Remember those Valentine's day candies of your youth? Today they're transformed into conversation heart cookies with messages that will really make your heart flutter!
- 2 1/2 cup AP flour
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder (dutch-process)
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- 8 oz unsalted butter softened (2 sticks)
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 egg
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
- 1 lb confectioners sugar (SIFTED)
- 1/4 cup meringue powder
- 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 tsp clear vanilla
- Gel food coloring
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Sift the flour, cocoa powder, and salt together, set aside.
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Cream the butter with the sugars until light and fluffy. Add the egg and mix to combine.
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Add the flour mixture in two batches and blend until the mixture just holds together.
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Add vanilla and mix to combine.
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Roll out between two sheets of wax paper and cut out shapes with cookie cutters.
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Place shapes on baking trays lined with parchment paper and put in freezer for about 10 minutes before baking.
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Bake at 350 degrees until cookies are set, about 10-12 minutes, depending on the shape/size of the cookie.
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Combine confectioners sugar, meringue powder and cream of tarter in large mixing bowl.
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Add water and clear vanilla and beat on high speed with paddle attachment until stiff peaks form, but mixture is not dry.
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Add drops of gel food coloring to reach desired color, but keep in mind the color will deepen and darken as the icing dries.
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Fill piping bags fitted with round metal tips and ice the cookies. I divide the icing into two bowls, 2/3 reserved for flood icing (a thinner consistency ideal for covering the entire cookie) and 1/3 reserved for decorating (a little thicker and used for piping designs).
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Allow the base to dry for a couple hours before piping designs.Let completed cookies dry for at least 12 hours before storing in air tight containers.
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Cookies will keep for several days stored at room temperature.
Recipe Yields: 30 - 2 inch cookies
- Be sure to chill the cut-out cookies before baking to ensure that they maintain their shape.
- Cool the cookies completely before decorating with royal icing.
- Meringue powder is a great substitute for raw egg white in royal icing and is safe to eat!
- Be sure to sift the confectioners sugar before beating so you don’t have any lumps in your royal icing. Even tiny lumps can clog your decorating tips and make decorating a hassle.
- Beat the royal icing until you have stiff peaks. Add the water very gradually (think a teaspoon or two at a time) until you reach your desired piping consistency.
- The icing will darken as it hardens, so don’t go crazy with the food coloring. I recommend gel food coloring for the best results in color and consistency.
- Allow the icing to harden for several hours (overnight is ideal) before storing or serving.