Unique Gift Idea of Gourmet Cookie Bouquets, Hand Painted With Edible Ink

Source: Mary Denis

A unique gift is at your finger tips. Buying gourmet cookie bouquets can be ordered online. Don’t spend hours of frustration looking for the “perfect gift” and settle with something that is just so-so. There is a simply amazing unique gift that can be ordered online to fit any age or gender in any walk of life. Gourmet cookie bouquets that are hand painted by professional artists with edible ink are a truly unique gift idea. These bouquets are simply amazing.

The business of hand painted cookies evolved when two talented ladies decided to leave their craft business and venture into something more unique. They started with stamping cookies with edible ink. After stamping the ink on these cookies, they felt it would be more artistic and personal if each cookie was freehand painted. After mastering an eleven step process to complete each masterpiece, they hired their own artists to make these creations.

There is a selection of cookie bouquets that can purchased online for almost any special event. Christmas is especially a great time because the arduous task of finding the just-right gift for everyone on your list is stressful and time consuming. Ordering online is so slick. It is hard to keep up with everyone’s birthdays, anniversaries, housewarmings, new babies, and the list goes on and on.

Being the materialistic society we’ve become, it is hard trying to find a unique gift that the recipient does not already have. A gift such as handcrafted gourmet cookie bouquet really shows the recipient that it was given with just that special someone in mind.

Orange Almond Cookies

(written by Michelle)
Recently, I reunited with a childhood friend on Facebook. When we were young, Becky and I were inseparable, so catching up with her online has brought back quite a few fond memories. Becky told me that she checked out my blog in search of some cookie recipes and found that I only had the recipe for Fudgy Cocoa Brownies to offer her sweet tooth.

Gasp!It occurred to me that I had yet to transfer a cookie recipe I had posted to my personal blog back in July, so in honor of old friends, here's my recipe for Orange Almond Cookies, adapted from a recipe for Orange Poppy Seed Cookies on Simply Recipes.

Orange Almond Cookies (makes about 2 dozen cookies)(adapted from Simply Recipes)
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature1 large brown egg, at room temperature1 tablespoon orange zest1
1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking sodaPinch of kosher salt
1/4 cup slivered almonds, toastedPreheat oven to 350°F. While the oven is preheating, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and orange zest.
Beat for 30 seconds, scraping down the bowl part way through to ensure even mixing.In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
Slowly incorporate the dry ingredients into the butter mixture until just combined. Fold in the toasted almonds.Place heaping teaspoonfuls on a parchment-lined baking sheet, allowing the cookies ample space, as they will spread as they bake.

Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the cookies just begin to turn golden around the edges. Remove from the oven. Let sit on the baking sheet for 1-2 minutes so the cookies can solidify a bit, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Cookie Gift Basket

Most often, when you hear the word "cookie", the first thing that enters your mind is a food that kids love, right? Although it is true that most kids love eating cookies, this treat is also loved by adults especially those who are into chocolate-chip cookies and ginger snaps. That is why nowadays, cookie gift baskets are one of the famous gift basket ideas that people choose to give for different occasions.

Homemade Cookies and Specialty Cookies
If you know how to make homemade cookies, then you can bake some to include in your gift basket. Chocolate chip-cookies, oatmeal cookies, and thumbprint cookies are just few simple recipes that you can make on your own. Perhaps, the person whom you'll give the basket has already tried and loved your cookies. So, he or she will sure appreciate the effort you will give by baking the cookies and give them as a gift for an important occasion like birthday.
Aside from the homemade cookies, you can also include specialty cookies like lemon bars, chocolate-raspberry bars, hermits, and seven-layer bars. If these are special favorites of the recipient, they will sure love to receive a gift basket full of these goodies.

Cookie Gift Baskets Websites
But if you hardly find time to bake cookies or drop by at a local bakery to buy some, then you should check gift basket websites that offer a vast selection of cookie gift baskets, which are specially designed for important occasions. But because there are so many options, you should spend time comparing products of different websites in order to find the best gift basket available. And once you found one, you can request what cookies you would like to include on your basket and have it shipped right to your home or office for convenience.

So, the next time you look for the perfect gift idea, you should consider a cookie gift basket. This is not only nice to look at but it is also a very delicious treat that the recipient will surely love.

Sugarless Almond Meringue Cookies

By: Jean Jitomir

Almond Cookies - Sugar Free

I developed the following recipe for mother's day when my mom was on a low-carb diet. Though I am not an advocate of the particular diet she chose, I wanted to appease her sweet tooth, which had been neglected for nearly a month. I found that I needed about double the Splenda sugar equivalent to get an acceptable taste; the texture of these meringues is more delicate that the traditional version, due to the lack of sugar in the recipe.

The following recipe will require making an egg white foam and a hand mixer.

Pre-heat oven to 275 F
Ingredients:
4 egg whites (fresh, room temperature)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
1½ cups Splenda

Directions:
1. Beat egg whites and extracts at a medium speed until thick and foamy.
2. Add the cream of tartar.
3. Slowly add the Splenda about ¼ cup at a time until stiff peaks form (turn mixer on high about after all Splenda is added).
4. Place large spoonful of the mixture on a large cookie sheet about 1 inch apart.
5. Bake for about 20-25 minutes or until golden and completely dry*
6. Turn the oven off and allow cookies to cool in the oven for one hour.
Nutrition: Variable based on the size of the cookies, but the only nutrition in the recipe is from the egg whites (about 12g protein total) and some starch mixed with the sucralose sweetener in Splenda.

* Meringues cookies do not fair well in humid environments; do not set out on a plate. Will keep for a week or two in an air tight container.