*1 package Mini Marshmallows, 16 ounces (use freshest marshmallows you can find)
*1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
*8 cups Red and Blue Rice Cereal, Kellogg’s Rice Krispies recommended
*Pam Cooking Spray
*9 x13 Baking Dish
*1 and 1/2 cups White Melting Wafers, like Ghirardelli, melted in the microwave (microwave safe bowl) in 30 second intervals until almost melted stirring after each interval. Then stir until smooth.
*Sprinkles/nonpareils candy, 4th July Colors and Star Shapes, found at Walmart
Directions:
Melt together the butter and marshmallows in a stock pot on medium-low heat. Then remove from heat and add the vanilla, stir just until incorporated, then add the rice cereal.
Spray baking dish with cooking spray and spread out hot marshmallow mixture evenly using your hands covered with cooking spray and press mixture until an even top layer.
Melt wafers as described above and spread evenly on top of the Rice Krispie Treats.
Add Sprinkles/nonpareils candies to the top of the melted wafers while still warm. Allow the topping to set. Then cut into squares and enjoy!
*Cookie Cutters 2- and 1/2-inch round, Star and Heart or size desired
*Wiltons Blue Decorating Icing
*Wiltons Red Decorating Icing
*Wiltons White Decorating Icing or homemade icing
*3 decorating bags with 3 small rosette tips Wilton 18 (Heart Cookies) See Wilton Rosette Video how to make rosettes and 3 small rose decorating tips 103 or 101 Wilton for ruffles (Flag Swag Cookies) and 1 round tip, 7 or 4 Wilton for lines/stripes Stars. Note: See You Tube Ruffle video for tips on how to make the ruffles. Also, you will need to change out tips, so use 3 couplers. See Wilton Video on filling bags.
*Wilton decorating 4th of July Stars and Sprinkles, found at Walmart
Easy Sugar Cookie Recipe
* Ingredients:
* *1/2 cup Butter
*1 cup Sugar
*1 teaspoon Vanilla
*1 Egg
*1/2 cup Heavy Cream or Whipping Cream, Sour Cream or Cream Cheese (I’ve used each one of these variation each gives the cookie a slightly different taste and they’re all yummy!) Note: If you use cream cheese use only 3 cups of flour
*3 and 1/4 cups All-purpose Flour, more if needed (Dough should be slightly sticky)
*1 teaspoon Soda
*1/2 teaspoon Salt
*Note: When cutting out the round cookies, cut and then cut the circle in half before baking sugar cookies
Instructions:
In a stand mixer on medium-low speed cream together the butter and sugar. Then add the vanilla, egg and cream of your choice and mix just until combined.
* Using Sifter, sift together in a bowl the flour soda and salt and slowly add to the creamed mixture, mixing on low just until barely combined. Dough should be slightly sticky. Do Not Over Mix!
* Then divide the dough into 3 dough balls, flatten dough balls making disk shapes. Now wrap each disk in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 30 minutes or more.
* Remove 1 dough disk at a time from the refrigerator and rollout disk on a floured surface with rolling-pin or use 2 pieces of plastic wrap, placing the dough disk in the center of 1 of the pieces of plastic wrap and the second piece on top of the dough disk, use rolling-pin and roll out the cookie dough about 1/2 inch thick.
* Use a cookie cutter of your choice and cut out shapes in the rolled out dough. Repeat for each dough disk. Then add to the next dough disk the scraps from the first disk or (discard scraps of dough), continue this technic until all the dough is used. Place cookies on a Silpat covered half baking sheet, 12 cookies per sheet. For best results refrigerate the cut cookies on baking sheet before baking 5-10 minutes.
* Bake the cookies in a pre-heated 425* F. oven for 8-12 minutes or barely starting to turn golden on the bottom; baking time depends on the size of cookie cutter used. Do Not Over Bake! If you do over bake they will become too hard. Cool on baking sheet.
Recipe from Tested Recipes Cookbook, Central Milling Company third edition, now out of print an old family cook book..
