Sweet Spot

Top O’ The Mornin’ to ya!

It’s no secret, and if you know me, you definitely know that I would do {almost} anything to have a thick Irish brogue. If I am ever given a penny to toss into a well, birthday candles to blow out, a clock that reads 11:11 or a fun singing genie that pops out of an ancient lamp that I picked up at the flea market in Agrabah- I always wish for the ability to sound like this:
Kelly MacDonald (Margaret Schroeder) from Boardwalk Empire

Don’t even get me started on how much I love Boardwalk Empire. That is a whole different post! I am watching them on DVD so I haven’t seen the 2nd season yet- don’t give anything away!

Irish roots run deep in my family. My maiden name is O’Connell. My brother’s names are Casey James and Shane Patrick. The main street in Dublin is O’Connell street for goodness sakes….I love all things Irish. I have yet to actually get to Ireland but I imagine that once I arrive in the mother land my thick Irish brogue will finally kick in and my life long dream will come true. I’ll go the “pub” and order a “pint.” I’ll wear “knickers.” I can sit on my “arse” and get “bolloxed” after too many aforementioned “pints.” It’ll be grand.

But until that day comes I will have to celebrate my Irish heritage here in the states. Baking green Celtic Knot Cookies and trying oh so desperately to catch those pesky leprechauns with my 3 year old.

Let’s get baking, shall we?

Here is our cast of characters this go around:

Do not preheat your oven just yet.

You will begin by stirring together your cake mix (make sure it has pudding in it!) with the flour. Now grab your KitchenAid or your hand mixer and add your vegetable oil, both eggs, the almond extract and the sour cream.

Mix on medium high until a dough forms. If you are using 2 different colors, separate your dough evenly into 2 bowls.

I wanted each green that I used to be a bit more drastic than they turned out but I didn’t want the coloring to alter the dough consistency too much. I only had Wilton coloring on hand (even though I prefer Americolor whenever possible!) so I used Kelly Green (umm, duh!) and Leaf Green. Using a toothpick, drop in small amounts of color and mix thoroughly. Continue adding color until you achieve your desired shades. Try not to curse too loudly when you realize you now have green fingertips and an increasingly green counter top.

Once your coloring is done, put both bowls into the fridge and let them chill for at least an hour. Once they are chilled, pull them out and grab either a baking mat or a good ol’ cutting board.

Preheat your oven to 350° while you form your cookies.

LIGHTLY flour your surface. I used too much. Use less than I did. Oops. 1teaspoon spread out is plenty.
Grab about 1T of each color and roll them out into about 5 to 6 inch tubes approximately the thickness of a magic marker. Bad size reference? Ok, how about a small carrot? Just go with it…

Now, pinch the ends together.

And twist, twist, twist! You can either hold the twisted ends and twist or pick up one of the tubes and wrap them around each other.

Once your pieces are wrapped all the way down, pinch the other ends together. Now, starting at the bottom, roll the ends inward to form the beginning of a circle.

Continue rolling…

At the end, place the tail under the cookie so it doesn’t stick out. Place all cookies on a silpat or parchment paper lined cookie sheet.

Slip them into your oven and bake for 10-12 minutes. Mine were done at 10. You want them to be baked enough to stay together (brown on the bottom) but not over baked. The middles shouldn’t be jiggly, just set.

Aren’t they so cute? I like the colors, and the twisting. But mostly, I love the fluffy soft texture. These are the softest, most delicious sugar cookies EVER.

Now it’s time for the frosting!

Grab your butter and Crisco and mix them in your KitchenAid until smooth.
Add your salt, milk and vanilla extract. Blend slowly at first and increase your speed until well blended, about 1 minute.
Add your meringue powder and powdered sugar, and beat until frosting has a fluffy, light texture. If you are unfamiliar with meringue powder you can find it at Michaels and Hobby Lobby. It’s in the cake decorating section and comes in two sizes.

Once your frosting is all mixed up you can either pipe it or spread it in between 2 of your cookies and….tada! Sandwich cookies!

Have a wonderful St. Patrick’s Day and thanks for stopping by!