Nutter Butter Easter Chicks Food

NUTTER BUTTER EASTER CHICKS

Steps:

• Cut the Tic Tacs in half to form the chick's beak. Set aside.
• Melt the candy coating as directed on the package. I use the microwave. If using white candy melts, add enough yellow food coloring to get a bright yellow tint.
• Dip the Nutter Butter cookies in the melted candy coating, shake off the excess, then lay on the wax paper. Allow the coating to harden, about 10-20 minutes.
• Pipe eyes on each chick. Add eyebrows or eye lashes if you like -- I think it gives them more personality.
• Beak: Attach the beak using a bit of melted candy coating.

EASTER CHICK COOKIES

Steps:

• Shortbread Cookies: Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment. Whisk together flour and salt. In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter until fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Add sugar, and continue to beat until pale and fluffy, occasionally scraping down the sides of bowl, about 2 minutes more. Beat in vanilla. Add flour mixture, and mix on low speed, scraping sides if necessary, until flour is just incorporated and dough sticks together when squeezed with fingers.
• Turn out dough, forming into 2 disks; wrap each in plastic. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. To create an egg shape, pinch one end of a 2 1/2-inch-tall oval cookie cutter. Roll out 1 disk to a 1/4-inch thickness; stamp out shapes. Reroll scraps. Repeat with remaining disk.
• Bake until firm and golden, 13 to 15 minutes. For flatter cookies, tap sheets on counter halfway through baking and again afterward. Let cool on wire racks.
• Lemon Icing: Stir together sugar and lemon juice. Add food coloring. Transfer to a small squeeze bottle. Outline cookies with icing 1/4 inch from edges, then fill in centers.
• Set up a candy bar and get creative with decorating. For the chicks: Dip an iced cookie in sanding sugar. Let dry; store in an airtight container up to 5 days. Dot candy sequins with icing; overlap to create feathers. Use orange sprinkles for feet, a candy heart for a beak, and upside-down mini chocolate chips for eyes. For the eggs: Lay orange or yellow sprinkles in a zigzag pattern halfway up an iced cookie. Sprinkle bottom with sanding sugar.

NUTTER BUTTER EASTER BUNNIES

Steps:

• Lay a sheet of wax paper on the counter top. Mix together the pink food coloring and the granulated sugar (or use pre-colored sugar).
• Cut each marshmallow in half to form two circles. Then cut each circle in half. Press the sticky part of the marshmallow into the pink sugar. Shake off the excess, and set aside.
• Melt the white candy melts as instructed on the package. I use the microwave. Dip the Nutter Butter cookies into the melted chocolate, shake off the excess and lay on the wax paper. Before the chocolate sets, position the ears at the top of the bunny head and press into the candy coating.
• Allow to coating to harden for 20-30 minutes. If the ears don't adhere to the bunny head, you can use a bit of white frosting or additional melted candy to re-attach the ears later.
• Face: Using a tube of black decorating gel, pipe two eyes on each cookie. Next pipe on the nose, using the pink/red decorating icing. At this point I allow the nose icing to harden for 10-15 minutes so I don't smear it when applying the whiskers.
• Mouth/Whiskers: You can pipe these on, but I found it was easier to squirt a small amount of black decorating gel onto the wax paper, then use a fine-tipped paint brush to dray on the mouth and whiskers.