Colorful Airbrushed Autumn Leaf Cookies {Guest Post}

Want to make beautiful, colorful cookies without mixing a single icing color?  Today The Cookie Countess shows us how!

Updated Blog BreakI love decorating  cookies.  I really, really do.  But I’m going to let you in on a little secret…I loathe coloring icing and dealing with bags.  Mixing colors, dodging of that splat of gel when you first open a new food color bottle, loading and cleaning bags, drying and sorting tips…drives me bonkers.

This is one of the main reasons I originally became interested in airbrushing and stenciling.  It was nothing short of amazing.   It gave me endless color and design options without making multiple bags of colored icing.

Fast forward almost two years and I have been happily stenciling and creating colorful cookies in much less time and without the hassle.  Woo hoo!  More time for Facebook! (Wait, was that out loud?) I mean-more time for family!  (Yes, that sounds better.)  It has led me to experiment with some different ways to achieve dimension and color through stenciling and airbrushing.

Today I am going to show you how to make these vibrant and beautiful fall leaf cookies, all without mixing up a single icing color.

SugarbelleLeafPost 15For this project you will need:

  • White iced cookies that have been allowed to fully dry
  • White stiff consistency royal icing
  • Leaf stencil, available here in my online store
  • Airbrush
  • Yellow, orange, red, and gold airbrush color
  • Rubber or metal spatula
  • Magnets (0ptional)

SugarbelleLeafPost 1Begin with stiff consistency icing and a small spatula.  For the icing to hold its shape after you lift off the stencil, it must be thick and not spread at all, thicker than piping consistency.

SugarbelleLeafPost 3 The first step is to stencil the dry flooded cookies with white royal icing.  If using magnets, position the stencil on top of the cookie and anchor with magnets.  Be sure to work on a magnetic cookie sheet to ensure that everything stays in place.

Spread the icing over the stencil and cookie with a spatula.  It should be a somewhat even layer, but don’t worry about perfection just yet.  Try to stay within the border of the cookie.

Next,  remove the excess icing.  For this project, I’m using a piece of plastic I cut from the lid of a yogurt container.  I like the shape, size, and small amount of flexibility it provides.  An offset metal spatula, a large rubber spatula or a bench scraper work well also.

Just do your best to leave an even and smooth layer.  Then carefully remove the stencil to reveal the beautiful leaf pattern underneath.

Autum Leaf Stenciled CookieIf you have any bit of icing that hang off the edge of the stencil, simply remove them with a scribe tool, or toothpick.  Even with just the white design you have a beautiful cookie!

Autumn Leaf CookiesOnce the icing has dried (twenty minutes or so) you can begin airbrushing.  Place the cookie back under the stencil and line it up with the previously stenciled design.  Press down lightly on the stencil so it “clicks” into place.

SugarbelleLeafPost 10To achieve the look of fall leaves, use red yellow and orange airbrush colors, in that order, spraying in random patters over the leaves.  As in nature, no two leaves will be exactly alike.  If making multiple cookies, spray one color on all the cookies and repeat for each subsequent color.

Colorful Autumn Leaf CookiesTo finish up, mist with a light layer of gold sheen for a little sparkle and depth.

SugarbelleLeafPost 14Those of you who prefer videos, you can watch me in action here.

There you have it!  Beautiful, colorful cookies with no color mixing involved.  Doesn’t that make you happy?  Here are a few more examples of cookies made using this technique.

Stenciled CookiesI hope you have fun trying out stenciling with royal icing and an airbrush.  Please stop by my Facebook page and share your pics!  I would love to see them!

Updated Blog BreakBe sure to check out Hillary’s website, The Cookie Countess, for all your cookie stencil needs.  For more inspiration, check out the following posts: