Spring Entertaining
Southern Socials
Drowning In A Sea Of Love
When the cookie crumbles, eat it… and call in the reinforcements
When I was a pastry chef, naturally colleagues requested pretty baked goods for showers, weddings and birthday celebrations. On one occasion, a hostess asked if I would handcraft 300 iced & decorated wedding cake cookies she could give to guests as favors. Beautifully designed cookies are my baking passion so after a brief consultation, the bride-to-be shared her ideas and we agreed to all of the logistical details. Everything sounded easy enough.
At the time, I worked in Birmingham but I lived in Tuscaloosa which really wasn’t a big deal because my parents always had room available at their house if I needed it. As the event inched closer, I had a pretty good plan that would allow me to weave the commissioned work into a hectic restaurant schedule. My mom has always been a well-trusted baker’s apprentice stepping in to blend sweets, order supplies or simply just make sure I had the equipment needed to fill special requests. As we began mixing and rolling dough, reality set in. We were not in a restaurant equipped kitchen where you could cram pan after pan of cut cookie dough onto a speed rack, roll it in the oven and bake the entire order of cookies at once. No. Five extra large cookies fit per pan. Then there was the cooling, the glazing and the piping that needed to happen as well and I was the only one with the skill set that could attend to the piping. After about four batches of cookies, my mom decided to call in the reinforcements. My sisters.
The recipe should have read, “Roll the dough out into a lightly floured kitchen.” A thin blanket of pixie dust covered everything– refrigerator doors, cabinet knobs, gold linoleum, boxes of parchment paper and even inside the utensil drawer. I Will took on a whole new meaning. Discs of dough, paper-lined baking sheets, wire racks filled with cooling cookies, powdered sugar glaze and bags of icing fit with pastry tips were scattered about. I sat at the head of the supper table in a chair reserved exclusively for my father at meal time while my sister shoved glazed cookies before me just so I could keep pace with the piping. My mom was on the other side gathering the freshly decorated cookies and whisking them to a land unknown to me at the time.
Before long, a sea of petite wedding cakes were drying all around my childhood home and I actually slept beside sugar plums that night. By the time the last cookie was slipped into the cellophane bag and tied with the bride’s signature wedding color, we had experienced a 36-hour bake-a-thon like no other. No one complained and we shared a lot of exhausting laughs. Do not ever underestimate the power of family first, whether it be blood related or the people in your life you love and cherish all the same. They are always the ones who will step in and help when you need it most.
Honeysuckle Wedding Cake Cookies
makes 8 large cookies
A small batch of beautifully decorated cookies can just as easily set a grand tone when accompanied with a table of carefully curated party fare. Sprinkle them throughout the space or double the recipe and integrate into each place setting for a signature touch.
Honeysuckle Blooms
2 3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup butter
3 Tbsp whole buttermilk
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
Pinch of kosher salt
3 Tbsp fresh orange juice
1 Tbsp honey
Lemon yellow food coloring paste
Bright White Royal Icing
Prepare the Honeysuckle Blooms at least 36 hours before assembly. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Cream 3/4 cup sugar, the butter, the buttermilk & the vanilla with an electric stand mixer on Medium speed until creamy. Stop the mixer on occasion & scrape down the bowl sides with a rubber spatula. Add the flour & the salt. Blend on Low speed just until the dough comes together. Roll the dough to a 1/4-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Cut wedding cake shapes with a 5 1/4-inch tall cutter. Place on parchment paper-lined cookie sheets. Repeat until all of the dough is cut. Bake, in batches, on the center rack for 20 to 23 minutes or until golden brown on the cookie edges. Cool completely on the pans, about 30 minutes.
Stir together the remaining 2 cups powdered sugar, the orange juice & the honey ingredients in a small bowl until well blended. Dip the tip of a wooden pick into the food coloring paste & tint the icing, blending well. Dip the cookies in the glaze. Swipe a small offset spatula from the top of the cookie to the bottom, removing the excess. Place the cookies on parchment paper & let stand 4 hours to set. Clean up the cookie edges with a paring knife.
Place about half of the Bright White Royal Icing in a pastry bag fit with a No. 1 tip. Do not overfill the bag. Pipe the desired design on the cookies. Attach 2 or 3 Honeysuckle Blooms to the top of the cookie with Bright White Royal Icing. Allow to dry for at least 2 hours.
FROM THE KITCHEN OF BUTTERMILK LIPSTICK
{testing notes}
How To Handcraft A Wedding Card
A handcrafted wedding card may be prepared from card stock, ribbon or butchers twine & printed labels. However, the additional element of a homemade cookie elevates this idea without flaw. Reserve some of the dough to make this sweet idea.
The Technique
Choose a classic wedding icon to serve as the featured cookie for your card. Rings, cakes & presents make ideal choices. Next, create the cookie template from card stock. Be certain it is relatively thick as it will be used over rolled sugar cookie dough for cutting. Once the cookies have been baked & allowed to cool completely, slip them into a clear cellphone sleeve & attach the cookie to the inside of the card. Embellish the outside of the card with your own personal messages then hand deliver your creation to the blushing bride.
The Tune
“That’s How Strong My Love Is” Otis Redding
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Rebecca Gordon
Be sweet.
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