Homemade Gifts...made pretty with help from The Container Store

It's crunch time. This is the week where I find myself making homemade gifts. I love homemade, whether baked or not. There's something special about receiving...and  making...homemade gifts.

Earlier this month, I did a little homemade gift demo at my local Container Store. You guys. Is The Container Store Gift Wrap Wonderland the most magical place on earth or what? I could, actually I DO, spend hours there every year strolling up and down the aisles deciding on the perfect wrap, ribbon, tags, boxes, and tins.

Sometimes I'm there so long, I'm afraid they might call security. But hey...they invited me to do a demo. That meant I could stay for hours on end, no questions asked. ;)

Here are three homemade gifts you can make TODAY!

Instant Chai Tea Mix


This gift is the quickest. It's perfect to have on hand when someone pops by your house with an unexpected gift. You know, you thought you were on a Christmas card friend basis only? Yeah. OK...make a few of these up today. You know you'll need it.

I'm crazy about all of the pretty gold touches here. This would be a really pretty New Year's gift as well!


You'll need:

• metallic gold lidded jar 
• gold-flecked tulle
• gold chevron gift tags
• gold rosette tie-on
• gold sharpie
• tea mix (recipe follows)

Instant Chai Tea Mix 
2 1/2 cups unsweetened instant iced tea
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups dry milk powder
1 cup French vanilla powdered creamer
1/2 cup plain powdered creamer
1 tablespoon ground cardamom
1 tablespoon ground ginger
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper

Process all ingredients in a food processor until combined and a fine powder. Place into the jar (this recipe will fill two jars). Add tulle and gift tag with instructions to place 2 tablespoons mix in a mug. Pour boiling water over. Stir and serve.


Sugar Scrubs


You might want to make extra and keep a few for yourself. Sugar scrubs are so easy to make, you'll wonder why you ever paid big bucks for them! These were totally inspired by this cute little wooden caddy at The Container Store. I just had to find a way to use them!


You'll need:

• wooden caddy
• two 4-ounce jars
• tartan plaid tape
• red and gold shred
• Avery Kraft labels
• glue dots
• mini scoop
• gift tags
• rosemary sprig
• peppermint candy
• sugar scrubs (recipe follows)

Basic Sugar Scrub 

1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup grapeseed oil

 Stir together until well blended.

For Rosemary Sugar Scrub, stir in 2 tablespoons chopped rosemary and 1/4 teaspoon rosemary essential oil.

For Peppermint Sugar Scrub, stir in 4-6 drops peppermint essential oil. Optional: add red food coloring to half and layer the scrub for a candy cane effect.


To assemble: Wrap plaid tape around the wooden tray. Place one type of scrub in each jar. Print or write the name on an Avery label and affix to top of jar. Use a glue dot to secure the peppermint to the top of the peppermint scrub jar. Use the plaid tape to secure the ends of the rosemary sprig into a wreath shape. Use more tape to affix to the top of the rosemary scrub jar. Place jars in the caddy and tuck the shred in to fill. Add a scoop and gift tag.


Decorate your own snowman cookie kit
(AKA: do you want to build a snowman...cookie?)


Of course, there would have to be a cookie gift in the mix. This one is a decorate your own snowman cookie kit. Of course, you could use any shape here. I can't decide which is cuter: the cookies or that darling red tin?!?

With this kit, you'll give the cookies plain and supply your recipient with food coloring pens to do their own decorating. I like to decorate the top cookie in the stack to give an idea.

The pictures show these done super simply with un-iced cookies. If you have more time, cover each cookie in white royal icing. (If you attended the demo, that's how they were shown.)


You'll need:

• red metal tin
• white shred
• cello bags
• holly printed parchment
• red baker's twine
• snowball ribbon
• tree gift tags
• snowman cut-out cookies
• royal icing (optional)
• food coloring pens

To assemble: Bake the cookies, and ice with white royal icing (if using). Let the cookies dry completely overnight. Decorate one cookie with food coloring pens as an example. Stack the cookies, three per bag, using holly-printed parchment between the cookies. (I used 6 cookies per kit, three cookies per bag.) Place the decorated cookie on the top of the stack. Tie each bag with baker's twine.

Fill the bottom of the tin with shred. Tie food coloring pens together using the snowball ribbon (so cute!). Place pens and packaged cookies in the tin. Add a gift tag to the top and more snowball ribbon around the tin.

Who wants to meet me at the Gift Wrap Wonderland today???

{Thank you, The Container Store for having me!} 

It's beginning to look a lot like TEXmas! Butter Pecan Cut-Out Cookies

As a cookie maker/decorator, I get asked to participate in a lot of cookie swaps. Well, let me clarify. I USED TO get asked to participate in a lot of cookie swaps. The swaps are typically between other cookie decorators or bakers, and I usually decline. Not because I don't want cookies, because I SO DO. My thought is, though, if I'm going to make cookies for someone, it's going to be for someone who isn't already make cookies all the time. Does that make sense?


Well, this is an exception. And with good reason. The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap is a cookie exchange between food bloggers. Here's the catch: the swap is all to benefit Cookies 4 Kids Cancer. Each participant donates to be a part of the swap. This year, $7,000 was raised!!!

The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap is put on by two of my favorite food bloggers, Lindsay from Love & Olive Oil and Julie from The Little Kitchen. These girls have such big hearts...and such talent...really, take a look at their blogs if you don't read them already.


So, for my cookie swap cookies, I made Merry TEXmas cookies! ;) The three bloggers I shipped cookies to don't live in Texas, but I figured I'd make them honorary residents of the Lone Star State.


The cookies themselves are a new cut-out cookie recipe. Butter (Texas) Pecan Cut-Outs. Of course, you can use pecans grown in other states, if you must. There's nothing like a Texas pecan, though.
(Read my pecan story here.)


If you're looking for an alternative to your basic cut-out cookies, try these! They are SO yummy...and you'll have to refrain from just eating the dough straight up. To make the the cookies, you'll make a pecan meal right in your food processor. The cookies also have brown sugar in the mix which adds tons of flavor as well as keeping the cookies soft.


You'll also use Butter Extract. DO NOT PANIC! Yes, it's yellow. No, it's not real butter. You'll only use 1 teaspoon per batch of cookies and it adds a LOT of butter flavor. Trust me on this one.


Butter (Texas) Pecan Cut-Outs

Texas pecans (about 3/4 cup halves)
2 1/2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup salted butter, cold and cut into chunks
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon butter extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Place the pecans on a cookie sheet and toast in the oven for 5 minutes. Remove to a plate or bowl to cool. Place the pecans in a food processor and process until a fine crumb (but not pecan butter). Measure out 1/2 cup.

Combine the 1/2 cup pecan meal, flour and baking powder, set aside.

Cream the sugar and butter. Add the egg and extracts and mix. Gradually add the flour mixture and beat just until combined, scraping down the bowl, especially the bottom. The dough will be crumbly, so knead it together with your hands as you scoop it out of the bowl for rolling.

Roll on a floured surface to about 1/4" to 3/8" thick, and cut into shapes. Place on parchment lined baking sheets (I recommend freezing the cut out shapes on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before baking) and bake for 10-12 minutes. Let sit a few minutes on the sheet, then transfer to a cooling rack.

Decorate with royal icing. I also used an airbrush for the holly background on the cookies.

To see more of the Food Blogger Cookie Swap cookies, check out the #fbcookieswap hashtag on Instagram. For more info on the swap, see the Food Blogger Cookie Swap website. Learn more about Cookies 4 Kids Cancer here.

Yay, cookies!

Butter Mint Cut-Out Candy Cookies

"...while visions of sugarplums danced in their heads."


I don't know about you, but I tend to replace sugarplums with candies and cookies. This is the best of both worlds: cookies decorated like Christmas candies. Dreamy, pastel, sweet, and sugary...perfect for a holiday dessert table to packed up and given as gifts.


These are not your average ordinary cut-out cookies, either. In honor of the holidays, these buttery cookies are flavored with peppermint and vanilla. As usual, I used Land O Lakes® Salted Butter in this recipe. Salted butter adds just the right flavor to these minty sweet cookies.


{Be sure to look for Peppermint extract, not Spearmint or plain mint. Otherwise, your cookies could end up tasting like chewing gum.}


Of course when I think of Christmas candies, candy canes immediately come to mind...along with peppermints and loopy, striped ribbon candy.

The yield varies on this recipes based on the size and shape of your cookie cutters. Making 4" cookies? You'll get about 12-15 cookies. For mini or 2" cookies, you'll get about 36 or so. The dough is easy to whip up with no chilling required...it's easy to make multiple batches in a jiffy.


Butter Mint Cut-Out Cookies

3 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup (2 full sticks) Land O Lakes® Salted Butter, cold and cut into cubes
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract

Peppermint Royal Icing
(this will cover approximately 3 dozen cookies)

4 TBSP meringue powder
1/2 cup water
1 pound powdered sugar
1 teaspoon light corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract

Preheat oven to 350. Line cookie sheets with parchment.

Whisk the flour and baking powder together. Set aside.

With an electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until well combined. Mix in the egg and extracts. Beat until combined, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. On low speed, mix in the flour in three additions until a dough forms. If some flour remains in the bowl, knead it in by hand.


On a floured surface, roll the dough to a thickness of 1/4" inch. (I like to use dough rolling guides, but you can eyeball it.) Cut into shapes and place on a cookie sheet. Freeze the cut-outs for 5-10 minutes before baking. Bake for 9-12 minutes, depending on the size of the cookie. Remove to a cooling rack to cool completely.

(The dough scraps can be gathered and re-rolled.)

Make the royal icing: In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the meringue powder and water on low speed for a few minutes. Sift in the powdered sugar. Add the corn syrup and extract. Beat on low until combined, then increase the speed to medium-high and beat for 5 minutes or more until stiff peaks form.

Divide the icing into containers and tint using gel paste food coloring. Press plastic wrap onto the top of each icing to keep it from drying.

Decorate the cookies, using a #2 tip to outline each design and/or section. To fill the outlines, thin the icing with a bit of water, stirring slowly, until is reaches the consistency of glue. A ribbon of icing dropped back into the bowl will disappear in a count of one-thousand-one, one-thousand-two.

Pour the thinned icing into squeeze bottles and fill in the outlines. Use toothpick to pop large air bubbles and guide the icing to edges and corners.


For the candy canes and green swirl candies, fill in the base color first, then after a few minutes, add on the contrasting color. (For the candy cane, it's the green stripe on the white, and the white swirl on the green for the swirl candies.)


For the peppermints, start with the white base, wait a few minutes, then add the asterisk looking icing on top. Use a toothpick to swirl the center.


For the ribbon candy, fill 2 piping bags with contrasting color (piping consistency) icing. Snip the ends, and place BOTH bags inside another piping bag fitted with a petal tip. With the large end down, pipe the icing in a zig-zag motion. (It helps to practice on a plate first to make sure both colors are coming out.)



Let the cookies dry uncovered for 6-8 hours.


Once dry, the cookies stack or package up beautifully.




Bake at 350 has partnered with Land O’Lakes for an exclusive endorsement of Land O Lakes® Butter for its Kitchen Conversations blogger program. This blog post is sponsored by Land O’Lakes.

Come back tomorrow for a Land O' Lakes giveaway just in time for Christmas!