I love to bake and I’m thrilled that my 3 year old daughter is showing such enthusiasm towards it as well.  I am looking forward to making our family’s favorite Christmas cookies in a few weeks with her and hoping that my son will want to help too!

A fun way to get together with family and friends with small children is to host a cookie decorating party.  Keep it casual and low key and follow the lead of the little one’s.

Some tips and inspirations to get you started:

• Host your party on a weekday afternoon, if possible since weekends tend to fill up in advance with other holiday festivities.
• Roll out white (or red or green) butcher paper on your table for simple cleaning up.
• Provide the cookies, icing and decorations for the party (see below for Martha Stewart’s fabulous sugar cookie and royal icing recipes)
• Create a placesetting for each child with a stack of cookies to decorate and small cups of various sprinkles, gumdrops, chocolate chips, etc to decorate with and have bowls of icing in varioius colors with brushes down the center of the table for them to share.
• Offer milk and eggnog for a festive beverage and consider having some healthy snacks for adults and kids to munch on.

Some more fabulous ideas & inspirations

Directions

1. Whisk together flour, salt, and baking powder in a medium bowl. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar; add dry ingredients, and mix until incorporated. With mixer running, add egg, brandy (or milk), and vanilla; mix until incorporated.
2. Transfer dough to a work surface. Shape into 2 discs, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with nonstick baking mats or parchment paper; set aside.
4. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut into desired shapes, and transfer to prepared baking sheets, leaving an inch in between. Leftover dough can be rolled and cut once more. Bake until lightly golden, about 10 minutes; do not allow to brown. Transfer to wire racks to cool.
5. Decorate with Royal Icing, optional

Royal Icing

If you’re decorating cookies for children, pregnant women, or anyone with compromised immune systems, use meringue powder, found in the baking aisle of most markets, instead of raw egg whites.

Makes 2 1/3 cups

• 1 box confectioners’ sugar (1 pound)
• 5 tablespoons meringue powder, or 2 large egg whites

Directions

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine sugar and meringue powder. Mixing on low speed, add a scant 1/2 cup water. For a thinner consistency, usually used for flooding, add more water. A thicker consistency is generally used for outlining and adding details. Mix until icing holds a ribbonlike trail on the surface of the mixture for 5 seconds when you raise the paddle.

Happy Baking!

Danielle