Passionfruit Sandwich Cookies ~ #Creative Cookie Exchange

I finished eating my cookies before I finished drinking my milk, 

so clearly I need some more cookies.

Honey Jumbles ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

Stay true to yourself. An original is worth more than a copy. This may be true 

in most cases, but not necessarily for homemade cookies.

Belgian Witbier Cookies ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

“For a quart of Ale is a dish for a king.” And Belgian Witbier Cookies are the dessert.

Cocoa-Tahini Cookies with Sesame Crunch ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

Fresh Baked Sweetness, that's what Bake Sales are made of.

Big O Cookies ~ #ZingermansBakehouse #CreativeCookieExchange

"Most of Life's Problems Can Be Solved With A Good Cookie!" Ina Garten

Sensational Snickerdoodles ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

Nothing says home like the smell of baking.

Peanut Butter Cookies ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

"Good, better, best. Never let it rest. Until your good is better and your better is best."

~ Tim Duncan. A great quote for basketball, and life in general.

Italian Breakfast Cookies ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

Life is short.  Eat cookie for breakfast.

Winter Spice Soetkoekies ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

Winter Spice and everything nice, that's what these cookies are made of.
Geseende kersfees en voorspoedige nuwe jaar wense!

Milo Brownies ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

My mum gives me Milo to go, and go, and go.  This won't mean much to anyone in the US,

but if you were a kid growing up in Australia this was the theme song for one of favorite drinks - Milo.

Hazelnut Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies ~ #Creative Cookie Exchange

Sometimes me think, “What is Friend?” Then me say, “Friend is someone to share the last cookie with.” - The Cookie Monster.

These gluten-free Hazelnut Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies are definitely share-worthy.

Ginger-Chile Caramel Cookies ~ #CreativeCookie Exchange

Boom! Pow! Bam! When you add a chile pepper to a cookie the result is an in-your-face
explosion of flavor. And with these cookies, the ginger and chile is a match made in heaven.

Anytime Tarragon-Apricot Cookies ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

 A cookie that is equally at home with a glass of wine as it is with a cup of tea or coffee is 

a recipe that you need to treasure.  That is what I realized when baking these 

Anytime Tarragon-Apricot Cookies.

Sand Dollar Snickerdoodles ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

What does summer mean to you?  For me it has always meant time at the beach, and even more so now since I live on an island.  It also means easy dinners and cookies that are easy to make and easy to eat.

Creamsicle Meringue Melting Moments ~#CreativeCookieExchange

Orange Creamsicle's are a classic frozen summer treat.  Look what happens when you turn them into a cookie made from meringue for this month's #CreativeCookieExchange.

Lilikoi-Lime Shortbread Thumbprint Cookies ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

#CreativeCookieExchange is baking Cookies for Tea this month. As a big tea drinker and a cookie lover, this theme is perfect for me. The only trouble I had was narrowing it down to just one cookie. There are so many great cookie recipes out there waiting to be baked.

Mardi Gras Macarons ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

#CreativeCookieExchange is celebrating Mardi Gras! this month. Instead of handing out beads we are handing out cookies.

The traditional dessert for Mardi Gras is King Cake, which is made from a cinnamon-filled dough. It is glazed and then sprinkled with three colored sugars - purple (representing justice), green (representing faith) and gold (representing power). I decided to take these colors and use them to make macarons.

This was my first attempt at macarons and they turned out to be a little easier than I expected, although I will say that you need to have a few bowls handy.  Having a macaron silicone mat made the shaping a lot easier but I still found that they stuck slightly - I didn't think anything stuck to these mats.  I managed to pry them loose by using an offset spatula to gently lift them. The filling was a vanilla buttercream, which was a bit too sweet for my liking, but it did suit the theme.  The recipe makes way more buttercream than you need for the macarons, so you could either halve it or keep it to be used on another cookie.

If you would like to know more about #CreativeCookieExchange and see what the other bakers made for the Mardi Gras! theme please scroll down below the recipe. Thanks to Laura from The Spiced Life, who is our host & fearless leader, and Karen from Karen's Kitchen Stories who did the links for us this month.

Mardi Gras Macarons

Printer Friendly Recipe

Ingredients

Macaron shells ~

• 95g almond flour
• 100g powdered sugar
• 2 large egg whites, at room temperature
• 1 pinch cream of tartar
• 100g extra-fine sugar
• violet and green gel food coloring

Buttercream Filling ~

• 225g butter 
• 360g powdered sugar 
• 5ml vanilla extract 
• gold sanding sugar 

Preparation

Macaron shells ~

1. Preheat oven to 190℃.
2. Line two baking sheets with parchment.
3. Sift almond flour and powdered sugar together 2-3 times, and set aside.
4. In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk egg  whites until foamy.
5. Add cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form.
6. Reduce speed and gradually add extra-fine sugar, then increase speed and beat until stiff peaks form.
7. Sift flour mixture over whites with a fine sieve.
8. Fold mixture together with a rubber spatula until just combined, note that the batter will be very stiff. 
9. Divide batter into two bowls and place a small amount of green food coloring in one bowl and violet in the other.
10. Fold each batter until it loosens considerably (when batter is ready, it should fall from the spatula in a thick ribbon).
11. Transfer each color of the mixture to a piping bag.
12. Pipe 2.5cm to 3cm rounds on the parchment-lined baking sheets.
13. Let piped macarons stand uncovered for 15 minutes to form a crust.
14. Decrease temperature to 160℃ just before placing the baking sheet in the oven.
15. Bake pans one at a time for 10 minutes, turning halfway through (after the first batch has baked, the oven temperature should be increased to 190℃ then decreased to 160℃ just before the second baking sheet goes in).

Buttercream Filling ~

1. Cream butter and powdered sugar together in a large bowl using a hand mixer or stand mixer.
2. Beat on high speed until light and fluffy. If mixture is stiff, use 1 or 2 tablespoons of cream to loosen.
3. Add vanilla. Beat until flavor is thoroughly incorporated.
4. Transfer icing to a piping bag and pipe onto the green macaron shells; sandwich with the purple shells.
5. Place the gold sanding sugar in a small bowl and roll the edges of the sandwich cookies in the sugar.
6. This recipe make 15 sandwich cookies, keep macarons refrigerated in an airtight container.

Recipe from HGTV

For US measurements please click here

Are you ready for Fat Tuesday? The theme this month for the Creative Cookie Exchange group is Mardi Gras! If you are a blogger and want to join in the fun, contact Laura at thespicedlife AT gmail DOT com and she will get you added to our Facebook group, where we discuss our cookies and share links. You can also just use us as a great resource for cookie recipes--be sure to check out our Pinterest Board and our monthly posts (you can find all of them here at The Spiced Life). We all post on the first Tuesday after the 15th of each month!

Also, if you are looking for inspiration to get in the kitchen and start baking, check out what all of the hosting bloggers have made ~

• King Cake Cookie Bars from Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
• King Cake Spritz Cookies from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
• Mardi Gras Macarons" from All That’s Left Are The Crumbs

Honey Mixed Nut Bars - #CreativeCookieExchange

Nuts in Cookies! is the theme for #CreativeCookieExchange this month.  I had trouble picking just one type, so I used all the nuts - well almost.

Pumpkin Spice Mocha Crinkle Cookies ~ #CreativeCookieExchange

#CreativeCookieExchange is all about the drop cookie this month.  I had my heart set on baking Crinkles, so check out how I made a traditionally rolled cookie into a drop cookie.

Blackberry and Cream Monte Carlos - #CrativeCookieExchange

How do you celebrate the end of summer vacation?  I remember growing up in Australia, and it seeming like summer vacation would go on forever.  Of course being the land Down Under our summer vacation happened around Christmas.  I am looking forward to seeing how all of the members of the #CreativeCookieExchange embrace this theme.