Sweets for Sweethearts

I found this on the back of a Betty Crocker sugar cookie mix (17.5 oz pouch).

Heat oven to 375 degrees (or 350 for dark or non-stick pan). Make cookie mix as directed--except decrease softened butter to 1/3 cup and stir in 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour with the cookie mix. Roll dough on floured surface until about 1/4 inch thick. Cut with 2-inch cookie cutter. (Keep remaining dough covered while rolling and cutting first batch of cookies.) Place 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake as directed above. Cool 1 minute before removing from cookie sheet. Cool completely, Frost and decorate as desired.

Everyone loves cookies! Some of the most amazing wedding cake cookies online are pictured here. If you decide to make homemade wedding favors, let the experts be your guide and remember in this case practice does make perfect.

Sugar Fairy Tales



Crazy Amys Cakes



Sweet Surrender Desserts



Rolling Pin Productions



Sacramento Wedding Cakes

No reason you can't make them yourself!

3 egg whites
1 lb. confectioners' sugar
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
1/2 tsp. almond extract or white vanilla extract

Place all ingredients in bowl and beat on medium high for a full 10 minutes. Icing will become thick and glossy but will not increase in volume. Keep covered with damp cloth while using, removing small portions to bowl as needed. Tint if desired. To thin, add a few drops of water. Royal icing hardens with a nice sheen.

Recipe courtesy of Cooks.com

These sweet confections are too pretty to eat, but your guests will gobble them up like a cold watermelon on the fourth of July. Most of these cookie wedding favors are in the five-dollar range and usually you have to order a minimum of 12 or 18.













1. Claudettes Confections
2. Favor Studio
3. Cake Heaven
4. One Cute Cookie
5. Bright Ideas
6. Cakes by Cara
7. Cake Dot

When Food Editor Kristen Olson at Betty Crocker decided to make 250 cupcakes for her twin sister's wedding, she knew she needed to be well organized. As the previous owner of a bakery myself, I found her timeline and suggestions for homemade wedding cupcakes a great way to save hundreds of dollars, with the help of a tall tier cupcake tower/stand available at Amazon for less than $50.



· 6 months: Research recipes and select three to four to test.
· 3 months: Test recipes and rate the results. Are they moist? Flavorful? Can they handle being frozen and thawed? Select the final recipe.
· 1 month: Purchase non-perishable supplies, such as cupcake pans, liners and decorating supplies.
· 1 week: Assemble a group of helpers and bake, cool, wrap and freeze the cupcakes.
· 2 days: Move the cupcakes from the freezer to a refrigerator to thaw.
· 1 day: Frost and decorate.
· Day of wedding: Transport to reception hall and display on tiered cake or cupcake stands.
Baking, Decorating and Displaying Your Cupcakes

· Don't do it alone! Enlist helpers for every stage of the process, including baking, decorating, transporting and displaying.
· Use cake mix. Baking upwards of 10 dozen cupcakes is no small endeavor. Save time by using cake mix rather than baking from scratch. The best part? Nobody will know the difference.
· Lower the baking temperature. When testing cupcake recipes, try baking one batch at 25 degrees lower than the temperature stated in the recipe. This may prevent the cupcakes from becoming misshapen, but means you may need to increase the baking time.
· Make frosting in double batches. Your mixer can only handle so much frosting - don't overload it with a quadrupled recipe.
· Cover your bases. Two months before the wedding, do a complete test-run. Bake, freeze, thaw, decorate and transport a dozen cupcakes. Adjust your plan if necessary!

Ingredients

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup dried currant

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.In a small bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, salt, and rosemary. Set aside.

Using an electric mixer and a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, incorporating each egg fully before adding the next. Add the vanilla. and gently stir in the flour mixture until just combined. Stir in currants.

Cut dough in half and shape into 2 logs. They should be about a 12-inches long; and 1-inch thick.

Bake until just starting to brown at the edges, about 35 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes on the baking sheets. While the biscotti logs are still warm, cut each log into 1/2-inch wide slices on the diagonal. Place the slices back on the baking sheet (using 2 baking sheets if necessary to fit all the slices). Bake for 7 to 8 minutes. Remove the baking sheets from the oven. Turn the biscotti over and bake for an additional 7 to 8 minutes, until the biscotti are crisp.

Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.