Tasty Kitchen . . . Works for Me Wednesday

{Oh, you must try this Greek Pizza!}

Tasty Kitchen...have you been there?

Tasty Kitchen is the brain-child of Ree, The Pioneer Woman (y'all know Ree, right?).  It's a "happy cooking community" where real people like you and me share recipes.  Real recipes. Delicious recipes.

Every member has a recipe box...and the site is also searchable by type of dish.  Want chicken main dish? It's there.  A pizza? Yep.  Brownies?!?  Of course!

This is my recipe box.  Although there are sweet recipes, I started adding some of our savory favorites here, too.  (Including my latest obsession, Rosemary Cayenne Sweet Potato Fries...)


What I love most about Tasty Kitchen (well, besides the recipes) is that once your recipe is entered...it's printable!!!  You can print as 3x5 cards, 4x6 cards or a full page!  It's a great way to share recipes with friends...or your sister. (Hi Molly!)

Here are some I'm printing...and trying SOON!

Oregano and Lemon Chicken Souvlaki from Wenderly.  I can almost taste it now.


Creamy Caprese Pasta from How Sweet Eats.  Pretty sure my waist is expanding just from looking at the picture.


And Frozen Strawberry Squares from She Wears Many Hats.  How perfect is this for a hot summer day?

Are YOU a member of Tasty Kitchen?  Leave your member name in the comments so we can all be TK friends and share recipes!

Sprinkles and Sugars and Dragees, oh my! . . . Works For Me Wednesday

Here's a little secret about cookie decorating...everything looks cute covered in sprinkles or sanding sugar or jimmies, etc. etc.  Don't like how your cookie looks?  Cover it in sprinkles!  Instant Cute!

Here's the low-down on the different types of cookie accoutrements:


Nonpariels: These might be my favorite.  Maybe it was all of those years eating "chocolate stars" at the movies.  Remember those?  Anyone?

The multi-colored ones are really cute, too.  Can't find the mix you want?  Mix them yourself!  I mixed black and white nonpareils for these cookies.

 
Sugar Pearls: a little bigger than nonpareils and with a pearly sheen.  I have never used these, but could not resist buying these sweet pink ones.


Next we have jimmies.  Chocolate Jimmies are the most common jimmies...and every time I use them, I can't help but think of Seinfeld. "Jimmy likes these jimmies."

 
Dragees: Did you eat these as a kid?  Me, too.  Now they are for "decorative purposes only." Yeah, right.

{PS...dragee is pronounced "draah-zhA," not "drag-EE" like someone might have said in front of a group of people at THE Lodge. *blush*}  It's dragees, dahhhling.


Sparkling sugar versus sanding sugar: Sanding sugar is finer than sparkling sugar and, I think, a little more sparkly.
 
Sugars come in all sorts of colors...even gold!


And, last but not least.....SPRINKLES!!!

Repeat after me....."Sprinkles fix everything."

How to transfer flood icing to a squeeze bottle . . . Works for Me Wednesday

Over the last few weeks, I've gotten this question over and over again in the comments, in my email and on twitter:

"How do you get flood icing from the bowl into the squeeze bottles?"

Here's my secret...I don't have a secret.  I just pour it in.

Take an empty squeeze bottle,


and icing thinned for flooding,


preferably, do not try to do this while holding a camera in one hand.


Pour in s-l-o-w-l-y.


There we go; that's better.


I'm right-handed, so normally, I hold the container of icing in my left hand and with a silicone spatula in my right, carefully guide the icing into the bottle.


{Sometimes it gets messy, but usually I can make it with no spills.}

If it does plop over the side, wipe it up with a damp paper towel.

There it is...my non-secret secret.

I guessing someone has a better (neater) way.  Spill it, sister (not literally). 

How to Clean Icing Tips . . . Works for Me Wednesday

OK, remember last week's WFMW post?  It was "how to clean squeeze bottles".  I teased that this week I would post "how to clean toilets."  You guys....I scared Mr. E.  He read the post then immediately texted me.  He was worried that I used the word "toilets" on a food blog. 

{Mr. E....I love you for looking out for me. ♥  Aaand, I just used it 2 more times.}

On to cleaning icing tips...

This might be my least favorite part of cookie decorating.  The dreaded tip cleaning.

1. Let your icing bags sit on the counter for several hours, or overnight, and hope someone else will clean them.

2. Fill a glass with hot soapy water.

3. Remove the tips from the couplers.  Drop the tip and the coupler tip in the soapy water.

4. Squeeze the extra icing out of the bags.

5. Working from the small part of the bag, push the remaining piece of the coupler and work it out of the end of the bag. Place in soapy water.

6. Let the tips soak for a few minutes....several minutes if you've waited a while to clean them. *cough*

7.  Scrub the inside of the tips and couplers with a tip brush.
 
(I use the spiral looking end.  There is also a cone-shaped tip brush that is difficult to find, but awesome.)

(I do this under running water and hold the tip down, so I can see the water running through it....especially important on smaller tips.)

8. Let the tips dry on a drying rack.  They are supposed to be rust-proof.  To make doubly-sure they remain rust proof, dry with a paper towel, or stick them in a 150 degree oven for 5-10 minutes.  

That's it!   It's not too hard after all.  (But still see if your hubby will do it.)

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If you haven't visited us on University of Cookie in a while, here's what you are missing:

• Shelly's Soft Sugar Cookies (I'm SO making these!)
• a video tutorial on brush embroidery (yes, on COOKIES) from Ali B.
• a video about icing consistency from Marian
• Callye shows how she applies sanding sugar to her cookies

Come join us over at University of Cookie!  Tuition is *always* free!

How to Clean Squeeze Bottles . . . Works for Me Wednesday

The good news?  You've just decorated 5 dozen cookies.

The bad news? Your husband is on a business trip and YOU are the only one left to clean the squeeze bottles.

Truth be told, I'd much rather clean out squeeze bottles than icing tips.
{If you want more information on using squeeze bottles for flooding cookies, please visit this post.}

First, pour out the majority of the icing.


Then, fill with hot, soapy water.  Let it soak a few minutes.


Next, shake and squirt out the water; refilling with clean water.
 

Continue shaking and squirting out the water until it runs clear and is no longer soapy.  It's fun; I promise!


Now, turn upside down and let dry on a drying rack.

After a few hours, if the water hasn't all drained out, do the chopstick trick.

Here's the chopstick trick:

• twist a piece of paper towel around a chopstick,

• use the paper toweled-chopstick to dry up any lingering water drops.

{And isn't this the prettiest picture of a squeeze bottle & a chopstick you've ever seen? I know you've seen a lot.}


Voila! Clean as a whistle...and ready for your next batch of cookie decorating.

Next up, how to clean a toilet.

{I kid.}

Tips for Edible Images, Icing Printers & Frosting Sheets . . . Works for Me Wednesday

Last year, I bought an icing printer.  It hasn't been all sunshine and lollipops, but it has been kinda fun.  Here are a few of the cookies I've made using it:

 {All Saint's Day, Skeleton Bride & Groom, Terri's Birthday, Bluebird, Uncle Mike}

First, let's talk about the printer itself.  You can go one of two ways....

• buy a printer specifically made for icing printing, like the one sold here,
• or, buy a NEW printer that is compatible with the food coloring "ink" cartridges.  (A list of those printers is here.)

I bought one of the compatible printers.....I chose an Epson WorkForce 30.  (I bought it from Amazon.)

Next, let's talk "ink."  Food coloring cartridges are, well, expensive.  Go to the list of compatible printers and find the edible ink that you need.

The ink for my printer is $90.  Yes, $90!  How long does it last?  Well, it depends.  Depends on the images printed, how much ink is wasted cleaning nozzles, running print checks, etc.  My guess is, you can get 30-40 pages out of a full set of ink.

The best tip for the ink that I've found is to refill is with these ink refills.  They are $10 a color and are SO nice to have on hand when you realize that you're out of magenta and your printer won't work without it.

{Refilling the tanks can get messy and I won't pretend I know any tricks to doing it, other than batting your eyelashes and seeing if you can get your hubby to take over.  Worked for me.}

Getting ready to print:

Scan your picture or save it on your computer.  Use a photo editing software (I like PhotoScape) to crop it to the size of your cookie cutter.  The easiest way to do this is to view the image at 100% and hold your cookie cutter up to the screen.  I like to make my images just a tad smaller than the actual cutter.

Put as many pictures as you can fit into a Word or Open Office document.  I typically get 6 per sheet, of course, you'll get more if your cookies are smaller.  The frosting sheets have a printing area of 7.5 x 10".

BEFORE PRINTING:

• Run a nozzle check of the printer.
• If any colors are not printing, run the print head cleaning (you may need to run it twice).
• If one of the colors is still not printing, turn off the printer, remove the specific color and swab the nozzle with a damp QTip.
• Print a test page on a plain sheet of paper.  (Once you see that it is printing correctly, you can cancel the print job to keep from wasting ink.)

 
Now, print the image/s onto the frosting sheet. 

There are a few ways to apply the sheets.  (And, I'm only talking cookies here, not applying to cakes.)

Once printed, I find the sheets a little easier to work with if they have "aged" a little.  Now, this could be because I live in a really humid area, I don't know.  But, when I've tried to used them immediately, I have had problems with tearing.

So, if I'm using them right after printing, I leave them out on the counter for a bit....at least 15 minutes to dry out.  You don't want to leave them out too long, or they will become brittle.   If I'm not going to use them the same day, I store them in a gallon-sized baggie.  Then, before using, I'll cut them into the size needed and let them sit out while I prep the cookies.

Method #1 (my favorite): Prepare the images by cutting the size needed, set aside. Outline and fill the cookie with royal icing.  While the icing is still wet, remove the backing from the frosting sheet and gently place on the cookie.  Pat the edges and corners down.  This may make up to 48 hours to dry.

Method #2 (I used this method on these St. Patrick's Day cookies):  Prepare the images by cutting the size needed, set aside. Thin piping consistency royal icing with water until it is loosened.  It should not be runny, just easily spreadable.  Remove the backing from the image and gently cover the back with the loosened icing.  Adhere to the cookie.  Because the icing is not as wet underneath, these don't take as long to dry.  (I like this method for when you don't want to add or see a border.)

Method #3 involves brushing corn syrup on the back of the image and applying it to a dry cookie.  I haven't had any luck with this method.  The corn syrup seemed to tear and stretch the sheets and the ones that didn't tear felt sticky to the touch. 

A few more tips....

• "Hot hands" can tear the images. My hands are cold all the time....except when I decorate cookies.  If this happens to you, wash your hands in really cold water and dry thoroughly. Repeat as needed.  I also will take the ice pack for kiddo's lunchbox out of the freezer and hold onto it for a while.
• A piped or sprinkled edge is a really nice way to finish the cookies or hide uneven edges.  I love a #16 star tip!
• Use your printer once a week....even if you don't need to...to help prevent ink clogging.
• Wait AT LEAST 24 hours before packaging. Tap gently on the image to see if it's dry.
• Never use your icing printer with real ink. :)

Now, here's the real deal....would I buy one again?  I'm not sure.  It's nice to have, but the troubleshooting hasn't been fun.

If you don't have an icing printer, but want to use edible images, here's what you do.   Format your pictures and take your file on an SD card or flash drive to your local bakery supply (or even the grocery store).  Call first, but more than likely, they can print FOR you!  Our bakery supply charges about $7 per sheet.

I'm not an expert at these edible images, so if I come across any other tips, I'll be sure to pass them along!

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I know this post is LOOOOONG and wordy, so bear with me.  I want to let you know about a really neat event I'm participating in...and you can, too!

I’m co-hosting an upcoming class in the Web’s first-ever virtual cooking school, Cooking Connections, and I would love for all of you to participate! Here’s what you need to know:

When: Wednesday, March 9, at 1 p.m. ET

Where: TheMotherhood – here is the link to the page where the class will be held.

And here is the registration page for all Cooking Connections classes.

What: The class I am co-hosting is called “Sweet Treats,” and it is hosted by Julie Mastbrook (Mommie Cooks) and Kristen Doyle (Dine and Dish ). We all will be sharing our best resources for finding sweets; sweet snack suggestions and recipes for when we’re craving just a taste of sugar; and dessert recipes with kid-friendly instructions and cleanup, so your children can help you whip up delicious creations!

The class is sponsored by ConAgra and hosted by TheMotherhood.

I hope to see you there!

My other fabulous co-hosts are:

Cheryl Sousan, Tidy Mom
Kristan Roland, Confessions of a Cookbook Queen
Monet Moutrie, Anecdotes and Apple Cores
Dennis Littley, More than a Mountfull
Kim Kopp, Quit Eating Out
Naomi Robinson, Bakers Royale
Robyn Stone, Add a Pinch
Rebecca Spivack, Let It Marinate
Kaitlin Flannery, Whisk Kid
Cate O'Malley, Sweetnicks
Faith Gorsky, An Edible Mosaic

What to do when good icing goes bad . . . Works for Me Wednesday

OK....let's say you're decorating cookies.  You are planning to put a pretty piped border along the edge like this:

{These are Uncle Mike's cookies, in case you missed 'em.}

But, hypothetically, your hubby wants to take the family out for lunch and pick up the piano you bought for $99 that is still sitting at Goodwill.  And let's say, you get to Goodwill and the piano is too big to fit in the SUV, so you have to run to Home Depot and rent a truck.  Hypothetically.

By the time you get back home and are ready to get piping (I kinda love that expression "get piping"), the icing you stashed in the fridge is a little less that stiff.

As a matter of fact, it looks like this....

What to do?

1st: First, stir in sifted powdered sugar.  I always have a little powdered sugar shaker in my kitchen for dusting on pancakes, etc.  Start there.  Keep adding until it feels stiff again.

2nd: Try piping on a a plate or a paper towel.  (I was using a #16 star tip here.)  Does the pretty little "shell" pattern stay, or does it get runny?

3rd: If the icing still not stiff enough, pop in back in your mixer bowl, add some more powdered sugar and with the paddle attachment, beat it on medium until stiff peaks form again.

Voila!