Paint your own cookies or PYO cookies ... kids LOVE them! That said, purchasing them is expensive, especially if you are planning the activity for a crowd. This tutorial will walk you step-by-step through how to make your own budget friendly version of this creative + edible craft.
Baking with kids can be magical, and well ... frustrating. These paint your own cookies are a fun family activity hat is simple enough for decorating newbies. Customize your colors and cookie cutters to to celebrate Halloween, Valentine's Day, Easter, Christmas ... the possibilities are endless.
Using your favorite cutout cookie recipe, royal icing, gel food coloring and a little vanilla extract, you can create an adorable, creative activity that kids of all ages will love.
In order to paint your own cookies, you have to bake them first! We recommend making these no chill, no spread cut-out cookies and using our favorite royal icing recipe.
Let's jump in, shall we?
Ingredients/Equipment
- prepared cutout cookies - you can use any recipe and any shape you like. My go-to is THIS cutout cookie recipe - no chilling required and they don't spread!
- prepared royal icing - purchase store-bought or use your favorite recipe. Royal icing should be a medium consistency, meaning that if you run a knife through the surface, it takes 6-8 seconds for it to completely smooth back over.
- gel food coloring - select 4-6 colors that compliment one another. Avoid water-based food coloring.
- vanilla extract - if preferred you can opt for almond extract, this ingredient will be used to dilute the food coloring
- small paint brush(es) - small short bristled brushes work best. I purchase these food safe disposable brushes, but as long as they are clean, you can use what you have on hand.
How To Apply Royal Icing
Important Note: This method of royal icing application is not going to result in cookies with impeccable edges that look like they have been professionally piped. It's a short-cut method that is perfect for the home baker who is creating a fun cooking painting activity for kids.
Step 1: Pour royal icing into a small, shallow bowl. The bowl should be about 2 inches wider than your biggest cookie. This will make sure the royal icing is "deep" instead of spread out and will allow you to ice more cookies.
Step 2: Stir the royal icing between each cookie. This will help to eliminate air bubbles on the surface of the icing. It also helps to avoid the icing forming a thin crust across the top layer.
Step 3: Hold the edges of the cookie and carefully dip the top surface into the royal icing. You do not want the icing to get on the sides of the cookie. Gently lift the cookie from the icing, allow excess to drip and then flip the cookie over.
Step 4: Gently shake the cookie to ensure that the icing covers the entire surface. It will be bumpy and uneven. Lay the cookie on a flat surface. If icing begins to run over the edges of the cookie, you used too much. Use a clean finger to wipe it away.
Step 5: Use a clean toothpick to pop any bubbles that rise up to the surface. This will ensure a smooth painting surface. You may have to repeat this 1-2 times. Do not stress about small bubbles, you will be painting the cookie anyway.
Step 6: Allow the royal icing covered cookies to dry overnight. Do not try to apply a design or stack the cookies on top of each other for at least 12 hours. Drying time will vary depending on how thick the applied icing is.
How To Make Edible Paint
There are lots of options on how to make "paint" for your iced cookies. Each has pros and cons. My favorite method is purchasing done-for-you edible paint. If you don't want to order, I recommend using the gel-food-coloring method.
Option 1: Cookie Countess Paint Palette. This is my preferred option for painting cookies. It's simple, the colors don't stain, and they are very vibrant. To paint, gently rub your brush over the color you want to use on the palette. Apply color to your cookie. Rinse brush between each use.
Option 2: Gel Food Coloring. Combine 2 teaspoons of vanilla with a couple drops of gel food coloring. This method is budget friendly, but food coloring may stain lips. To paint, dip a clean brush into a color, gently press brush against edge of container to remove excess liquid and apply paint to your cookie.
Top Tip
If you don't have any gel food coloring on hand, you can use Skittles! The "paint" colors are not as vibrant and the colors may bleed, but the kids will still have a great time. Wet paint brush, rub it against the shell of your preferred skittle color and then paint your cookie.
Storage
Paint your own cookies can be prepped in advance (with or without royal icing applied) and stored in the freezer for up to 4 months. Once cookies are fully dried, freeze in an airtight container.
To thaw and use, remove the entire container and place it on the counter. Allow the cookies to come to room temperature. If you remove the cookies from the container, while still frozen, condensation will form on the royal icing.
Frequently Asked Questions About Paint Your Own Cookies:
There are many reasons your icing may not dry into a smooth flat layer. Ultimately, it won't matter to the kids and the cookies. However, a couple tips are to avoid applying too much icing to the cookie and to gently tap or shake the cookie just after dipping to make sure all the crevices of the cookies are filled in.
Of course. This will give you a better result than dipping your cookies. The goal of this recipe is to provide instructions that are quick, easy and approachable. Piping cookies is very timing consuming and takes a lot of practice.
Recipe
How To Make 'Paint Your Own Cookies (A PYO Tutorial)
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 6 edible paint colors 1x
Description
Paint your own cookies or PYO cookies ... kids LOVE them! That said, purchasing them is expensive, especially if you are planning the activity for a crowd. This tutorial will walk you step-by-step through how to make your own budget friendly version of this creative + edible craft.
Ingredients
Ingredients:
- prepared cutout cookies - use your favorite recipe and cookie cutters. This is my favorite no chill cut out cookie recipe.
- prepared royal icing - this can be store-bought or homemade. This recipe is great. You want your consistency to be loose/medium.*
- gel food coloring in 4 assorted colors *
- 8 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- small food safe paint brushes
- small condiment sized bowls or disposable cups
Instructions
Apply Royal Icing:
- Pour royal icing into a small, shallow bowl. I really the bowl will be about 2 inches wider than your biggest cookie. This will make sure the royal icing is as "deep" instead of spread out so you can ice more cookies.
- Stir the royal icing before dipping each cookie. This will help to eliminate air bubbles on the surface of the icing. It also helps to avoid the icing forming a thin crust across the top layer.
- Hold old the edges of the cookie and carefully dip it into the royal icing. You do not want the icing to get on the sides of the cookie. Gently lift the cookie from the icing, allow excess to drip and then flip the cookie over.
- Gently shake the cookie to ensure that the icing covers the entire surface. It will be bumpy and uneven. Lay the cookie on a flat surface. If icing begins to run over the edges of the cookie, you used too much. Use a clean finger to wipe it away.
- Use a clean toothpick to pop any bubbles that rise up to the surface. This will ensure a smooth painting surface. You may have to repeat this 1-2 times. Do not stress about small bubbles ... these cookies will be painted.
- Allow the royal icing covered cookies to dry overnight. Do not try to apply a design or stack the cookies on top of each other for at least 8 hours. Drying time will vary depending on how thick the applied icing is.
Make and Apply Paint - if using purchased PYO palettes skip this step and see notes.
- Place a few drops of a single color of food coloring into each bowl. Add 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and mix.
- Use a small food safe paint brush. Dip brush into the color you want to use, press bristles against the side of bowl to get rid of any excess water (important or colors will bleed). Paint cookie. Rinse brush between each color change or use a separate paint brush for each bowl.
Notes
Loose/Medium Royal Icing - run a clean knife through your mixed royal icing. It should take 6-8 seconds for the surface to become completely smooth again. If it takes longer, add water 1 tablespoon at a time. If it take less than 6-8 seconds, add powdered sugar 2 tablespoons at a time until you reach the correct consistency.
If you would prefer to purchase your paint palette instead of using gel food coloring, The Cookie Countess makes lots of fun colors. I have used these palettes and they are fantastic. Follow directions on the back of packaging to paint your cookies.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Category: Baking
- Method: No Bake
- Cuisine: American
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