Have I ever got a treat for you today! The talented Hani of Haniela’s Food & Photography invited me to be a part of a cookie collaboration of sorts, called Let’s Smell the Flowers, where each person was to make a cookie (or cookies), inspired by a particular flower. There are so many purty, purty cookies by 18 other cookie decorators I’m about to share with you. Before we go on to that cookie gorgeousness, my entry…
I was given the dogwood flower, and was inspired by this photo of a dogwood, and this photo of a honeycomb for the base (have always wanted to try making the honeycomb, so decided to combine the two):
Isn’t the real dogwood flower pretty? I hadn’t actually paid much attention to this flower before, and now that I’ve spent some time ‘with it’, I appreciate its beauty. My version is no where near nature’s, but here’s my attempt:
I decided to step out of my comfort zone and try some different decorating techniques. The first one, the dogwood itself, was a little scary for me. Although I know some sugar flower basics, mine are usually simple and whimsical. I’ve wanted to really get into making sugar flowers, since about almost the same time I started decorating cookies, but cookies kind of took the front seat and sugar flowers a backseat went by the wayside.
I’ve also always admired Jacqueline Butler’s gorgeous flowers, so was thrilled to be able to learn from her through her online course on Craftsy.com. She teaches hydrangea and filler flowers, leaves (and more), in the course, so I tried to use similar techniques for the dogwood, and although mine aren’t nearly as the level hers are, following Jacqueline step by step made everything so much easier. She’s such a great teacher, and so thorough, I highly recommend her online course if you can’t get to a class she teaches in a city near you.
To find more info. on her online Craftsy course, read her blog post about it here.
For information on where she teaches, visit Jacqueline on The Petalsweet Blog or check out her facebook page here.
If you’d like to make the dogwood flower, there are a few tools you’ll need. I got the cutters and silicon veiners at Sugar Delites Sugar Art & Supplies. (On facebook here). Jennifer, who runs the shop, was amazing – she promptly answers emails and really knows her stuff. Among other things, she helped me find a great leaf cutter, originally used for gardenias, which works really well for dogwood leaves. I’m not surprised she came recommended by Jacqueline Butler!
Things You’ll Need to Make the Dogwood Flower:
- Gumpaste
- Fondant Rolling Pin
- Dogwood Cutter (I used the smaller one in the photo)
- Dogwood Veining Kit
- Gardenia Leaf Cutters
- Light Green Luster Dust
- Dark Green Luster Dust
For a basic video tutorial on making gumpaste flowers, click here, but I’ll be the first one to tell you, it’s no where near as good as the online course Jacqueline has on Craftsy.
How to Make A Honeycomb Cookie
Been wanting to try this for a loooong time now. Lines of royal icing piped on top of each other in the shape of hexagons, to simulate honeycombs.
The idea isn’t difficult – I just printed a honeycomb pattern and projected it in my Kopykake and traced, but, now that I’ve tried it, there are a few things I’d do differently next time. Here are my notes:
- Try to line up the honeycomb image better, so that some of the edges aren’t open.
- Make icing thicker – at first I tried my 10 second icing, hoping it would work, but guessing it might be a tad too runny. Yup… these lines need to be thicker so that they have more body. See the thickness of this icing here if you’d like to try it. I ended up using the thicker icing and could have saved some time with preparing my consistency.
- I probably could have made the honeycomb deeper, but…
- These take quite some time to make. I had originally planned to make six of these… that didn’t last. This one cookie took me approximately one hour to pipe. Enough said.
- It was challenging to pipe nice, short lines. My lines definitely aren’t perfect, and I had to use toothpicks quite a bit to fix mistakes.
- It helped to have a tiny amount of royal icing in my piping bag. It’s easier to pipe (for me), when the piping bag is similar to the size of a pen or pencil.
All in all, it was neat to see the finished result.
If you’d like to make the honeycomb cookie, here’s a basic how-to:
Things you’ll need to make the honeycomb cookie:
- Royal Icing
- Shortbread Cookie Recipe
- Hexagon Cutter from Coppergifts
- Yellow Food Gel Coloring
- #1 PME Piping Tip
- Piping Bag and Coupler
- Honeycomb Pattern
- Kopykake Projector (for alternatives to the projector, see the bottom of my Kopykake projector tutorial)
Basic Steps:
Step 1: Once you’ve baked your cookies and flooded the base with yellow icing, and let it dry, you’re ready to pipe the honeycomb. Trace the lines, one side at a time and one row at a time, until you’ve connected all the hexagons.
Step 2: Once you’ve done the bottom layer, go back to the first lines you began piping, which should be set by now, and pipe right on top of them. Repeat until you’re happy with the height of the honeycomb.
Notes: See my notes above for more tips and ideas.
Oh, and one last thing about the honeycomb cookie… well, I can imagine biting into it would create a nice satisfying crunch, but I didn’t try it. Still have it, not sure what I’ll do with it. If you decide you’d like to make them for an order or otherwise, I highly recommend making only one or two and having other simpler cookies to accomodate them. That and make sure you share with whoever’s eating them, that it’s best to remove the gumpaste flower first, before eating. (It’s edible, but not the tastiest).
How to Make Gumpaste Bees
Since it was my first time making these little bees, I think I need to practice a bit more before I share an in-depth tutorial with you, but in the meantime, I can share the simple basics.
What you’ll need:
- Gumpaste
- Yellow and Black Food Gel
- Fine Paintbrush
- Pearl Luster Dust
- Mini Bugs Mould
Basic Steps:
Step 1: Knead a tiny piece of gumpaste and press the smoothest end into the bug mold of your choice. Make sure the entire cavity is filled.
Step 2: Gently trim the excess gumpaste with a sharp paring knife, so that the surface of the gumpaste is flush with the mould. Careful not to cute the silicon mould with your knife. (You do need a sharp knife to trim the gumpaste though).
Step 3: Put the mould in the freezer for 10 minutes.
Step 4: Gently pop your shape out, let it dry for 24 hours, and paint with food gel of your choice.
Step 5: Lightly dust the bug’s wings with pearl luster dust.
Note: I didn’t trust myself to do tiny black lines on the bumblebees backs, but may give a shot next time with a really, really fine paintbrush (Not sure what’s available, but a brush with only a few hairs maybe!)
Let‘s Smell the Flowers
So now on to the best part! Take a look at all the beautiful flower cookies for the Virtual Cookie Party, Let’s Smell the Flowers! There are so many fabulous, gorgeous ideas here – I’m blown away by the talent and creativity of all these wonderful ladies! Below the flower images you’ll find links to all the corresponding posts. I say, grab a cup of coffee or tea (or whatever you enjoy), put your feet up, and savour a walk in this cookie flower garden:
I love every single one of these gorgeous cookies and am happy to be included among such talented cookie artists! Thanks so much to Hani for organizing this collaboration and for inviting me!
Here are the links for you to parouse, and enjoy “smelling the flowers”:
1. Black Eye Susan by Lisa, The Bearfoot Baker
2. Carnation by Meaghan, The Decorated Cookie
3. Cherry Tree Flower by Pam, Cookie Crazie
4. Daffodil by Georganne, LilaLoa
5. Daisy by Stephanie, Ellies Bites
6. Dogwood by Marian, Sweetopia
7. Gerbera by Paula, Vanilla Bean Baker
8. Hyacinth by Amber, SweetAmbs
9. Hydrangea by Kim, The Partiologist
10. Iris by Cristin, Cristin’s Cookies
11. Lavender by Liz, Arty McGoo
12. Lily of The Valley by Hani, Haniela’s
13. Lotus by Marlyn, Montreal Confections
14. Morning Glory by Glory, Glorious Treats
15. Orchid by Ali, Ali Bee’s Bake Shop
16. Pansy Nicole, Life’s A Batch
17. Poppy by Callye, SweetSugarBelle
18. Sunflower by Bea, Cancun Cookies
19. Tulip by Lorriane, LorrainesCookies
You’re welcome to leave comments below if you’d like, and I’d love to see some of your flower creations if you’d like to share pics on my Facebook page, on twitter, pinterest or YouTube.
Happy spring!
xo,
Marian
Lorrie Gauthier says
That is a seriously gorgeous cookie Marian!
Stacy says
Unbelievable!! They are all so nice, but yours is amazing. I was hoping you had some amazing wayto make the honecomb that would have been much less work than what you did. Wow I can understand why you only did the one.
Nichia says
Whoa, so gorgeous! An hour per cookie? We must find a faster way…
Janet says
This is beyond anything I could have imagined. Bravo!
I hadn’t seen a dogwood tree/blossom until we moved to North Carolina. Now, I cannot imagine having a garden without them! You might be interested in the story of the dogwood blossom – just google it and you’ll see why they are such a lovely flowering tree, especially at Easter-time!
Kim says
seriously insane (and amazing!)! I totally laughed about still having the cookie! I sculpted an owl cake for a friend & make cupcakes – we couldn’t bear to cut into him – she named him charlie and he sat in the fridge for 3 weeks! lol
hugs! Kim @ Party Frosting!
Paula GT says
The honeycomb and gogwood flower!
My God!I ‘m speachless!!
Fantastic idea !!
“Smelling the flowers” is so fantastic too!
Thank you to share with us!
Paula
Isabel says
Wow, Marian!
I’m absolutely stunned!!!!!!!!!!!!! Your dogwood is fantastic! It’s the most beautiful sweet thing I’ve ever seen!!!!
Congratulations, Marian, you are the most patient woman in the world…
Lisa p says
Wow! Love that honeycomb! I would cry if i had to pipe that! And those cute little bees…thanks for the link for the bugs mold…must get one! I love everything you do!
Glory/ Glorious Treats says
This is so gorgeous Marian! The dogwood flower is perfect, and the honeycomb is just mind-blowing!! Amazing work!!
Kate says
Very clever, unique and so cute. Amazing work yet again xxxx
Bea @ CancunCOOKIES says
Your work is always PERFECT! Love this set and great tuto…
Ana Lara says
My God!! You are very clever and creative!! I would like to make this cookies! Your job is really great. Thank you for sharing this lovely knowledge 🙂
Cupcake and Talk says
I just want to say I love your amazing work. Your cookies are pure eye candy. Thank you.
Tesei says
Amazing, lovely, beautiful, sweet… what else can be said this time? You never stop to amaze us!
Adrianne says
Wow love your creation! So clever and such neat piping work and really pretty dogwood flower, not forgetting the mini bees 🙂 thanks for sharing Marian!
Mari says
All the details and work are well worth it, you’ve created a piece of edible art! You are so talented, Marian, God bless your gift:) Congratulations to all, for the marvelous job on all the flower cookies.
susie says
Holy Moly. That about sums it up! Impressive.
Caroline @ chocolate & carrots says
These cookies take my breathe away. Absolutely gorgeous!!!
Stephanie says
Wow I am in love with that honey comb effect! It does look like a lot of work but I bet it would be great with a spring themed cake as a topper of some sort. Your flower is adorable too. Can’t wait to check out all those other posts too.
Martha T says
Dogwood has a very special place in my heart and it was one of the first sugar flowers I learned how to make. Your dogwood is gorgeous and I can’t imagine having the patience to do honeycomb, so thank you for sharing it with us. Jennifer Dontz (Sugar Delites) rocks, doesn’t she? 🙂
Daria says
this is a masterpiece 🙂
Nadine says
Honestly, Marian, is there ANYTHING you can’t do? Both the flower and the cookie are just incredible, like everything else you do. My first attempt at sugar flowers this weekend (as well as flooding) makes me appreciate even more the quality of work that you do. Keep up the good work–you are such an inspiration!
Leana says
Awesome job. I know Jennifer she is awesome and very helpful.
Paula says
I am in awe of your dogwood flower and I just keep looking at that honeycomb cookie. I love it and will have to try it to try the technique at some point. I don’t imagine eating stacks of royal icing like the honeycomb would be particular fun but it sure it a wonderful conversation piece! Everything in this post is simply beautiful and stunning.
shelly (cookies and cups) says
That’s completely insane! Love these more than words!
Darlita says
All I can say is…..WOW!!! Absolutely stunning work!!! Thank you for sharing:)
Jane says
The Dogwood flower look so real…just gorgeous!!!
Katie says
Good for you for going out of your comfort zone with flower! It’s awesome. I was just working on designing a bee themed cookie set, with a honeycomb cookie, and then saw yours… “Oh no! I don’t want to copy Sweetopia!” Bees are so popular right now! Mine’s pretty different though…
Great job! And Happy Spring!
Sandi says
Wow. Are you friends with God? Because your flowers look Just.Like.His! Amazing! I actually thought it was a real flower til I read the copy.
The Partiologist says
I am amazed at this combination of beauty! I love everything about it!
Marisa says
You have outdone yourself, missy! I am seriously in awe of each of your creations. The time and effort you put into each clearly shows.
Keep learning and trying new things! You are an inspiration!
Lora says
This is genius. Love!!!
Jackie Thompson says
Your creativity knows no bounds! The honeycomb is positively stunning and such a creative idea. Love the beauty of the dogwood. And the bees … Soooo cute!
Rowaida Flayhan says
Wow!!! This is incredibly gorgeous wow Marian you always amaze me. Best wishes xoxo
Ali Bee's Bake Shop says
Very COOL! I was SO curious on how you made that honey comb!! Learn something new every day 🙂
The BearFoot Baker says
I really thought your dogwood flower was real! It is amazing and I can’t wait to try this technique. The honeycomb is mind-blowing! Very Beautiful!!!
Fabrícia Schmidt says
is a delicacy and impeccable good taste!
your work is lovely!
Nina says
Love it!
nikki says
marian this is nothing short of spectacular! it must have taken you ages!WOW WEE!!
Maria Helena says
Wonderfull…they are amazing…
Aly says
the Dogwood was just too simple for you. You complemented it well with that gorgeous honeycomb and it brought the best of the flower! Amazing. It’s good you made the flower only an element of your cookie. This is so unique!
Maria says
wow… Marian, amazing,beautiful,gorgeous,spectacular,stanning. You amaze me again and again.Love every thing you share with us.
ML
Jacquee (I Sugar Coat It!) says
I remembered seeing the sneak peek on Instagram and thinking – those lines couldn’t possibly be piped! WOW! Love the flowers!
Lin says
You seriously gifted! It is so so realistic n beautiful!!
Sue {munchkin munchies} says
Oh my gosh, I’m enthralled! So many amazing elements here! The honey comb is incredible…I think you could teach the honeybees a thing or two:)
Peggy says
Hi Marian, I’m trying to figure out how you made the centers of the flowers. Did you roll individual little teardrop gumpaste balls and then kind of mold them together as one? I also just purchased the video on http://www.craftsy.com and I’m LOVING it!
Thank you,
Peggy
Michelle G. says
AMAZING!!! The honeycomb cookie is absolute perfection and your dogwood flower is so beautiful. Your blog is my little happy place – I escape to another world when I stop by. Thanks so much for sharing your talent!
Paige says
absolutely fantastic