Well, why not buy two of them? Get one that is slightly larger than the other and make Shamrock Dipped Shortbread Cookies. Of course this idea will work with any cookie cutters, from rounds and squares to heart shapes and so forth. It is simpler than the Linzer Cookies, which are double-decker jobs held together with jam or other filling.
Another item that you can find in stores for cookie decoration--I find it at Walmart near Costco adjacent to Tucson's Interstate 10--is rolled fondant that can be cut and placed on top of a cookie as instant frosting. That is where the two sizes of cookie cutters comes in.
A very simple way to make the Shamrock Dipped Shortbread Cookies would be to "frost" them with rolled, cut fondant and then dip one half into melted chocolate. But you don't have to stop there, actually.
Green mint chocolate chips can be melted for the dip that I saw in an online article, in which the cookie was dipped half in the green and half in the chocolate. That would really be good with a shortbread cookie.
But you can even go that one better if you include Baileys Irish Cream Liqueur in the recipe. I have adapted an online recipe to simplify the procedure. Just bake the cookies and then you can decorate them any way you like.
BAILEY'S COOKIE CUTOUTS
Ingredients:
2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
1-1/2 cups sugar
1 egg at room temperature
1 egg yolk at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup Bailey's Irish Cream Liqueur
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Whisk the dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl and set it aside.
Place the sugar and butter in a mixing bowl and beat them together. Add the egg and the egg yolk one at a time and mix well. Add the vanilla and Bailey's and mix briefly.
Add the dry ingredients on the lowest setting of your mixer. When the dough is combined, refrigerate it for at least 1 hour.
When the dough is cold and pliable, roll it out 1/4 inch thick and cut into your shamrock shapes. Place them on a cookie sheet and bake for 12 minutes, then check for doneness. The cookies should be just slightly golden around the edges, not browned.
Allow all the cookies to cool to absolute room temperature and decorate by dipping one half into melted chocolate and the other side into melted green chips. Or place cut rolled fondant atop each cookie for instant frosting.
If you can find green fondant, so much the better.
This is just the beginning for this idea. Once you have begun making these cookies--which can be made with other liqueur flavors like Cointreau--you can then move on to other dipping mediums such as white chocolate or whatever else you come across.
Comments