You'll be sure to cast a spell over your guests with this Hocus Pocus Cookie Collection from Confection Couture.
Here's what you'll need:
- Toil & Trouble Cookie Stencil
- Hocus Pocus Cookie Stencil
- Witch Accents Cookie Stencil
- 4" Harlow Plaque Cutter
- 3" Circle cookie cutter
- AirGenie Airbrush System
- Gyro-Cut Craft and Hobby Cutting Tool
- Cookie Magnets
- Plastic Bottle with Dropper Tip
- Quadrant Masking Tool
- Stencil Genie
- Screen Genie
- DecoPac Airbrush Food Coloring
- Midnight Black
- Firestone
- Lime Green
- Stone Grey
- Glad Press'n Seal
- Paper Towels
Getting Started
To start, cut and bake however many cookies you'll need of each shape. Make approximately twice as many Harlow cookies as circle ones. Add royal icing to each and allow to cool.
Shading
Next, take half of your Harlow cookie shapes and carefully shake your bottle of DecoPac Firestone Airbrush Food Coloring. Load 4-5 drops into your AirGenie airbrush tool reservoir. Always test the spray first on a stack of white paper towels. Adjust the flow as needed by turning the knob on top of the unit.
Airbrush a faded border on the cookie, heavier at the edge and lighter as you move toward the center. Leave the middle white for the text that comes later. For best results spray one side at a time and rotate the cookie as opposed to moving the airbrush tool in a circular pattern around the cookie.
Place these cookies aside.
Stenciling
Take the other untouched Harlow cookies and the background Hocus Pocus stencil. Separate the two halves of the Stencil Genie and place the thicker portion down on your work surface, magnets facing up. Place the stencil on top and then add the Screen Genie. Lock everything in place using the top half of the Stencil Genie.
Place the assembly over the first cookie and airbrush through the stencil using small, circular motions while slowly moving up and down. Take care not to spray too much colorant on any one area as this will lead to droplets forming on the cookie!
Cleaning the Stencils and Screen Genie
To clean the stencil, simply dip it a couple of times in a bowl of clean water and then pat dry with paper towels or a lint-free towel.
When colorant begins to build up on the Screen Genie, take a chemical-free spray bottle with water and spray it through the bottom side of the mesh. Then, wipe thoroughly with paper towels. Make sure no water remains. If needed, use a blow dryer to complete the drying process.
Cleaning the Airbrush Tool
To clean the airbrush tool between colors, rinse out the reservoir 2-3 times with water. Next, reattach the hose and run water through the tool until empty. Repeat once more with water and then a third time using an inexpensive 100-proof vodka.
Shading the Circle Cookie
Next, load some Stone Grey and airbrush the edges of the circle cookies like you did earlier with the orange, only more subtly.
Stenciling the Text
Next, take the cookie with the orange shading and the "Double, Double.." stencil. Switch to black and repeat the process used above with the striped background stencil.
Do the same with the "Hocus Pocus" stencil.
Isolating Stencil Elements
To isolate a portion of a stencil design, use Glad Press'n Seal. Cut a piece the size of the stencil and place it on top, flattening it to remove any bubbles or wrinkles.
Next, use the Gyro-Cut craft and hobby cutting tool to cut around the cauldron element. Then, turn the blade sideways and use to to lift a corner of the trimmed plastic. Grab the lifted corner and peel it away, revealing the cauldron.
Center the design over the Stencil Genie and use the Quadrant Masking Tool to mask off the edge of the stencil, protecting the outer areas of the cookie from overspray. Add the Screen Genie and airbrush the cauldron using the black colorant.
Switch to lime green and peel away the Glad Press'n Seal, rotate it 90°, and replace it onto the stencil, completely covering the cauldron design. Trim around the cauldron steam as you did earlier with the cauldron itself.
Airbrush the green "steam" and your Hocus Pocus cookies are complete!
