I know I know….. more Valentine’s Day stuff – this time it will be sweet<\/em>, I promise \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

Maureen’s dear friend Lori was hospitalized last week, and Maureen wanted to do something special for her.\u00a0 Lori loves Maureen’s homemade sugar cookies, so Maureen whipped up a batch.\u00a0 (Don’t worry, I’ll give you her secret recipe at the end of the tutorial!)<\/p>\n

Since she was making a gift basket, I asked her if I could show everyone some of our little tricks when creating packages.<\/p>\n

Supplies needed:<\/strong><\/em>
\n– SWEET SHOPPE Valentine\u2019s Day Printables<\/a>
\n– A basket\/container (we found our v-day heart container at Target)
\n– Floral styrofoam
\n– Shred
\n– Cookies and Cookie Pops (homemade or fabulous cookies from professional bakers. We have our favorites ;-))
\n– Clear cellophane\u00a0– cut big enough for\u00a0container\u00a0 items
\n– Raffia<\/p>\n

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<\/a><\/p>\n

First you need to trim your Styrofoam to fit into the container.\u00a0 (We use bread knives\u00a0to slice through the Styrofoam – and the Styrofoam is the little trick we use to hold cookie pops\/lollipops\/cake pops, etc)<\/p>\n

Next fill with shred.<\/p>\n

Once your\u00a0container is filled with shred, print\/cut\/adhere Valentine’s Day Printables to your container and cookie pops.<\/p>\n

Carefully insert each cookie pop into the Styrofoam that is\u00a0hidden in the container.<\/p>\n

Fill the container with remaining cookies! – Easy, right???<\/p>\n

To package the cookies, take your clear cellophane, and wrap around container – tie shut with raffia and add hang tag.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Here’s another little trick to make your raffia look fancy….<\/p>\n

Unfold the raffia so it looks more like tissue paper.<\/p>\n

Then accordion fold each piece from the end back to the neck of cellophane wrap.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Once you accordion\u00a0fold it to the neck, then lightly\u00a0stretch it out.\u00a0 Now you have fancy raffia!\u00a0 It takes minimal time, and makes a big impact!<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

There you have it – a super cute\u00a0 and super sweet Valentine’s Day Cookie Basket!<\/p>\n

Now for Maureen’s sugar cookie recipe:\u00a0 (did you notice the detail of her frosting?… AMAZING\u00a0 – I’ve made cookies with her, and mine never look that good)<\/p>\n

Ingredients:<\/p>\n

1 cup of butter (2 sticks)<\/p>\n

1 1\/2 cups powdered sugar<\/p>\n

1 egg<\/p>\n

1\/2 teaspoon vanilla<\/p>\n

1 teaspoon almond flavoring<\/p>\n

2 1\/2 cups flour<\/p>\n

1\/2 teaspoon baking soda (you can omit this b\/c it will keep shape better if you don’t use it)<\/p>\n

1 teaspoon cream of tartar<\/p>\n

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Directions:<\/p>\n

Mix sugar and softened butter.\u00a0\u00a0 Stir in egg, vanilla, and almond flavoring.\u00a0 Blend dry ingredients together.\u00a0 Mix everything all together.\u00a0 Refrigerate at least 3 or 4 hours or over night.<\/p>\n

When ready to cut cookies out, take enough dough to form a hand sized ball.\u00a0 Knead dough until soft enough to roll out on a floured surface.\u00a0 With floured rolling pin, roll dough to approximately 1\/4″ thick.\u00a0 Cut out shapes with assorted cookie cutters.<\/p>\n

Place on cookie sheet approximately 2 inches apart.\u00a0 Bake at 375 degrees for 7-8 minutes, or until edges are lightly browned.\u00a0 Cool completely before frosting.<\/p>\n

FROSTING RECIPE<\/p>\n

Start with approximately 2 tablespoons of softened butter.\u00a0 Add 1 teaspoon vanilla.\u00a0 Gradually add 1+ cup of powdered sugar and a little milk while blending.\u00a0 Add salt to taste and add more powdered sugar and milk to desired thickness.\u00a0 Add desired food coloring to your liking.<\/p>\n

Tip from Maureen – when you frost the initial layer give your cookie a “shake” to make it look really smooth!\u00a0 Your icing needs to be thin enough to do this but making it too thin makes it drip off the edges.\u00a0 It’s a fine balance! \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n

Give a gift to someone you love<\/em> and happy baking!!!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I know I know….. more Valentine’s Day stuff – this time it will be sweet, I promise \ud83d\ude42 Maureen’s dear friend Lori was hospitalized last week, and Maureen wanted to do something special for her.\u00a0 Lori loves Maureen’s homemade sugar cookies, so Maureen whipped up a batch.\u00a0 (Don’t worry, I’ll give you her secret recipe […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":9186,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[195,852,72,823,130],"tags":[1238,154,853,867],"class_list":["post-9182","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-baking","category-packaging","category-printable-packages","category-ruff-draft","category-valentines-day","tag-baskets","tag-cookies-2","tag-packaging-2","tag-valentines-day-2"],"yoast_head":"\n