ANSWER:
Yes, cutters can be made from aluminum BUT you can have problems. Most of the aluminum you have available is very lightweight (soda can weight) and very pliable. You could bend it easily into the shape you want but as you are trying to cut out the cookies, the thin aluminum will buckle and give you a distorted cutout. I'm sure somewhere in your town, you could find a heavier weight aluminum but it could be very costly to purchase the stock and have it cut into ribbons for you. I'm not sure of the weight you'd need to purchase either. You will need to talk to the vendor you buy the aluminum from.

ANSWER: Cookie Cutter Crafting Kits are quality kits that sell refill copper ribbon.  I have ordered online and have occasionally seen the kit at Michael’s Craft Store. I suggest that you purchase the kit to start and then order the refills as needed. 

P.S.  I always order 2 of the refill copper ribbons.  I get started with a cookie idea and then another idea flows in and then another.  I then have to order another ribbon so that I have a supply for the next idea. 

QUESTION:

I just stumbled upon your website and wondered if you can help me. My daughter is graduating from high school this spring and I just returned from a Project Graduation planning meeting.  After the meeting, three of us were talking about cookies and were needing a RAM head cookie cutter...but no one has one.  In fact, I collect cookie cutters and have never seen a ram one.  Do you have one?  Do you ever make custom cookie cutters?  Do you ever make custom cookie cutters?

I was wondering if you might know of someone that could make some and we could sell them to raise money for Project Graduation....our school mascot is a ram. Thanks in advance for your help!

ANSWER:
It’s nice of you to think ask if I make cookie cutters.  Well I do, but only one at a time for special projects.
 

QUESTION:

Just a quick note to say "Thank You."  I have searched for years for a way to make cookie cutters other than tracing around cardboard or purchasing a kit that looked confusing. I appreciate your time and effort in perfecting the technique and the willingness to share it with others. Would you recommend an online source for the copper tape?  I live in the boondocks and use the internet for hard to locate items.

ANSWER:
Cookie Cutter Crafting Kits are quality kits that sell refill copper ribbon.  I have ordered online and have occasionally seen the kit at Michael’s Craft Store. I suggest that you purchase the kit to start and then order the refills as needed. 

P.S.  I always order two (2) of the refill copper ribbons.  I get started with a cookie idea and then another idea flows in and then another.  I then have to order another ribbon so that I have a supply for the next idea. 

QUESTION:
You are so good at this. I am amazed! Where can I get the supplies of metal ribbon ? Craft store or hardware store? I cant find a small doggy bone cutter or a 7-inch snowflake cutter. I am making tree ornaments out of gingerbread and making doggy treats  in my home. I am a bench jeweler so I'm used to working with small things.

ANSWER:
You can get a kit called Cookie Cutter Crafting Kit by Acorn Meadow Designs. The kit has everything you need to get started and then you can purchase just the copper ribbon as you need to.  I have ordered online and have also seen the kits in Michael’s Craft Store.

QUESTION:
I was delighted when I found your snowflake recipe, they look so beautiful I just had to try them! Well, I've followed your instructions down to a "T" (dough overnight in the fridge) and now I'm ready to roll...but the disc is like a piece of concrete, and when I try and roll it's breaking up with huge fissures in the dough!  Help! what am I doing wrong? Thanks for your time!

ANSWER:
It sounds like you need more moisture in your dough.

Remember that recipes are suggestions as to the quantities.  Because of where I live and my altitude, the recipe might be a little different for you if you live in a moist area.   Also quite often the flour will be dryer in the winter because it is stored in a heated (read that as dry air) house.  If your skin needs a moisturizer then your cookies and cakes will probably need a little more moisture when you prepare the batter or dough.

Before you chill the dough, pay attention to it’s texture.  If it crumbles before if sits overnight, it probably will crumble after it sits. I often add an additional egg, a tablespoon of oil or 2 tablespoons of water. In this recipe you could add moisture by using 2 whole eggs or even 2 Jumbo Eggs.  If you think the dough is still dry, add a tablespoon of water but you might have to bake a ½ minute longer. 

Bake your first batch of cookies.  Let them cool, eat one and see if you like the texture.  I personally like a soft and chewy cookie but some folks like them almost brittle.  This is when you personal tastes overrule the recipe.  

 

QUESTION:
I have a question: I am trying to bake candy canes using the general sugar cookie dough recipe... I have dyed half the dough red while the other half green. I roll out two ropes and twist the dough into a candy cane. My problem is that when it bakes, it does not stay 3-D ish, it becomes flat.... The magazines have shown it to be puffier.. what am I missing in my recipe? Someone told me cream of tartar will make it more stiff and keep it shape while baking. Any suggestions?

ANSWER:
It depends on your recipe.  Are you using an Egg White based recipe (flourless) or one that uses flour?

If it is a flour based recipe, I’d try a recipe that uses a vegetable shortening.  I agree that the butter tastes better but it also is one of the reasons that cookies spread out.  Think about it, if you put butter in a hot pan, it melts and flattens,

Shortening, like Crisco, has a higher melting temperature.  When you put it in the oven, it takes longer to melt and the flour has time to set and absorb the oil before it flattens completely out.  The Cream of Tarter will not help you in this recipe.

If you have a recipe that calls for you to beat the egg whites then I can see using cream of tarter. The Cream of Tarter causes a chemical reaction and helps the egg white to hold their shape a bit better.  Beating the egg whites in a freshly lemon juice cleaned copper bowl does the best job.  Remember, you must handle the whites very carefully to help prevent deflating.

QUESTION:
This afternoon, I was sold several candy molds as well as some Gum Paste (just add water). I was told to dust the mold with cornstarch, place the gum paste into the mold, and let dry. The question is how do I get the dried gum paste out of the molds?  I was also told that the gum paste is edible.  Is that not true?  I read on your website that it isn't edible so which is it?  I ate a small amount when I was trying to place it into the mold.  Will I die?  Or is it just that it doesn't taste too great and will be really hard when it dries.

ANSWER:
Lauren, You’re OK, Don’t worry!  Gum paste is edible in the sense that you can eat it without poisoning yourself but the other side of it is that when you let it thoroughly dry it gets as hard as a rock and the flavor and texture, to me, is unpleasant. 

Hopefully the molds you were sold were the type that you can twist a little bit, like you can twist an ice cube tray and the cubes pop out.  If not, if the mold is a hard clear plastic, you just might need to let the little shapes dry thoroughly.  When Gum paste dries, it shrinks the tiniest bit so they should release and pop out. Don’t be surprised if it takes 3 days for the shapes to dry.

QUESTION:
I was looking a the make your own cookie cutters section of your website.  Do you make cookie cutter for people for payment?

ANSWER:
No, Lesa, I don’t make cutters for pay. But what shape do you want to have made?  There are thousands of cutters and cutter makers out there and maybe I can help you find just the right thing.

QUESTION: 
I plan to bake the Snowflake Cookies I found at your website that “Peggy” gave.  She stated that this “baking gage” is a must have and she planned to give one to her daughters for Christmas.  Her husband made hers but she stated that they can be found.  Perhaps there is another name for them.  Thank you so much for responding.

ANSWER:
The product you are looking for is called Perfection Strips.  These plastic strips come in pairs with the following thickness: 2mm (1/16"); 4mm (1/8") and 6mm (1/4"). 

You can buy them for about $8.00 at Country Kitchen: