Melting Snowman Recipes

MELTED SNOWMAN COOKIES

Steps:

• PREP: Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat liner and set it aside.
• COOKIE DOUGH: In a microwave-safe bowl, heat the butter until it's melted. Set aside to cool back to room temperature (hot butter will melt sugars and cause greasy cookies). Once at room temperature, use a spatula to scrape every bit of butter into a large bowl and add in the brown and white sugars. Mix with a large whisk until smooth.
• COOKIE DOUGH, CONT.: Add in the peanut butter, almond extract (if using), and vanilla extract. Mix until combined. Add in one egg and mix just until ingredients are incorporated and then add in the last egg. Continue mixing until the ingredients are just incorporated. Add in the baking soda and salt and mix until just incorporated. Add in the flour and again mix until just incorporated. Don't over-mix.
• CHILL: Cover the dough and chill for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Scoop the cookie dough and roll into large balls that are each 3 tablespoons in size (don't make these smaller) and if desired (optional) roll cookie dough balls in some extra granulated sugar. Place dough balls on a lined cookie sheet -- 6 cookies at a time, leaving ample room for spreading.
• BAKE: Bake for 8-14 minutes. Ever so slightly under-baking the cookies will keep them soft and chewy. (They also bake a bit more on the cookie sheet when removed from the oven). Be careful to not over-bake these cookies!
• COOL: Remove the cookies and allow them to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing them to a cooling rack to finish cooling completely.
• ADD PEANUT BUTTER CUPS: When the cookies are almost completely cooled, but not all the way, gently press an unwrapped miniature peanut butter cup into the center of the cookies. Let the cookies finish cooling completely. (If the cookies are fully cool, it's fine, just attach the Reese's with melted white chocolate.)
• DECORATE: Once the cookies are completely cooled (you can chill them if you're in a warm kitchen), melt the white chocolate chips in the microwave. Microwave the chips (don't add oil or anything) in bursts of 20 seconds, stirring in between each burst for 10 seconds until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Using a small spoon, spoon the white chocolate over the miniature peanut butter cup. Tap the cookie on the counter a few times and then add another spoonful of white chocolate on top if needed. Again, tap the cookie a few times to get the white chocolate to spread out smoothly.
• SNOWMAN HATS: Run a very sharp serrated knife under very hot water. Dry and then cut off the base of a miniature peanut butter cup. Place some of the melted white chocolate on the bottom of a mini peanut butter cup and attach it to the cut miniature cup. Repeat the process to make more snowman hats.
• DECORATE, CONT.: Immediately press in the "hat" (see above step) to the top of the "head" of the snowman and then add two miniature chocolate chips (placed upside down) below the hat and finally one orange sprinkle below the chocolate chip eyes (Note 5). Repeat with remaining cookies. Allow them to harden at room temperature.

MELTED SNOWMAN PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES

Steps:

• Melt the candy melting wafers according to the package directions. Spoon some of the melted candy on top of a cookie and spread it so it covers most of the cookie but has an irregular border. Place a slice of marshmallow toward the top edge and spoon some more melted candy on top, smoothing it to fully cover the marshmallow and blend it into the candy on the cookie.
• Decorate the face of the snowman with mini chocolate chips for eyes and an orange sprinkle as a carrot nose. Place a peanut butter cup half on top of the snowman's head like a hat. Use other sprinkles to add a mouth or buttons if desired. Repeat with the remaining candy, cookies and decorations (rewarming the candy melts if necessary). Let the cookies set, about 10 minutes.

MELTED SNOWMAN COOKIES

Steps:

• Beat egg whites lightly in a large bowl using an electric mixer until frothy. Slowly beat enough confectioners' sugar into egg whites to make icing that will hold shape; blend in lemon juice until desired consistency is reached.
• Arrange cookies about 1-inch apart on a large sheet of waxed paper. Spread icing onto each cookie, allowing icing to drip over edges to look like melting snow.
• Grease a microwave-safe plate. Place 1 marshmallow onto plate.
• Microwave marshmallow until it starts to puff up, 20 to 30 seconds. Immediately place marshmallow on the edge of 1 cookie while the icing is still wet to look like a melted snowman. Repeat with remaining marshmallows and iced cookies.
• Decorate 'melted snowmen' by piping 'twig-like arms' using black decorating gel on the icing. Make 'coal eyes' and a 'mouth' on the marshmallow using black decorating gel. Make a 'carrot nose' under the 'coal eyes' using orange decorating gel. Make 'coat buttons' by arranging silver nonpareils down the middle of the icing. Make 'scarves' or 'bow-ties' using red decorating gel or green decorating gel.
• Allow cookies to fully dry before removing from waxed paper, at least 1 hour.

MELTED SNOWMAN SUGAR COOKIES

Steps:

• Follow baking directions on sugar cookie pouch, dividing dough evenly into 12 round cookies.
• On cooled cookies, draw a "snow puddle" with Betty Crocker™ White Cookie Icing. TIP: Draw the outline of the puddle, then go back and fill in the shape.
• While the icing is still wet, immediately place a marshmallow to one side of the cookie.
• MAKE THE ARMS: Once the icing and marshmallow have set, pipe two "branches" onto each cookie using black gel. Add fingers with chocolate sprinkles.
• MAKE THE FACE: Using a small dot of white cookie icing, stick two "coal" eyes and a nose onto the marshmallow with Rainbow Chips. Pipe a small dot for the mouth with black gel.
• MAKE THE SCARF AND BUTTONS: Using blue, red, or green cookie icing; carefully draw scarves around the base of the marshmallow. Using a small dot of white cookie icing, stick three "coal" buttons beneath the scarf with Rainbow Chips.
• Allow cookies to set for at least one hour before serving.

MELTED SNOWMAN COOKIE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Beat butter in a bowl using an electric mixer until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat white sugar, baking powder, and salt into butter until just combined. Beat egg, milk, and vanilla extract into butter-sugar mixture; add flour and mix until dough is just combined. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate until dough is slightly chilled, about 10 minutes.
• Scoop dough into balls slightly larger than golf balls; flatten into cookies. Arrange cookies on a baking sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven until edges are golden brown, 10 to 20 minutes. Cool on baking sheet for about 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely, at least 30 minutes.
• Butter a microwave-safe plate. Place marshmallows on the prepared plate.
• Microwave marshmallows until slightly puffed, 10 to 15 seconds. Gently press marshmallows until bottoms slightly ooze.
• Whisk confectioners' sugar and water together in a bowl until icing is slightly thicker than drizzle-consistency. Pour icing over cookies so it runs over the edges, reserving about 1 tablespoon.
• Melt chocolate chips in a microwave-safe glass or ceramic bowl, about 30 seconds. Pour melted chocolate into a piping bag with a small tip or a plastic bag with a corner snipped.
• Press 1 marshmallow close to an edge of each cookie to be the snowman's head. Draw 'stick arms' onto the icing using the melted chocolate.
• Divide the reserved 1 tablespoon icing into 2 small bowls. Mix red food coloring into 1 of the bowls and orange food coloring into the other bowl. Decorate the snowmen with scarves or ties using the red icing and yellow icing.