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Gilded Insect Cookies

These gilded insect cookies are equal parts creepy and gothic chic. Delight all the boys and ghouls at your next Halloween party with these deliciously creepy cookies.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 2 dozen cookies (I used half of this chocolate sugar cookie recipe)
  • 1 batch of royal icing
  • 1/2 lb white fondant
  • 1/2 tsp tylose powder
  • Insect molds in various shapes and sizes
  • Powdered gold food coloring
  • Yellow food coloring
  • Black food coloring
  • Black candy melts

Instructions

  1. Start with 2 dozen cookies in various sizes of circles and ovals. Make sure whatever size you use will fit the finished bugs. Mix up a batch of white royal icing and ice your cookies. I like to use a 20 second icing consistency to ice my cookies. For more on icing cookies with royal icing, check out this post. Let dry overnight.
  2. While your cookies dry, you can make your bugs. Knead together your white fondant and a little bit of yellow food coloring until the fondant is a light, golden yellow. Knead in your tylose powder (you can skip this step if you don't have tylose powder, but it will help the fondant stiffen completely). Roll a small piece of fondant out to 1/4" thick. Make sure it's a little longer and wider than the impression in your mold. Press your fondant into your mold and cut off any excess using a sharp knife coated in powder sugar (to keep the fondant from sticking). Use a variety of bug shaped molds (I bought mine from Steel Penny Cakes and Molds) to make your cookie toppers.
  3. Mix a small amount of powdered gold food coloring (Truly Mad Plastics' gold food coloring is my absolute favorite) with vodka. Using a food-only brush, paint your fondant insects with your gold food coloring. Allow to dry until dry to the touch (a couple of hours).
  4. Once the royal icing on your cookies has dried complete, use an airbrush machine with black airbrush food coloring to make your cookies completely black. Alternatively you can use black food gel coloring with a little vodka and a food-only brush to paint the cookies black. Allow to dry completely (a couple of hours).
  5. Melt a small handful of black candy melts and use it to "glue" your golden bugs to your cookies. Allow to harden before packaging.