Thursday 19 April 2007

Smiles from the 100 Aker Wood

It was really very nice of my husband, who took the trouble to get these cookie cutters for me, during his recent business trip to Tokyo. Several months ago, when I found out that these cutters are available at Tokyu Hands, I told him casually that he could get them for me if he happens to be in Japan.

Despite his busy schedule, hours just before his return flight, he took a half-an-hour train ride to Shibuya just to see whether he could find these. It was a fruitful trip for him, as not only did he managed to find them, he also got to taste his favourite Hokkaido Ramen at Shibuya.

Naturally, I couldn't wait but to try out these cutters once I found some free time. I adapted a recipe from this blogger, as she used the same type of cutters. To my surprise, the cutters were rather difficult to use. It was only after several attempts before I could cut out the shapes neatly...the dough kept sticking to the mold...the piece which is used to "stamp" the outline of Pooh...everytime I released it, the dough broke into pieces :'(

After "practising" for a few times, I finally got the hang of it...the trick is not to press the mold too hard into the dough. I also find the dough very soft and sticky. Even though I have floured the cutters and my table top, tt was quite tricky to lift up the cut-out shape from my table top without spoiling it. This only became easier after I "sandwiched" and rolled the dough between 2 sheets of parchment paper. This prevented the dough from sticking onto the work surface and the rolling pin as well. After much hard work, the result was a tray of smiling Poohs and Piglets!



A closer look at Pooh...


and here's Piglet!


These cookies were buttery...and a little crunchy, could be the extra cornflour which I have added. It was a joy just looking at how my boys happily munching away the cookies over their afternoon teabreaks...and the cookies were all gone within 2 days!

I shall try the other Mickey and Minnie set the next time round :)

Ingredients:
(makes about 36 pieces)

100g butter, softened at room temperature
80g caster sugar
1 egg yolk
180g cake flour
20g corn flour

Method:

  1. Sift cake flour and corn flour together and set aside. Line baking tray with parchment paper, set aside.
  2. With an electric mixer, add in sugar to the butter in 2 ~3 additions and cream till the mixture turns pale and fluffy.
  3. Add in egg yolk and mix well.
  4. Add sifted flour mixture in 2 ~ 3 additions, stir with a spatula to form a soft dough.
  5. Place dough in a plastic bag and flatten with rolling pin.
  6. Refrigerate the dough for about half an hour.
  7. Remove dough from fridge. Roll out dough on slightly floured work surface and cut out with slightly floured cookie cutters. If the dough appears to be a little to hard and breaks into pieces while rolling, leave it at room temperature for a few minutes. The dough will soften up and can be rolled easily.
  8. Bake at pre-heated oven at 175 degC for 15 ~ 20mins.
  9. Let cool and store in air-tight container.

96 comments:

Anne said...

Very cute and adorable :)

bossacafez said...

oh my, soooooo cute leh, SH jie =) i think you cut the cookies really well. the "indentations" are very clear, can see pooh & piggy's espressions clearly!

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi ladies, thanks for your kind words! I already got an "order" from my good friend for a "pot" of Pooh & Piglets and a "pot" of Mickey & Minnie cookies ;)

Anonymous said...

Oh they are extremely cute! Can I have one piece :)? I like that the imprint is so clear and thanks so much for sharing the recipe and the tips, you just make me wanna try out my HK cutters too! I can see that you dun just only prepare and bake but have add in so much love and patience in each pc of your bake!

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Elyn, I can't wait to see your Kitty cookies! Do take note that the cutters are not that easy to use...I can't really describe how to go about it...hmmm...I think you got to practice a few times to get the hang of it ;)

Unknown said...

They are really so cute and pretty. Just like store-bought! Great one on this, SH! =)

Anonymous said...

Oh my! *wink* These are soooo cute!

Anonymous said...

Hi Happy Baker,
I really loved your Pooh and Piglet cookies.There are so cute .I write your from Turkey.I
tried the site Tokyo Hands however there is no english version.Do you know where can I find these cutters in Europe.Your reply will
be highly appreciated.
Najda

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Najda
I am sorry I are not able to answer your question, as I do not know whether these cutters are available in Europe. Maybe you can try ebay?

Anonymous said...

Thank you very much for your reply Additionally please note that I really liked your blog.There are very good recipes.
Very well done.
Regards,

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Najda, glad to hear that you like my blog, thanks! =)

Edith said...

I came to know your recipe via e's joie's blog. Thanks so much for sharing. The smell of butter while baking is simply divine. Thanks.

Happy Homebaker said...

hi precious moments, thanks for dropping by :D

Blur Mommy said...

I just made these. They turned out really great! Thanks for sharing. :)

Happy Homebaker said...

hi blur mommy, I saw your cookies, they are lovely :)

Anonymous said...

Hi, this is a great recipe. I've made some using the pooh cookie cutter I bought from Elyn. My daughters love it.

Happy Homebaker said...

hi Delia, glad to hear that your daughters love the cookies :) Will be making a batch for the coming Children's Day :)

sweet-tooth said...

i just tried my disney cookie cutters today and i had no problem with them EXCEPT the piglet one!!
i only managed to cut out 2 piglet cookies as the ears kept dropping off ):

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Sweet-tooth, I have problem with piglet's ears too! Dont fret, I am sure you will get the hang of it on your next attempt! I only managed a better batch on my 2nd & 3rd attempt. Are you only in Sec 2?!! Your parents must be so proud of you!!!

sweet-tooth said...

i hope i will!
i can't wait to try again :D
yep, i'm in sec 2 ;D
my mum used to forbid me from baking as she felt that it was a waste of time.
but recently she started to support me(:

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Sweet-Tooth, like your mum, I do think you should spend more time on your studies than baking ;p
Well, since the holidays are coming up, you can bake as much as you like!

sweet-tooth said...

haha yes i guess so.
but usually during the school term, i only bake once in a while ;D
thankfully there're holidays!
haha

Anonymous said...

Hi,
I've tried using this recipe to make the cookies too however i found the cookie not cruchy & hard, I've measured the flour correctly, could it be due to the flour i used? I used plain flour.
Appreciate for yr advise. Thanks

Wish
wish8693@yahoo.com

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Wish, I am sorry to hear that your cookies didn't turn out well. I didn't have problem with this recipe as I used cake flour. Did you add in the corn flour as well? I do believe that the corn flour will give cookies a crunchy texture. Were your cookies very soft? it could be due to the oven temperature...you may have under bake them?

Mums of 3s said...

Hi,

Really like your blog. Have always use it as a reference when baking. Need to ask u for help :)

1. Thot of making this cookie chocolate flavour. How much of cocoa powder should i add? When should i add in the powder? Is it together with the flour or when creaming?

Thanks in advance :)

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Serena

Thanks for your comments :)
I am afraid I have not tried making these cookies in chocolate flavour. As such I wont be able to advise on the amount of cocoa powder use...maybe you can refer to other chocolate cookie recipes to get an idea on how much to use? As for when to add in the cocoa powder, I would think it should be sieved together with the flour, and add in after the creaming. Do take note that you would have to reduce equal amount of flour so that the total amount of cocoa and flour mixture should be around 200g. Hope this helps.

Mums of 3s said...

Thanks for your advice! Will try it out!

linghui said...

Hi!
really nice cookies you've baked!

i'm itching to try out ur recipe to make cookies as a gift to a special person. but i still have some self-raising flour left after my last attempt at baking some cupcakes. so, i would like to reuse them and not waste it.

but, i'm not very sure whether self-raising flour is the same as cake flour. will it turn out the same way if i used self-raising flour instead?

thanks!

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Linghui, self raising flour is different from cake flour. As self-raising flour has got baking powder added, it is not advisable to use it for this recipe.

Anonymous said...

Hi! Thanks for your recipe. Bought these cutters from HK but found them selling at Isetan. Isetan also sells the cookie bags as well. Anyway, an additional tip, for a creamy flavour, should add some vanilla essence. Sam.

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Sam, I saw these cutters at BHG (Seiyu, Bugis) recently too...and the cookie bags too! Thanks for the tip on adding the vanilla essence :)

Anonymous said...

Hi. I have been following your thread since 2 months ago. Really love your recpies. Tried making e cookies last night (my 2nd attempt) but dont know why it turn out very dry? Could it be a left it in the fridge too long (abt 45 mins)? or i didnt cream e butter and sugar enough?

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi, thanks for your comments :)
I dont think it's because u left the dough in the fridge for too long...as the dough will start to soften up when u roll and cut out the shapes of the cookies. I am no expert in baking, as I have not attended any baking classes...as such, I can only suspect it could be due to over baking...as over baking tends to dry out cakes, but I am not sure about cookies though...sorry, I am not of much help here :(

Anonymous said...

Hi,

sorry about the confusion. i meant that the dough turn out very dry and keeps breaking when i tried with the cutter....even though i left it at room temp for quite some time...didnt know what went wrong? can enlighten me? thanks.

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi, yes, the dough is quite difficult to handle...it's quite fragile and breaks easily. You should work on it immediately when u take out from the fridge...as I believe it is easier when it is cold. also, try not to shape/reshape (roll/re-roll)...hope u know what I mean?...the dough too much, u will end up with very hard biscuits.

:) said...

Hi there HHB,
I tried out your recipe the other day. It was too 'wet' for my to handle after taking out from the fridge, thus I add some more flour. Thinking of it would turn out to be as hard as rock after baking, but it didn't. My kids love it. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Rgds

:) said...

Oh yes, I'm a new blogger. Do you mind if I link with you?

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi My@ddictions, I'm glad to hear that your cookies turn out well :D
Yes, sure you can link me up! Thanks!!

HandFullOfFlour said...

Hi Happy Homebaker,

Thanks for sharing the lovely recipe. It tasted wonderful and my daughter loved all the Maries that she could eat :)

Hand Full Of Flour

shopppp :D said...

This is so cute! Thanks for sharing your recipes! You're really lucky that your husband bought these cookie cutters for you specially from japan! :D May i ask if you know of anywhere in singapore that sells similar or pretty cookie cutters?

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Shoppp:D, I have seen these Pooh cutters at the kitchen supply section at Takashimaya. Look for the section where they display knives, laddles, etc. I have also seen them at BHG, the department store at Bugis Junction. Hope you can find the ones you like.

Wen-Chi said...

hi.. Love the cookies, I am a big fan of pooh..

also, a trick on the buttery dough (and I hope this will help). Roll the dough out & chill it in the freezer for about 20 - 30 min. It will be a kind of freezen but shouldn't be too hard. This will be enable an easier cutting & transfer. Just let the dough come back to the room temp before baking. Also, if you place the rolled dough onto a cookie sheet & press the cutter, you can just pick away the excess dough & left w/ beautiful cutouts that you don't have to transfer!

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi WY, thanks so much for the tip! Next time I will try chilling the dough in the freezer :)

Anonymous said...

Hi Engineeer baker Mum

I really like yr blog bcos u r so unpretentious. You not afraid to show
yr baking attempts.

And you do so much research on brownies
and share with everyone. I finally understand what is fudgy brownies. I baked the one with the chocolate n choco chips and my teen gal n her teen fren seems to like it so much lol....

I will next attempt the layer peach cake but mine will be with mango bcos my gal loves mango.

Anonymous said...

Hi Homebaker..

I tried bakng the cookies.. But the cookies turned out to be abit sweet..
Y is it so?? Can i ask whether u used salted or unsalted Butter??

Thanks for sharing the recipes.. :)

Anonymous said...

Hi Homebaker..

I tried baking the cookies. But my cookies turned out to be slightly sweeter.. Y is it so?? Can i ask whether u used salted or unsalted butter??

Thanks for sharing the recipes.. :)

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Eileen, I used salted butter. I find the sweetness of these cookies just right, maybe you can reduce the sugar a bit the next time you tried making them again?

Anonymous said...

hi there. love your blog! i've tried your horlick doggies and strawberry jellyhearts and both turned out splendid. Thanks for the recipe! hmmm for this cookie, i've got one qsn.. is top flour same as cake flour? i've got some top flour left from baking the holick doggies and wonder if i could use them instead. =)

Anonymous said...

oops and one more qsn. im new at baking, so erm.. what is caster sugar? just the normal sugar? heh pardon my ignorance. =)

Anonymous said...

Hi Homebaker..

Mayb is because i used unsalted butter.. Ok, will ty it again during the weekend..

Thanks for sharing..

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Xueer, Top flour is different from cake flour...you can take a look at Prima flour's website for details. However, there is no harm using top flour to make these cookies. Caster sugar is very fine, you can get it from most supermarts, the packaging will state that it is Caster sugar. Most recipes will use caster sugar as it is easier to melt when creaming with butter.

Hi Eileenk, do let me know after you have tried it. Happy baking :)

Beach Bum said...

Hi Homebaker

i tried the recipe yesterday using the same series of mold (but mine is Chip & Dale)....simply love the cookies!

my family like them a lot..
thanks for sharing =)

Anonymous said...

Hi HHB,

I dont understand this instructions..

"add in sugar to the butter in 2 ~3 additions and cream till the mixture turns pale and fluffy."

What do you mean by 2-3 addition ?
Kindly explain.

Thanks !
Ling

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Ling, it means that you don't add in the sugar all at once. Add in about 1/3 first, beat the mixture, then add in another 1/3, beat; and finally all the remaining. Hope you get what I mean.

Anonymous said...

Hi HHB,

That's fast response. Got it ! Now on my way to bake it !

Thanks !
Ling

Beautiful Chantel said...

Hi

Wld like to ask whether I can use hard butter tat juz came out fr the fridge to make the cookies? Watz the purpose of using the semi hard ones?

Thks

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Beautiful Chantel, it will be difficult to beat when the butter is hard.

Anonymous said...

Hi,

I've tried the recipe and my family really loves it. They describe it as buttery, cruncy and melts in the mouth.So yesterday I went BHG and bought a pair of mickey mouse cutter.

I was thinking of trying chocolate flavour. How much should I add ?

Thanks for your advise.
Ling

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Ling, I have not tried chocolate flavor, maybe you can use 1 ~ 2 teaspoons? Sorry I am not of much help here.

Anonymous said...

Hello HHB,
I've tried using this recipe to make the cookies too however i found the cookie not buttery as you mentioned):
I've put extra 10g to cake & corn flour! Hmm, can i know which brand of butter do you? ( I used SCS butter) Thank alot !

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Anonymous, sorry to hear that the cookies didn't turn out as you have expected. I usually use SCS butter too. I think it is a matter of individual's taste. Maybe you can try out other recipes.

Anonymous said...

Hello HHB,
Im the same person from thhe last anonymous! Hmm, i think it could be the extra flours i added because after the cookies is baked the surface have flour? Hope this is the main reason! Thank alot & i love your recipes and blog:D

agapejen said...

Hi HHB
I tried this recipe on Saturday but the dough is dry and cracked even before I freeze it. Due to the dryness, I couldn't cut out a proper mickey mouse :(, so i just use the normal heart, star, flower cookies cutters. Despite the difficult dough, the biscuits are yummy and the kids love it. I will try again soon...

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi agapejen, maybe you have added too much flour? The dough should be soft not dry. Hope it will turn out ok the next time you try it.

agapejen said...

Hi HHB
You are right, the dough is soft. I tried again yesterday and I know the reason for the dry dough at the first attempt. It wasn't too much flour added, it was because I was impatient to soften the butter first, I added cold butter to cream :p
Next time, I will make sure I follow recipes to the dot.....Every word there has a purpose!

Mummy Zara said...

Hi HHB
Do you mind letting me know the website to order the disney cutter? Oh , how much is it in sgd?
I'm living in Perth and i dun think there's such here.

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Declan Issac,
My husband got the cutters from Tokyo last time. However, I have seen it on sale at a fellow blogger's site here: (http://www.shmerpz.com).

Alavie Lee Wan Ci said...

Hey Happy Homebaker!
Can I ask your opinion among which of the recipies in your blog used baking as the main cooking method?

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Alavie, so far there is only one recipe, the 'Lemon Rosemary Roast Chicken', the rest of my posts are on baking, not so much on cooking.

Swee San said...

very cute cookie cutter!!!

Anonymous said...

Hi, thanks for your butter cookie receipe! Can I ask if icing sugar is the same as caster sugar?

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi, icing sugar is different from caster sugar. Icing sugar is very fine, like powder. For this recipe, please use caster sugar, as you need to cream the butter with caster sugar to get the desired texture.

disllu said...

Hi thanks for the clarifications on the caster sugar! Went back to change & bake my 1st batch of butter cookie, yummy!

Jessica said...

hihi... Can i check with u, is it only for step 2, that we need to use the electric mixer ? how abt step 3 and 4 ?

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Jessica, use the electric mixer for Step 3 as well. Only after adding in the flour mixture, you can use a spatual to mix it.

Anonymous said...

hahaha.... i am glad that I found this blog..

How can I not fall in love with baking again after seeing this... :)

Anonymous said...

very cute cutter, where can I get the cutter?

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi, I am sorry I do not know where you can get this cutters. My husband bought it in Tokyo. If you are local, you can try looking for it at BHG or Takashimaya.

Anonymous said...

Hi,

Have you tried substituting the cake flour, by mixing plain flour and corn flour together ?

Wonder will it taste the same ?

Cheers
Ling

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Ling, I have not tried substituting the cake flour, maybe the difference won't be too far off.

Reira said...

Hi Happy Homebaker,

I am currently making cookies using this recipe which you shared. However, I am having problem with cutting the cookies and transfering cookies to cooling rack!

Most of the dough I cut end up falling apart when I tried to lift it up and put onto the baking tray.

After baking, I have problem transfering cookies to cooling rack. May I know what tools do you use to transfer cookies to cooling rack?

Somehow, the cookies I made is too sweet.

Thanks in advance!

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Reira, what you can do is, first roll out the dough then leave it to chill in the fridge for 15-30mins. Take it out and cut out the shape, this way the dough will not fall apart easily. Dust the cutter with flour each time you cut the shape. I don't have problem transferring baked cookies to cool. I usually use my fingers ;) Maybe you can leave the cookies to cool on the tray for about 5 mins (cookies are still soft when first out of the oven), then transfer it to the rack using those metal cake slicer. Hope this helps.

Reira said...

Hi Happy Homebaker,

Thanks a lot for the advice!

By the way, for the butter, must I use unsalted ones?

Thanks!

Happy Homebaker said...

Reira, you can use salted butter if you can't get unsalted ones.

Joan said...

Hi tried this recipe n they r really good. Thks. ;)

Anonymous said...

Hello!

Thanks for your recipe. I've always been a silent reader, but after trying out this recipe, I feel that I should write you a 'thank-you' note (^___^)

The cookies turned out great:
http://i945.photobucket.com/albums/ad292/potatoos/DSCF4923.jpg
http://i945.photobucket.com/albums/ad292/potatoos/DSCF4924.jpg

Thanks! :D I hope my friends like them~

Anonymous said...

hi,

using :
icing sugar
or
castor sugar

any different?

any changes in taste or texture?

thanks

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi they are different, icing sugar is more fine. You can read more about it from baking sites such as joyofbaking.com.

rainbowzstarz said...

Dun use mixer can? Hand whisk possible?Beginner at baking,scare buy liao dun use much

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi rainbowzstarz, you can beat the butter and sugar with a wooden spoon or a manual whisk. Cut the butter into small cubes which makes it easier to beat. Do google, read, watch demo video clips on how to beat butter and sugar especially if this is the first time you are baking. Happy baking!

Anonymous said...

Hi!! Love your blog!!! I've tried making cutout cookies but as i place them in the oven they begin to expand and the forms dont look good! Whats happening?? What can i do??

Anonymous said...

Hi!! My biscuit turn out quite hard. is it beacause i used all purpose flour?

Does cake flour produce softer biscuit?

mary

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi Mary, I dont think it is due to the flour. Cake flour will yield a finer texture, but plain flour won't cause the cookies to turn out hard. Not sure what went wrong, it could be either due to the ingredient amount, did u measure the amount correctly? or it could be due to the creaming of the butter and sugar?

kuromi32 said...

Omg that is so cute!

Anonymous said...

Hi dear, is there an email I can reach you to order these cute cookies from you? Thanks!

Happy Homebaker said...

Hi, I am sorry, I am no professional baker, I don't sell my bakes.