Advent Wreath Centerpiece: Four Sundays and Candles

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White bell cookies with poinsettias

These bell cookies were my first "play-cookies" of the season. What a play-cookie is? Cookies I make for the pure joy of creating.

These are designs that cross my mind, then I play with them in my mind for days, weeks, or even months before I have the time to make them. Most of the time they are too complicated to make them to sell and I don't even want to make them again. It would ruin the fun.

I wanted to make some bell cookies with poinsettias and decided to add a little lace to make them more interesting. A great start for a wonderful season!

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Hanukkah cookies

A friend of mine suggested me last year to make some Hanukkah cookies and I said I will and also ordered a set of cookie cutters. But I did not make the cookies and I felt so bad about it!

These cookies were on my "to do" list for more than a year! And it's not because I can not find time to bake and decorate a dozen cookies to make a friend happy. It's because to create a set I need information. I not only need to know which colors to use, but also why.

This Hanukkah cookie cutter had 6 different shapes and I knew only 3 of them. For the other three I had no idea what they were:

Instead of baking the cookies, I was staring at this cutter, trying to figure out, what could it be. Then, of course, I searched the internet for Hanukkah information and found out, that this is the Chai symbol. At this point a cookie decorator could stop, draw the symbol and proceed. Not me! I wanted to know more...

Chai: This symbol, commonly seen on necklaces and other jewelry and ornaments, is simply the Hebrew word Chai (living), with the two Hebrew letters Cheit and Yod attached to each other. Some say it refers to the Living G-d; others say it simply reflects Judaism's focus on the importance of life. Whatever the reason, the concept of chai is important in Jewish culture. The typical Jewish toast is l'chayim (to life). Gifts to charity are routinely given in multiples of 18 (the numeric value of the word Chai). (source: http://www.jewfaq.org/)

So now, I know this symbol, I like it and I am ready to do a Chai cookie.

And by now, I now a little about all of them.

I even wanted to know the sound of the Shofar (A ram's horn, blown like a trumpet as a call to repentance.) It's amazing!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jR20-0sy1Y

Making cookies is a great way to learn about other cultures. And I have so much more to learn!

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Russian themed cookies 3 - Matryoshka doll

The last set of the Russian collection is the matryoshka doll cookie set.

A matryoshka doll, also known as Russian nesting doll or babushka doll, refers to a set of wooden dolls of decreasing size placed one inside the other. The first Russian nested doll set was carved in 1890. Traditionally the outer layer is a woman and the figures inside may be of either gender; the smallest, innermost doll is typically a baby turned from a single piece of wood. Much of the artistry is in the painting of each doll, which can be very elaborate. The dolls often follow a theme; the themes vary, from fairy tale characters to Soviet leaders.

Growing up, we had two sets of these dolls. My dad brought them from Moscow and we loved playing with them. And two sets never seemed to be enough, so for this tea party I created three sets:

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Russian themed cookies 2 - Gzhel cookies

The second set of mu Russian collection is inspired by Gzhel porcelain.

Gzhel is a Russian style of ceramics which takes its name from the village of Gzhel and surrounding area, where it has been produced since 1802. About thirty villages located southeast of Moscow produce pottery and ship it throughout Russia. The name Gzhel became associated with pottery in the 14th century. Gzhel pottery was originally created by potters in their homes, however fairly early on these potters started to organize into workshops to increase production. The workshops eventually became a factory with pieces being formed in moulds and potters being responsible for separate pieces, a specific style, or decoration. The earliest pieces were created of earthenware. The pottery was painted solid white with distinctive blue designs. 

As the cookies were made for a tea party, and the inspiration was a porcelain painting, the tea pot and tea cup cookie shape was a natural choice for this set.

The cookies first got a white base color, then for the first time in my life, I painted the pattern on the cookies using a paint brush (and food coloring of course).

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Russian themed cookies 1 - khokhloma

I got a request to create some cookies for a Russian tea party. I had the freedom to chose my designs and I created three different sets. Today I tell you about the first one.

These cookies were inspired by khokhloma painting.

Khokhloma painting is the name of a Russian wood painting handicraft style and national ornament, known for its vivid flower patterns, red and gold colors over a black background, and the effect it has when applied to wooden tableware or furniture, making it look heavier and metal-like.

When I was a child, my mom had a khokhloma wooden box and it was full of little treasures.

Source of the picture: http://www.therussianstore.com/

So my first set of Russian themed cookies is inspired by khokhloma. I first made a shiny black glaze base color, then added the red and yellow flower patterns with green leaves.

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Basic gingerbread recipe

In Hungary, gingerbread hearts have been given as gift for centuries. If not eaten, they will dry out over time and can keep for many years. All gingerbread decorating artists have their own recipe. I use different recipes according to the purpose of the cookies. This recipe is a great basic recipe. It's easy to work with, have a wonderful, mild flavor and the cookies will stay delicious for months. 

 ingredients:

750g (6 cup) flour

250g (2 1/2 cup) cup confectioner’s sugar

5 eggs

1/4 cup (half stick) butter

4 tbsp honey

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp ground cinnamon

½  tsp ground ginger

½ tsp ground cloves

• Mix flour and baking soda in a large bowl.
• Mix rest of the ingredients in another bowl.
• Add wet ingredients to the flour mixture and work it well together. Form a ball and let it rest for half an hour, wrapped in a plastic wrap.
• With this recipe you don’t have to wait overnight and the cookies will harden faster. This way this recipe is great for your bigger projects, like centerpieces.

Preheat oven to 375F.

Generously flour the surface you will work on. This way you will not need parchment paper.

Roll the dough about 1/8 inch thin. A fondant rolling pin with rolling pin guide rings is a really helpful tool.

 Cut out the desired shapes.

 Put the cookies on a non-stick cookie sheet, about 1 inch apart. 

(I usually rotate 4 cookie sheets while baking).

Bake cookies for about 7 minutes or until ready. They are still a little soft when you remove them.

 Cut the holes for candle holders while still soft.

Cool cookies on a cooling rack.  

Store your cookies in a cool dry place. I like to use tin boxes to store my cookies until I decorate them.

After decorating the cookies I wrap them in cello bags.

UPDATE: Online classes about the basics are available now:

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Yummy gingerbread recipe

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Big bell cookies with snowy landscape

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Sunflower birthday cookies

Let me tell you about this sunflower birthday set.

My friend asked me to make some birthday cookies for her friends birthday party. Her idea was to make number 40 with sunflower pattern. 

To be honest I couldn't have been happier! Sunflower is one of my favorite flowers and somehow I never made a sunflower cookie before. So, of course I started with the sunflower. First made a light brown center, than added a row of cheerful, warm yellow petals. I let them dry a little before adding the next row of petals and little dark brown dots to the middle of the flower.

Then came the number 40. I did not want them to be bigger, than the flowers. With their soft, dark ivory color they stand out anyway. I added little sunflowers to it to nicely blend in the set.

Finally, I love to make all my cookie gift sets personal. This is the best part of giving handmade, isn't it? So I made a matching plaque cookie with small sunflowers and the message.

Hope you like this set as much as I do!

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