Late August cookies - Fishing, Ice Cream & Back to School

Last lazy days of summer

These cookies were made using Sweet Sugarbelle's sugar cookie recipe and royal icing recipe. ALWAYS my go-to recipe for cookies and RI - I use real vanilla extract in the cookie dough and add artificial vanilla to the RI. To me, both of these are no-fail recipes, always with excellent results.

Christmas Cookies

2012 Christmas Cookies

 Assortment boxes of 24 minis

Christmas 2012 was a great cookie Christmas! Many people wanted seasonal minis and large decorated cookies to decorate their plates of goodies for the holidays. I lost track, but dozens and dozens and dozens of cookies were rolled, cut, baked and decorated with love for holiday parties and family gatherings. Cookies included, gingerbread, vanilla and chocolate all with vanilla royal icing.

1D party cookies

Vanilla Birthday Party Cookies

This was my first time making 1D cookies. When I was asked if I could make them, I have to admit that I didn't even know what 1D was! Thank you Google! Turns out, 1D, stands for One Direction, an insanely successful boy band - I guess I'm embarrassingly behind the times!

These cookies are made with Callye Alvarado's (SweetSugarBelle) sugar cookie recipe.

Callye is crazy talented! She is my cookie guru if there is such a thing!

I made Callye's recipe but I used Nielson-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla Extract and because I love the little specks of vanilla seeds, I added a small dose of Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Paste The icing is vanilla royal icing. 

Three Layer Apple Cake

I made this cake twice - in November and for New Year's Day. The picture above is the New Year's cake and below is the birthday cake I made in November.

This apple cake was a huge success! The filling is cinnamon buttercream and the icing is vanilla buttercream. I used Neilson Massey Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla. I use this vanilla whenever possible - when the icing doesn't have to be white-white as the vanilla changes the color to off-white.

The cake is adapted from a recipe found on Martha Stewart's website. It is called John's Three-Layer Apple Cake. I pretty much followed the recipe  but I did add extra grated apple and changed the frosting - did not use the suggested frosting because I read such mixed reviews in the comments section.

I have had requests from family to have this as their new birthday cake - my nephew who doesn't usually like fruit or cake, loved this cake - his birthday is not until September so he made sure to get extra slices at New Year's. 

If you try it, let me know how you liked it in the comments.