I’m a little obsessed with cookie cutters...ok, maybe more than a little. You can’t have too many as far as I’m concerned. My family, however, definitely does not understand this obsession so I’ve stopped talking about it! The shapes alone can inspire me to create something unique. I don’t see any harm in getting just one or two more, do you?
- Small Heart Cookie Cutter used for the “Baptism or Christening Cookies”
- Balloons and Cloud cookie cutters used for the “Retirement Party” and a birthday party
- Animal Cookie Cutters used for “Christmas at the Zoo”
- Snowflake Cookie Cutters used for Christmas “Snowflakes” and “The Elegant Snowflake”
- Snowflake Cookie Cutters with Cutouts for “The Elegant Snowflake,” “Easy Shortbread Snowflakes,” and “Chocolate-Dipped Snowflakes”
- Autumn Leaves Cookie Cutters plus a Pumpkin used for “Chocolate Autumn Leaves” and “Autumn Leaves”
- Plaques and Geometric Shapes used for “Say It with a Cookie”
- Ice Cream Cones for “Ice Cream Cone Cookies”
- Multiple Shapes for “Hanukkah Cookies”
- Acorn Cookie Cutters for “The Mighty Acorn Cookie”
- Fat Little Christmas Tree Cookie Cutter for “Funny Little Christmas Trees”
- All shapes and sizes of trees for “Snowy Trees”
- Large dove for “Silver Dove Cookies”
- Small dove for “Gluten-Free Wedding Cookies”
- Easter bunnies for “Cotton-Tail Bunny Cookies”
- Shooting stars for “Star-Spangled Fourth”
- Tropical fish for “The Deep Blue Sea”
- Lobster for “You Are My Lobster”
- The letter “i” for “Hanukkah Cookies” (candles) and “Christmas Slippers”
- Fluted round cookie cutter plus minis for “Christmas Wreaths”
- Butterfly cookie cutters for “Hello, Spring” and “Glazed Easter Cookies””
- Elegant butterfly cookie cutters for “Butterflies and Tea”
- Halloween cookie cutters for “TKO Skeleton Cookies”
- Lighthouse cookie cutter for “Be a Lighthouse”
- Bumblebee cookie cutter for “The Three Bees”
- Christmas Mitten cookie cutter for “Christmas Mittens, Hats, and Sweaters”
- Star of David for “Festival of Lights Cookies”
- Classic Heart for several Valentine’s Day cookies, including “Valentine’s Cookies”
Cookie Cutters & Their Cookie Projects
Each cookie cutter in the slideshow above was used for a corresponding cookie project below. Click a photo to find out more about the project:
Metal vs. Plastic. Overall, metal cookie cutters are sharper than plastic cookie cutters and they make the cleanest edges. I do have several plastic cookie cutters that I love because of the shape, which I haven’t been able to find in a metal cookie cutter.
Steel, Tin, Copper. Stainless steel cookie cutters are better than tin because they won’t rust. But they are also more expensive. Copper cookie cutters are the most expensive of all but will last the longest and can become family heirlooms when passed down from one generation to the next. Copper cookie cutters should be dried immediately after washing so that they won’t spot. (See my spotted copper cookie cutter in slide #11 above, “Fat Little Christmas Tree Cookie Cutter.”) If they do spot or tarnish, you can polish them with a copper cleaner, like Bar Keepers Friend, and they’ll look like new again.
Fondant Cutters. Cookie cutters made for fondant work can also be used with cookie dough, but sometimes they have very small openings that work well with fondant, but get clogged up when used with cookie dough.
Cookie Cutter Care. All metal cookie cutters will do best if you wash them by hand and dry them immediately. If I’ve finished baking all the cookies and turned off the oven, I will often placed my metal cookie cutters on a sheet pan and put them in the oven as it cools down to help dry out all the hidden seams. Of course, you should not put plastic cookie cutters in the oven (they might melt!). Just let them air dry.
More Info. Find out more about cookie cutters.
What I’ve learned...
You don’t have to have a lot of cookie cutters to make cookies with interesting shapes. Sometimes you can combine different parts of several to make something unique. Sometimes you can cut out the dough free-hand. And sometimes just cutting everything in squares is the perfect solution. The most important thing about the cookie is how it tastes! Once you have the flavor nailed down, you can make them in any shape you want and decorate them perfectly. Trust me, a delicious cookie will get eaten no matter what it looks like. The only reason to throw cookies away is because they taste awful. If they taste good, put them out on a plate and they will disappear.
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