A non-baker’s guide to baby shower sugar cookies

Don’t look too closely! Haha. Presenting my second attempt to break into the world of fancy sugar cookies.

Hi! Isabelle here. Designer, artist, stress baker, frequent baby shower attendee.

Oh, and author of Tea Party Field Guide, a newsletter full of party ideas and freebies (invites, signs, etc.) if you’re into that.

Recently, I went to the cutest baby shower. The theme was “A Little Hunny is on the Way.” (Any Winnie the Pooh kids out there?) Every single detail was pristine—there was a pizza oven, the most beautiful spread of food you’ve ever seen, and the sweetest yellow gingham decor.

When I looked at the sign-up sheet before the shower, two things were left: a veggie tray and decorative sugar cookies.

If I were smart, I would have signed up for the veggie tray, contributed to the shower, and felt great about life. Reader, I am not smart. I am a sucker for pain.

So, I signed up to bring decorative sugar cookies.

Note: I have done this once before. In a surge of confidence, I offered to bring 60 decorated cookies for a bridal shower. Don’t ask me why. I lived in an apartment off of my college campus and I didn’t even own a rolling pin. (I literally used a Martinelli’s bottle to roll out 60 cookies. It was hell.) I’ll share a picture just for the thrill.

(Oh, and after 3 days of work, I snapped two phone pictures and called it good. Girl!!)

I’m a good sport, so I’ll share this picture with you. December 2021 bridal shower cookies, 3 days in the making (with help from my sister.)

I don’t know where the urge to do sugar cookies again came from. But before I knew it, I was texting the shower host that I was all set to bring cookies and fully committed to my fate.

Here’s the good news: this round of cookie making was 100% better than the first! If you are a non-professional like me wondering how to bake cookies and still love life, here are all my tips:

1.) Use the perfect recipe.

Oh my goodness, this was huge for me. I found this recipe on Reddit and it was absolutely golden: https://www.bakeat350.net/2013/12/perfect-every-time-cut-out-cookies.html

The cookies came out perfectly first try. The recipe was easy and unfussy. Cannot recommend enough!

The icing recipe was great, too. (https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/royal-icing/#tasty-recipes-66459). I only used one consistency for flooding and icing and that worked fine here, too.

2.) Do not do more than 2 dozen (unless you hate yourself).

Can’t overemphasize. The difference between 5 dozen and 2 dozen cut off two full days of work. I finished this batch in 24 hours. And I felt great!

3.) Use edible food markers for lettering and small details if you need.

Look, I’m fine with an icing bag. Fine, not great. Using an edible food marker was incredibly helpful for all handwriting portions.

4.) Limit your color palette.

I only mixed four colors for these cookies. I think that leaves you with two main benefits: a cohesive look AND less clean up. Win-win.

5.) Mix and match from Pinterest inspo.

I pulled elements from some of the (many, many) cute cookies I saw on Pinterest. Add your own fresh take, but no need to reinvent the wheel entirely!

So, that’s my take on Winnie-the-Pooh sugar cookies. Non-professionals, it’s possible! Wishing you the best of luck in any baking endeavors!