Do you have a special person in your life...someone who knows you and loves you anyway? If you can sit with that person for hours and not have to say a single word, if that person just “gets” you and you “get” him/her, well, that’s your lobster. With the amount of time I spend baking and decorating cookies, I’m always happy to find one that makes me smile and these quirky lobster cookies did that for me.
“You’re my lobster, sugar cookie.” Kasha
When I decided to make lobster cookies, I wasn’t looking to create a realistic representation of a live lobster...one that you’d be tempted to dump into a pot of boiling water or squeeze lemon juice all over it. I wanted something more fanciful and offbeat. He had to be orange-red, of course. But the accents should give the little guy personality and make him a creature that would inspire my grandchildren to make up stories about him. He had to be a lobster with an imaginary and adventurous life.
For inspiration, I went hunting for ways to decorate my little crustaceans. When I found Patti Paige’s YouTube video, I fell in love with her whimsical take on the lobster cookies that she made for National Lobster Day — which, by the way, falls on September 25th this year. So thanks, Patti, for sharing your creation!
Cookie specifics
Shortbread. The combination of European butter and vanilla bean makes this shortbread cookie one of the yummiest cookies I make. It’s buttery, crumbly and light. I decided to use shortbread for these “Lobster” cookies because I plan to mail them (along with these under-the-sea cookies) to my nephew who is on deployment. I can never predict how long my package will be in transit so shortbread is preferred because it has no eggs, is a dry cookie, and not likely to spoil quickly.
Here’s my plan for the look, based loosely on Patti Paige’s Lobster Day cookies.
Shapes
lobster cookie cutter
Sizes
lobster cookie cutter is 3 inches x 3 inches, claw-to-claw and claw to tail. The perfect size for decorating and eating!
My Family Recipes
I developed this Shortbread recipe over the course of several months in my quest to duplicate the taste and texture of a shortbread cookie from a now-closed bakery in Carmel-by-the-Sea. Once I perfected the recipe, it became a cookie that I now bake for many occasions throughout the year.
Icing & Frostings
Red ChocoPan Modeling Chocolate mixed with Marshmallow Fondant: This mixture makes for a very yummy coating on cookies. Fondant is a perfect medium for cookie decorating but it tastes terrible so I never use it. Instead, I make my own marshmallow fondant, then mix it with various kinds of modeling chocolate to get a delicious substitute. The red ChocoPan Modeling Chocolate [(see Ingredients below] eliminated the need to use a ton of red gel color. All I had to do was add a drop or two of orange to get the lobster coloring I wanted.
Chocolate Royal Icing: Chocolate royal icing can be made with Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder to achieve a very dark (almost black) chocolate color. I use it for the black outlines and accents on cookies.
Cookies
Shortbread: flour, butter, sugar, cornstarch, vanilla, salt
Icing & Decorative Embellishments
Chocolate Royal Icing (for lobster outlines and accents): confectioners’ sugar, Hersey’s Special Dark Cocoa, meringue powder, corn syrup, almond extract, food coloring
ChocoPan Modeling Chocolate: white chocolate, nonfat dry milk, glyceryl lacto esters of fatty acids, soy lecithin, salt, corn syrup, sugar, water, red and yellow food coloring. Note: I bought it on amazon.com
Homemade Marshmallow Fondant: sugar, corn syrup, cornstarch, gelatin, water, vanilla extract, food coloring (optional)
Plate, Box or Bag?
Bags. I wrapped the cookies individually in clear, food-safe bags, secured with a twist tie. This also makes the cookies stackable without causing damage to the decorations. Then I packed them into zip-lock bags to keep them as fresh as possible during their long journey to my nephew.
Mailing. I sent them Priority Mail through the U.S. Post Office and used a box provided by the Post Office plus lots of bubble wrap. They are still intransit as I write this article, but I’m hopeful they’ll arrive soon.
What I’ve learned...
These cookies were made with the best ingredients I could find and baked in a small batch of two dozen. I’ve experimented with less expensive ingredients, but have come to the conclusion that flavor is best when I use the best. Why spend all this time baking and decorating if taste and texture are just so-so? Decorating the cookies takes time, but it’s an enjoyable process for me and I know that those who receive them appreciate that. Life is just better when you can share something you love with someone you love. Don’t you agree?
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