduced-fat or tub products. Read the label
to be sure the butter or margarine contains at least 80 percent fat;
any less means there's a higher percentage of water, which is not
recommended for baking. Printed measurements on stocks of butter make
measuring easy and convenient.
From an undated magazine clipping sent in by a customer
TIP: Use Land O'Lakes Margarine instead of BUTTER
To prevent cookie
designs from melting away in the oven, and if you cannot find a
high-fat-content butter (one with as little water in it as possible),
try using Land O' Lakes Margarine which has NO water and has good
flavor.
Tip from a customer who phoned us 9/09.
TIP: Use vegetable spray instead of vegetable oil to season stamps.
Spray Pam® on each stamp and blot with a paper towel before each use.
From Rita 4/28/04
Recipe problems:
1. The Rycraft recipe booklet that has 3 cups of flour instead of 4 cups for Mrs Rycraft's Cookie Stamp Shortbread has a type here - 3 cups doesn't work - less flour makes designs melt away in the oven.
NOTE from Rycraft: Mary Ellen is right. We have since fixed the typo re: the flour and the recipe now reads 4 cups.
2. Tip: It works well to put cookie stamp into sugar BEFORE stamping cookies.
7/22/96 from Mary Ellen Bryden, Charleston, IL (She has been baking our cookies for years – gives them as gifts)
She bakes & gives cookies as gifts; most popular cookies are: Mrs. Rycraft's Almond Butter Cookies
Mrs Rycraft's Brown Sugar Shortbread
Re: The JELLO COOKIES RECIPE: They present the most problems:
Problem: Dough (chilled or not) sticks to stamp.
Solution: Roll balls of dough in sugar. Also dip stamp in sugar before stamping the dough.
Problem: Cookies stick to baking sheet.
Solution: Need to use greased baking sheets and loosen cookies shortly after removing from oven.
From Jane Decker, Tucson, AZ – no date (collector – has stamps from 70’s & square cs)
When you use a cookie stamp, the dough should be well-chilled, but the stamp itself should be warm. This helps prevent sticking.
When you experiment, remember that baking soda and powder make cookies rise as they bake. This will blur the design.
From a magazine clipping – no date, by Mary Ryder, c/o Daily commercial, Leesburg, FL
Many years ago I purchased a shortbread press [cookie stamp] from the Canadian Craft council’s store Quest For Handcrafts in Victoria BC (long since gone). Their suggestion was to roll the dough in 1-inch-wide, long rolls and cut in 3/4- to 1-inch pieces. Place cut side on baking sheet and use cookie stamp. Really quick and a time saver. Less messy also. I’ve made the refinement of chilling the dough slightly before the cutting but not until it is stiff. If I’m in a hurry, I put a baking sheet of pressed but unchilled cookies in the freezer for a few minutes. Then bake and have a more distinct design.
P.S. My favorite is the brown sugar shortbread – receive raves each time they’re served.”
4/15/97 from Lucetta Walker (Mrs Richard J) – from Norway (made trip in 97)
Make sure you press the cookie stamp into the cookie dough hard enough to make the impressions. Dust the cookie stamp with a bit of flour, then press into the dough. I have found that most roll-out doughs do take impressions fairly well. If you are using rubber stamps, make sure the rubber impressions are deep enough to make a good impression.
Remember that the edges of the cookie will generally crack from pressing the stamp into the dough, but not all of the time.
12/6/98 from Nancy Marshall
GREAT PARTY IDEA: A COOKIE EXCHANGE
This year, try an old-time custom: Each person brings 4 dozen of the same type of cookies – 2 dozen to be set out on the dessert table, and 2 dozen boxed for the exchange. (Ask each baker to include copies of her recipe in the box.) Everyone gets a sampling of all the treats to take home.
GENERAL COOKIE BAKING TIPS:
Leave cookie sheets ungreased unless called for in the recipe or cookie dough may spread too much.
Let baking sheets COOL completely between batches of cookies. Otherwise, dough melts and spreads more than it should
Cookies stick when left on the baking sheet too long after taking them out of the oven. To unstuck them, put the sheet back in the hot oven for a minute.
Chill your rolling pin in the fridge before using; dough will roll out easily.
Don’t have time to do all your cookie baking in one day? Prepare the dough, stamp the balls of dough, or squares of dough, and cut out with cookie cutters (optional). Freeze the cutouts on layers of waxed paper in an air-tight container. When ready to bake, peel frozen shapes off the paper, place on cookie sheets and pop in the oven.
FOOD COLOR SHORTCUT
To tint frosting, candy or cookie dough without making a mess:
Place the mixtures in a zip-lock plastic bag. Add food coloring; remove air from bag and seal. Knead the bag until the color is evenly distributed. Since the dough is visible, it’s easy to add more food coloring until you have the shade you want. When you’re done, sniff off a corner of the plastic bag and squeeze out the mixture.
From a 1996 magazine clipping (edited):
Comments re: why designs melt away in the oven:
A possible solution to the problem of the cookies needing more gluten in the flour [so designs won't melt away in the oven] is to use bread flour. Bread flour has more gluten than regular flour.
12/3/97 from Helen O Alford, Roseburg, OR
Comments re: why designs melt away in the oven:
Re: Butter:
There has been a change in butters. Food merchandisers are changing a lot of the butters, adding a lot of water, perhaps as much as 1/3 of mass. The softness of the butter used shouldn’t make any difference. Look at package of butter for water content. Make sure it’s stick butter and not in a tub.
Re: gluten:
High gluten (bread flour) would work better.
2/1/98 from Tom Cochran – Science Dept, South Albany High School, Albany, OR
Comments re: why designs melt away in the oven:
To improve the shortbread so the stampings remain on the finished product the end-user may need to lower the moisture by cutting the fat content (shortening, butter or margarine) or increasing the flour to absorb more moisture. Also, powdered sugar may work better than granulated sugar.
1/3/97 from Steve Palo
MS 18W5
Pillsbury
200 South 6th St
Minneapolis, MN 55402-1464
Ph 612 330 5028
Fax 612 330 2352
Sift the flour. She uses all-purpose flour. Sifting gives less weight and more volume to the flour.
From Grace 1/29/99
Comments re: why designs melt away in the oven:
Use gluten to strengthen the dough’s ability to hold the design. Using 1 TBSP gluten for 1 c. butter and 2 c. flour is not too much.
12/7/00 from Ann Buckhardt, The Land O’Lakes Holiday Bake Hotline, 800-782-9606
The cream cheese candy recipe was a huge success for the bake table at our annual church bazaar this past fall. People could not believe the candy was homemade with such an attractive design on each of the pieces. I used peppermint extract and green food coloring and mixed green and white candy pieces on each plate. This coming fall I plan to try chocolate mints using cocoa and peppermint extract.
2/16/94 from Mrs MaryElane Fritz, Boothwyn, PA
Yesterday I bought one of your cookie stamps (the rocking horse) at a small gift shop in Millville, NY I have never seen anything like it before. By the time I had been home an hour I had my first batch of brown sugar shortbread cookies in the oven. THEY ARE DELICIOUS! Then I made the unbelieveable peanut butter cookies. Today I did the cream cheese candy. Wonderful! Thank you!
12/10/93 from Marilyn Wittkowsky, N Tonawanda, NY
I made Ginger Snaps with my cookie stamp and they turned out great! Thank you!
From Peri Greenberg, Kirkland, WA
To have your Melting Moments Shortbread *stay a beautiful white colour – bake at 250° F. for 1 hour. My mother always baked her shortbread in a very slow oven for an hour (a Scottish tradition).
* We use the same recipe except we use 1 cup butter.
From Jacklin Die Bold, Santa Barbara, CA
A HOMEMADE Idea: Tea Time Gift Basket
A gift
basket is a thoughtful yet inexpensive gift for your friends, family
and co-workers. Taking time to bake them cookies shows others how much
you care about them.
Materials
A decorative basket from a crafts store.
Grass (like what's used in Easter egg baskets OR shredded paper in a variety of colors).
Large-sized mug (or 2 if this gift is for a couple).
Various flavored or herbal teas (for the tea basket) or
a small bag of premium coffee (for the coffee basket).
Put candies inside of mug(s). Optional: wrap candies in cellophane or wrap mug in cellophane.
Put your mug(s) inside a basket filled with grass or shredded paper.
Wrap a few cookies in cellophane, tie them with a ribbon, and place in basket alongside mug(s).
Put teas and/or coffee into basket.
Nestle cookie stamp and recipe booklet in grass.
Wrap entire package in cellophane paper or colored plastic wrap.
Cookie Stamp and Cookies Basket:
Wrap 3 or 4 cookies in cellophane, and tie with ribbon. Make as many of these small packages as you like and nestle in grass in basket.
Put cookie stamp and recipe booklet in mug (2 stamps if 2 mugs).
From a loyal customer who phones. Not dated.
Stamped Candy Idea - anyone want to experiment?
“See if this (Modeling Candy) works with cookie stamps. Maybe powder the stamps with powdered sugar to prevent sticking? Try it rolled out as well as rolled in 1-inch or larger balls. Maybe cut out stamped designs with a knife or cookie cutter? Will it harden enough to hold the design?”
Recipe for Modeling Candy
A good-tasting pliable mixture for making roses and other interesting shapes.
1/2 pound Candy Melts™ confectionery coating (any color)*
1/4 cup light corn syrup
Candy Flavor (optional)
Melt Candy Melts™ according to package directions. Add heated light corn syrup and stir until thoroughly mixed. Refrigerate until mixture is easy to handle, approximately 1 hour. Roll out mixture between sheets of waxed paper or knead and shape with fingers. Use cookie stamps to imprint designs. Optional: Cut out around designs with a knife or a cookie cutter. Attach your Modeling Candy decorations to molded candy (or a fondant-covered cake?) with dots of Royal Icing or melted coating.
*Made by Wilton
Idea from Sharon Reese; Source: Wilton First Annual bonus Pullout 1984 yearbook
Cookies for a Tea Party . . .
#495 - Tea Leaves
. . . & Cookies for Fund Raising!
 #459 - The Ribbon
Dear Robin,
I wanted to thank you for your quick shipment of the stamps!!! They are wonderful!!! I also think the tea stamp is great. I have baked shortbreads already with the stamps and wanted to show you how they turned out! . . . At this point I have baked 25 dozen of the ribbon stamp and if I sell them all I'm looking at $100.00 to cancer research. I hope this explodes and I can sell more stamps and shortbreads for the cause.
Many thanks again and blessings on your beautiful Sunday!!!
Jan
Email 10/11/09 from a customer who owns a tea room.
.
“Hi Robin,
I have been meaning to write to you for over a month now because I wanted to share with you the attached image!
As you can see, the stamp you created worked perfectly and our monogrammed cookie favors were a huge hit at our wedding. I just wanted to thank you again for your time and patience in creating this mold for us and share with you the result… I greatly appreciate all that you did. Many, manfy thanks again! :) "
Kind regards,
Melissa”
Email 7/28/10 from a customer.
.
I
have been making these cookies for 25 years! It has become a family
favorite around the holidays. I am making these for an American Girl
Tea Party for 24 girls at our Library. The cookies will be highlighted
as cookies that Kirsten would have made. Thanks for helping my family
and friends make memories enjoying these great cookies.
Email
8/3/10 from a customer who tried the Almond Shortbread recipe using
some of our Swedish designs and reported her evaluation of the recipe
as excellent.
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Note: All prices in US Dollars
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