Edible "GLEE" Sugar Cookies - Daring Bakers' September 2010 Challenge

I had a grand plan for making "Glee feat, Lady Gaga-themed" sugar cookies but a small mishap occurred while making this month's Daring Bakers' Challenge.

I am a Gleek (Glee fan) like many of you and my favourite has to be the Lady Gaga episode. I also love this video of the Glee cast performing "Bad Romance" live in Phoenix, Arizona!

What caught my eyes were the silver shoes inspired by Alexander McQueen's Armadillo Shoes that Chris Colfer (Kurt Hammel) wore during the live performance (at 1:48). It was the stand out! So my plan was to create both Glee and THOSE shoes!

"What happened then?" You might think.

Look at these unbaked cookies. They are perfectly shaped with a G and double E for Glee + THE Alexander McQueen's Armadillo Shoes which Lady Gaga wore on numerous occasions. Sadly, after baking them, someone came back from work, hungry, and picked up two pieces of the cookies. They subsequently vanished into his stomach within seconds... Mr J thought they were a leftover because he doesn't listen to pop nor is he into avant-garde fashion. Hence, he had no idea those were a pair of SHOES!

There went my grand plan to make a pair of Edible Armadillo Shoes. I was too devastated to make them all over again and went ahead with what was left on the plate.

I made the cookies and Miss C helped with the decorations. It was nothing fancy really, we simply smeared a layer of royal icing and sprinkled heaps of pink sugar crystals on them. Miss C had the most fun making them and eating them!

And me.... still angry with the hungry wolf destroying my only pair of Alexander McQueen's Armadillo Shoes!

The September 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Mandy of “What the Fruitcake?!” Mandy challenged everyone to make Decorated Sugar Cookies based on recipes from Peggy Porschen and The Joy of Baking.

Basic Sugar Cookies Recipe
Makes Approximately 36x 10cm / 4" Cookies

Ingredients

200g / 7oz / ½ cup + 6 Tbsp Unsalted Butter, at room temperature
400g / 14oz / 3 cups + 3 Tbsp All Purpose / Plain Flour
200g / 7oz / 1 cup Caster Sugar / Superfine Sugar
1 Large Egg, lightly beaten
5ml / 1 tsp Vanilla Extract / Or seeds from 1 vanilla bean

Method

1. Cream together the butter, sugar and any flavourings you’re using. Beat until just becoming creamy in texture. (Tip: Don’t over mix otherwise you’ll incorporate too much air and the cookies will spread during baking, losing their shape.)
2. Beat in the egg until well combined, make sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
   Add the sifted flour and mix on low until a non sticky dough forms.
3. Knead into a ball and divide into 2 or 3 pieces.
4. Roll out each portion between parchment paper to a thickness of about 5mm/1/5 inch (0.2 inch)
5. Refrigerate for a minimum of 30mins. (Tip: Recipes commonly just wrap the whole ball of dough in clingwrap and then refrigerate it for an hour or overnight, but by rolling the dough between parchment, this shortens the chilling time and then it’s also been rolled out while still soft making it easier and quicker.)
6. Once chilled, peel off parchment and place dough on a lightly floured surface.
7. Cut out shapes with cookie cutters or a sharp knife.
8. Arrange shapes on parchment lined baking sheets and refrigerate for another 30mins to an hour. (Tip: It’s very important you chill them again otherwise they’ll spread while baking.)
9. Re-roll scraps and follow the above process until all scraps are used up.
10. Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C Fan Assisted) / 350°F / Gas Mark 4.
11. Bake until golden around the edges, about 8-15mins depending on the size of the cookies. (Tip: Bake same sized cookies together otherwise mixing smaller with larger cookies could result in some cookies being baked before others are done. Rotate baking sheets half way through baking if your oven bakes unevenly.)
12. Leave to cool on cooling racks.
13. Once completely cooled, decorate as desired. (Tip: If wrapped in tinfoil/cling wrap or kept in airtight containers in a cool place, un-decorated cookies can last up to a month.)

Royal Icing Recipe

Ingredients

315g – 375g / 11oz – 13oz / 2½ - 3 cups Icing / Confectioner’s / Powdered Sugar, unsifted
2 Large Egg Whites
10ml / 2 tsp Lemon Juice
5ml / 1 tsp Almond Extract, optional

Method

1. Beat egg whites with lemon juice until combined. (Tip: It’s important that the bowls/spoons/spatulas and beaters you use are thoroughly cleaned and grease free.)
2. Sift the icing sugar to remove lumps and add it to the egg whites. (Tip: I’ve listed 2 amounts of icing sugar, the lesser amount is good for a flooding consistency, and the larger amount is for outlining, but you can add even more for a much thicker consistency good for writing. If you add too much icing sugar or would like to make a thinner consistency, add very small amounts of water, a few drops at a time, until you reach the consistency you need.)
3. Beat on low until combined and smooth.
4. Use immediately or keep in an airtight container. (Tip: Royal Icing starts to harden as soon as it’s in contact with air so make sure to cover containers with plastic wrap while not in use.)