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Penguin Cutouts Recipe

Penguin Cutouts Recipe photo by Taste of Home

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Your children can help decorate these cute Christmas cookies. It's a great way to get them involved in the kitchen. —Taste of Home Test Kitchen

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Penguin Cutouts Recipe

Prep: 1-1/2 hours + chilling Bake: 10 min./batch + cooling

Yield: 36 Servings

90 10 100

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter-flavored shortening
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup sour cream
2-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
FROSTING:
3-3/4 cups confectioners' sugar
1/3 cup water
4 teaspoons meringue powder
Orange, black and red and/or green paste food coloring

Directions

In a large bowl, cream shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Stir in sour cream. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Divide dough into three balls; cover and refrigerate for 3 hours or until easy to handle.
Remove one portion of dough from the refrigerator at a time. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/8-in. thickness. Cut with a floured 4-in. penguin cookie cutter. Place 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets.
Bake at 375° for 6-8 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Remove to wire racks to cool.
For frosting, in a small bowl, combine the confectioners' sugar, water and meringue powder; beat on low speed just until combined. Beat on high for 4 minutes or until soft peaks form. Cover frosting with damp paper towels or plastic wrap between uses.
Set aside half of frosting. Tint half of the remaining frosting black. Divide remaining frosting in half; tint one orange and the other red and/or green.
Working quickly with the black frosting, pipe outlines of the penguins' bodies; fill in with thinned black frosting. Let dry at room temperature for several hours or until firm. Fill in centers of penguins with thinned white frosting; let dry until firm.
Add eyes with the black and white frostings, orange noses and feet and red and/or green scarves. Let stand until set. Add white polka dots on the scarves. Let stand until set. Store in an airtight container. Yield: 3 dozen.

Editor's Note: Meringue powder is available from Wilton Industries. Call 1-800/794-5866 or visit www.wilton.com. The penguin cookie cutter is from Copper Gifts. Call 1-620/421-0654 or visit www.coppergifts.com.

Originally published as Penguin Cutouts in Christmas Cookies & Candies 2009 , p19

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Reviews for Penguin Cutouts

Penguin Cutouts

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(11-19) of 19 reviews

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Reviewed on Dec. 14, 2011 by ladymaverick

Wow... Salty and Lindy are just FULL of Christmas cheer!! The crew at TOH were just giving you another new idea for something different!! Lighten up....geez-o-peet's!!

Reviewed on Dec. 14, 2011 by joannrandall

This is the third recipe I have recently viewed that had a slew of negative comments. I wish Taste of Home would edit comments before posted, as the negativity is not needed and turning me off of using this site!

Reviewed on Dec. 14, 2011 by Kdavis50

OMG arguing over something that silly! Be glad we got the recipe and the directions are just guidelines. Decorate them as you wish. You are right when you are working with kids it is about the bonding and the memories not the finished project. My niece is only 9 but would decorate it as best she could and I wouldn't complain I would just be proud of her!!!!!!!!

Reviewed on Dec. 14, 2011 by ffwyfe

HIGH FIVE to Bracious!!!

Reviewed on Dec. 14, 2011 by Bracious

And lastly, i would like to point out. You don't HAVE to make them with your kids anyways. If you want to doubt your kid's culinary talent, then please be my guest. But for those of you willing to make these with your kids and express their talents, I admire you.

Reviewed on Dec. 14, 2011 by Bracious

I haven't tried this recipe yet, BUT. You two are horribly underestimating the abilities kids have with decorating. Sure they might not be able to make cookies that look JUST like that. But it will quite similar, if you show them the steps. I, in fact, am a kid, and to me you are RIDICULOUS. I can make candies far beyond your cooking skill I can almost guarantee. Cookies as well. This is hurtful. Why do you underestimate us?

Reviewed on Dec. 14, 2011 by megs3287

Kids may not be able to make them look exactly like the picture (and to be honest most adults won't either), but that's not the point. Kids and parents will enjoy the time together decorating Christmas cookies. It's always a lot of fun and it will be the quality time that kids will remember, not how the cookies looked!

Reviewed on Dec. 14, 2011 by salty1

I agree. These cookies are too hard for kids to do, even with supervision. I am an adult, and I would have a problem. Kids don't have that much patience either, Their idea of decorating is to spread with frosting and add sprinkles, and chocolate chips for eyes.

Reviewed on Dec. 14, 2011 by Lindyb1

I have to say this is ridiculous. Kids will never be able to make the cookies look like the penguin cookies in the photo and will be extremely disappointed.

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