Cookie Flower Cake Pots

Spring is almost here, and what better way to celebrate than with some yummy mini flower pot cakes!  This is an easy recipe (although time consuming) that will be fun to make with your kids and also makes great little gifts for friends "just because".  The recipe makes 16 mini flower pot cakes.

Ingredients:
1 package (16 oz) poundcake mix (although any type of cake you like will really work)
1/4 cup green liquid food coloring
40 12" wooden skewers cut in half
2/3 cup flour
1 package (18 oz) refrigerated sugar cookie dough
1 16 oz bag confectioners sugar
3 egg whites
various colors of liquid food coloring
1 can (16 oz) chocolate frosting
1 package (9 oz) chocolate wafer cookies, finely crushed
16 small (3" wide 2 1/2" tall) new terra cotta or glazed ceramic flowerpots

Fill a 8" square pan with 1/2" water and 1/4 cup green food coloring.
Add skewers, rolling occasionally with fork, until dyed completely.
With tongs, set skewers onto paper towels to dry (about 45 minutes)

Next you should prep your cookies.
In a bowl, knead flour into sugar cookie dough until throughly combined.
Roll into a ball, place on a lightly floured waxed paper, flatten slightly, cover with another sheet of waxed paper, and then roll out dough to about 1/4" thick.
Transfer waxed paper to a baking sheet and freeze until firm, about 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350*
Line the pots each with 1 piece of foil large enough to overhang the sides sightly.  Butter and flour each pot.
Prepare cake mix according to package directions and fill each pot with 1/3 cup batter.

Place pots on a cookie sheet and bake 18-20 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  

Place pots on a wire rack to cool completely.

Remove cookie dough from freezer and remove top sheet of waxed paper. Using a 2" round circle cookie cutter, cut out 8 circles.  Then, using the same cutter, cut out semi circles from the sides as shown in the picture to the left to make your leafs.  Arrange leafs along the edges of an ungreased baking sheet.  From remaining dough, use butterfly and flower cookie cutters (use multiple size flowers ranging from 1" to 3") to cut out the rest of your shapes.  Arrange on ungreased baking sheets, spaced apart to save room for the skewers.

Carefully insert dyed skewers 3/8" into base of all cookies.  Bake 7-9 minutes or until golden.  Place baking sheets on wire racks and cool 5 minutes.  Remove from baking sheets and place directly on wire racks to cool completely.

While the cookies are cooling, you can prepare the icing.  On low speed, beat confectioners sugar with egg whites and 1 Tbl water until just combined.  Increase speed to high, and beat until thick glossy peaks form (about 2 minutes).  Divide into small bowls and tint with whatever food coloring colors you have chosen to use.  Transfer each color to individual pastry bags fitted with small writing tips (or, if you don't have, place it into small plastic baggies with a very small part of the corner cut off).  Outline cookies with icing and decorate as desired, filling in outlines and smoothing with a small spatula or back of a spoon.  Let dry completely (at least an hour)

Invert the cakes onto a clean surface and remove them from the pots.  Peel off the foil and then line each pot with new foil, making sure none will show once cake is back in.  Place cake back into pots, and spread about 2 Tbls frosting on each.  Sprinkle each with cookie crumbs to cover.  Insert cookie flowers and leaves into cakes, trimming skewers as needed.  Now you are ready to proudly display and give away your lovely flower cake pots.  Hope you enjoy!

Peppermint White Chocolate Heart Pops Recipe

Even though Valentines Day is over, that doesn't mean you can't make this sweet candy treat for your loved ones.  Now is actually a great time to make them as you can find boxes of mini candy canes on sale (I found a huge box for $1 at Michaels Arts & Crafts).  I made mine the other day with my 3 year old son.  So yes, they didn't turn out as pretty as they could have if I did them myself, however we had a blast doing it together which is the most important thing to me.  Plus, they still tasted just as yummy!  This recipe (which I found in my Disney Family Fun magazine) will make 12 heart pops.

What you need:
24 mini candy canes
12 paper lollipop sticks
12 oz bag of white chocolate melts (you can use chips, but the Wilton's Premium White Melts worked out wonderfully!)
1 1/2 tsp vegetable oil (only if you use chips, not if you use candy melts)
Red & pink nonpareils or sugar sprinkles

Heat the oven to 235*  On a parchment lined baking sheet, arrange the candy canes into hearts and bake for 10 minutes.

Slide the parchment paper (with the hearts on it) off the baking sheet and onto a work surface.

Quickly pinch each warm heart onto a lollipop stick to form a perfect closed heart shape (very important step, yet you can see from my photo this is what we forgot to do...oops)

In the microwave, melt the bag of candy melts according to the instructions on the bag. 
If you are using plain white chocolate chips, add the oil and heat on high in 10 second intervals, stirring between heatings until fully melted.

First coat the stick (center of the heart only) with a small amount of chocolate.  Allow it to set a few minutes, and then flip it over (this way your stick won't show thru the back)
Fill either a decorator bag or a baggie with a small corner cut off with the chocolate.  Carefully pipe the chocolate into the center of the heart (this is where us not heating and forming the heart made it tricky...that and letting a 3 year old help)

While still hot, sprinkle the nonpareils or sugar over the chocolate and allow them to cool until hardened.

Now you can either serve them on a platter or wrap them in lollipop bags (tied with a pretty ribbon of course) and give them as gifts.  Hope you have fun with this!