What if you could have butterfly and flower shaped cookies without having to use a cookie cutter? You can when you use stencils and the right kind of cookie recipe!

Using my Butterfly Journeys stencil and Flora Bowley’s Bloom True stencil I created a fun platter of colorful cookies.  I’m not a big fan of spending hours doing anything, so this is a fast and easy way to make cookies that wow every time I bring them to a party!

Watch How to Use Stencils to Make Butterfly Cookies on YouTube.

The recipe I am using came from the Mindful Eating Miraval cook book- a great big thank you to the amazing Miraval resort and chefs for giving me permission to share this with you!  You can find the recipe at the end of this blog post.

StencilGirl Products stencils are food safe.  Be sure that you are using a food safe stencil and of course, once a stencil has been used with art supplies or non-food items, it is no longer safe to use with food.  That’s why the stencils look so clean in the video- they’ve never been used in my art studio.

All that squiggly color came out of a make shift pastry bag created with common sandwich bags and a pair of scissors. The colors were mixed up using gel food coloring and ready made white frosting.

But why the upside down paper plate?  It creates a raised surface so it is easier to work on and move the cookie when finished.

Here’s the platter of cookies all ready to bring a touch of sweetness and color to the party!  Could you use other shapes of stencils with this technique?  Absolutely!  If you’re looking for silhouettes to use, try a stencil with dancers, a trio of women, or an alphabet to spell anything you wish!

Here are the supplies I used. Some of these links are affiliate links which means I get a small percentage. It doesn’t cost you anything extra and you are helping me keep this blog and my videos ad free! Thank you- I don’t like ads any more than you do!

InLinkz.com

HONEY TUILE COOKIES

Recipe from Mindful Eating Miraval

1/2 c. confectioners’ sugar
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened (I substituted soy butter in the video)
2 Tbsp. honey
1 large egg white
1/2 c. all-purpose flour

PREHEAT the oven to 350 F. Line each of two large baking sheets with a silicone cooking mat.

IN the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or with an electric mixer, cream together the sugar and butter on low speed until starting to become fluffy, 1 minute. Increase the speed to medium and mix for an additional minute.

ADD the honey and mix on medium speed until well blended. Add the egg white and mix on medium speed for 30 seconds. (The mixture will separate and look curdled, this is fine.) Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the flour. Blend on low speed to incorporate, scraping the sides as needed to incorporate all the ingredients. Blend on medium speed until well combined, 1 minute.

(The batter can be refrigerated, tightly covered, for up to five days, and frozen for up to one month.)

SPOON the batter through the template (I used a stencil in the video) spreading the batter to the edges of the template with a small offset spatula.  Bake until just golden brown around the edges but still soft to the touch, 5 to 6 minutes.  Allow the cookies to cool completely on the baking sheet.

CAREFULLY slide a very thin spatula under each cookie to remove the cookies to an airtight container until ready to serve.

Brown.  I used brown.  Lots of brown.  Why?  Because No Expectations is the theme for this month’s Let’s Play videos.  Having no expectation is easier said than done but one way I can do that is by doing something I know will be ugly to me.  Hence the brown.

Technically, I still have an expectation, it is just a very low one or you could say the expectation is that it will be ugly.  Either way, the pressure is off if I don’t have the pressure of creating something “good”.

In the video, I’m making the prints and creating a quick card and matching envelope with the B word..brown.  A 5 letter B word no less! There is brown on everything…did I like it? Will I be using brown again? Watch to the end of the video to see…

Watch Using Browns on the Gel Plate on YouTube.

I’m using a 12×14 Gel Press printing plate and the Eucalyptus Blooms stencil by Jane LaFazio and some DecoArts Media fluid acrylics for my no expectations play.  I did several layers in the browns and then the call of the rainbow was just too strong for me.  I had to see what brown looked like with the brighter colors.

Kirsten Reed is always trying to convince me of the merits of brown- she loves that color!

Using a gel print to make a card is quick and easy.  Just have to fold the paper, cut it down to the size of the envelope, and it is finished and ready to use! 

Now you’ve seen my play, let’s see yours!  Share what you’re creating with us all in the Facebook group and be inspired by what others are creating! And be sure to leave a comment here to get entered in the monthly $50 gift certificate giveaway!

What is Let’s Play?  It’s all about rediscovering the ability to play. Each month I share a specific strategy that helped me recapture the freedom and fun of play.  This month’s theme is no expectations. You can see more of the Let’s Play series here. Be sure to get entered in the $50 Dick Blick giveaway by leaving a comment.

Want to see more Let’s Play videos? You can find all the weekly posts here.

Sharing your play:   I, and a whole bunch of others, would love to see what you’re creating!  We’re sharing it in the Facebook group called A Colorful Place to Play. Why Facebook?  I’ve listened to your feedback about how and where you’d like to share your play instead of the link parties.

Monthly giveaways:  Leave comment on any (and all for more chances) of the weekly Let’s Play blog posts to be entered and one winner each month will be chosen by random.org.  Want more chances to win a $50 gift certificate to DickBlick.com?  Pin any of the images from the page or share about it on Facebook- then come back and leave a comment telling me what you did and you can have more chances to win! Giveaway closes the Sunday, October 30th at 11 pm EST and the winner will announced on the blog the following Monday.

Congrats to Misty, last month’s winner!