Autism Awareness Rose Cookies

Today on The Cookie Puzzle, we have a very special guest.  April is Autism Awareness Month, and today is the last day of April, so it seems only fitting that I have an Autism related post.

Last year, I went all out and hosted a "I am Blogging for Autism Awareness" EVENT, every day of the month had an Autism Awareness Post, Guest hosted by a different blogger.  This year, I did not have it in me to coordinate such an event, maybe next year I will try it again.

Anyway....I will now turn my blog over to Stephanie.  Stephanie blogs over at Ellie's Bites Decorated Cookies, she is MEGA talented.  She make AMAZING cookies like These, and These and THESE!

So...I love Stephanie...she is a great friend..and has two of the most adorable kiddos on the planet!

Take it away Steph!


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Hi! I'm Stephanie from Ellie's Bites. I'm honored that Kim let me take over her page again this year! Last year, I made these  but I didn't get a chance to actually make anything to send to Cookies For iPads. This year, I made a promise to myself that I would send some cookies out, and although I only made nine cookies, I did it. AND I made a tutorial, AND I talked Kim into letting me share it with you!

Again, I made these really simple to do. What you'll need is:

1. A cookie (any shape will do, base coated in the color of your choice. You can use royal icing or glaze- any icing that hardens to the touch. Light colors will work best- I used a light ivory. Allow the base coat to dry for several hours or over night.)

2. A puzzle piece (raid your kids' toy box.)

3. Glad Press and Seal

4. An airbrush or Wilton's color mist in a color that complements and will show up well on your base coat.

5. Piping icing in the same color as, or a complementary color of, your cookie's base coat.

1- Using the Press and Seal, wrap your puzzle piece. Make sure to press it into the contours. This will protect the puzzle piece from the spray, and also protect the cookies from the grimy fingerprints that your children have surely left all over that puzzle piece. 

2- Lay the puzzle piece in the center of the cookie, hold it in place with the handle of a paintbrush, or a chopstick, and lightly spray over it with the airbrush color. 

3- I went over a second time keeping a smaller diameter in the second pass in order to make a shaded effect on the cookie. Carefully remove the puzzle piece. Wait a few minutes for the color to dry.

4- Use the piping icing to outline the shape of the puzzle.

You can stop there. I kept going and made my cookie the shape of a rose. 

As I was making these, I forgot exactly WHY I had chosen to use a flower shape. Certainly the technique would work on a circle, plaque, or especially a heart. You could even move the piece around and create a collage of puzzle pieces on the cookie instead of only one central puzzle shape. When I try to remember why I chose a flower specifically, I can only think of words like: individuality, beauty, uniqueness, variety.... 

Thank you Kim, for letting me share with you today!

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Thank you so much Stephanie!  I love these cookies...and you too!