Easy Beginners Crafts - How to Make Edible Alphabet Cookies

 Alphabet Cookies is a very good example of an easy beginners craft to do with the kids. They will love it. Another alternative are mosaic crafts for beginners where the small motor skill are also used encouraging the development of small motor skills.

It's no secret that kids love sweets. So if you can find a way to combine them with something educational, you have a grand opportunity to teach and reinforce skills that your child needs to learn. Alphabet cookies are a great example of how to accomplish this. And they also make fun place cards for kids' birthday parties – just make them in the shape of the first letter of each child's first name, and place them on a napkin with the rest of the name written out beside them.

What You Need

* 4 ½ cups all-purpose flour (unsifted)
* 1 ½ cups butter
* 3 hard-boiled egg yolks
* 3 raw egg yolks
* ¾ cup sugar
* 1 ½ tsp. vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Put the flour into a large bowl. Cut butter into small pieces, add to flour, and mix it with your hands until fine crumbs are formed.

3. In a smaller bowl, mash the hard-boiled egg yolks with the sugar. Stir into the flour mixture.

4. In the small bowl, mix the raw egg yolks and the vanilla. Stir into the flour mixture, using a fork.

5. Press the mixture into a firm ball, then roll out with a rolling pin.

6. Cut the dough into 3- to 4-inch strips. Roll them to make rope shapes.

7. Shape the ropes into letters, and press down to flatten a bit. When you're done, they should be about ¼ inch thick.

8. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes. They're done when they start to turn brown on the bottom.

9. Leave on baking sheet for a few minutes, then move to a rack and cool completely.

Tips

* If you want more colorful cookies, separate the dough into three or four sections after mixing in the egg yolks and vanilla and add a different color of food coloring to each section. Stir just until the color is even.

* You can also spruce these cookies up by adding some colored sugar or chocolate chips after shaping the letters.

* If you'd like to spice your cookies up a bit, add half a teaspoon of cinnamon to the recipe. Or, for a slightly different flavor, add a teaspoon of almond or lemon extract.

* If you prefer, you can use letter-shaped cookie cutters instead of shaping the letters by hand.

* Once the cookies are cooled, you could add some colorful icing and/or sprinkles.

* This is a great recipe to make with your kids. They can assist with the measuring and mixing and help shape the letters. This provides an opportunity for both bonding and learning.

* The dough may be covered and refrigerated overnight if needed.