Figuratively speaking, of course.
I got to end a hellish week by making some really adorable cupcakes and cookies this weekend. I was so excited to make these that I could barely contain myself. One of my all-time favorite cookies were (and still are) Carousel Cookies. These are the animal cracker type cookie covered with garish pink and white candy coating and topped with sprinkles. Of course I love them, they’re topped with sprinkles. However, Keebler is the only company that I can find still making these and they are not as good as I remember. Or is that how everything works when you get old? Things don’t taste as good as they did when you were a kid.
So, when a friend told me they were having a zoo animal theme for her kid’s birthday, I almost jumped out of my chair with pure excitement. I may have screamed in her face that I had an idea. Luckily, people who know me, know that I get a little crazy when talking about baked goods. So she took the screaming in stride.
I set out to do homemade Zoo Animal Cookies. With cupcakes and frosting that had the same flavor profile. The cookies turned out fabulously. They are too cute. Plus, with all the different varieties of candy melts these days, you can customize the color of the coating to match your event. Not to mention the abundance of mini cookie cutters now available. You can even customize the color of the nonpareils.
The cookie recipe is straight from King Arthur Flour. Find that here. I didn’t change anything about this recipe. It is perfect the way it is if you ask me. If you are wondering about the Princess Cake & Cookie Emulsion called for in the recipe, don’t. It’s better than an extract in that it doesn’t bake out of the cookies. And this particular flavor is really what I remember about the old school Carousel Cookies. You could substitute vanilla or almond, maybe even lemon extract if you really wanted. The emulsion isn’t hard to find either. Hobby Lobby or Joann Fabrics have it or you can order it online as well.
The coating is a mixture of candy melts and a little bit of paramount crystals. I had never used either of these before and it was a breeze. I am currently without a microwave so anything that has to be melted down is done in a double boiler. They melted down super fast and the paramount crystals made the coating just the consistency I needed.
I used the same Princess Cake & Cookie emulsion in both the cupcakes and frosting. Super easy. I did replace some of the all purpose flour with a little oat flour just to mimic that animal cracker taste. I will definitely be doing these again. This was a great way to de-stress after a very long week!
Ann