Independence Day Cookie

I wanted to make something patriotic for the 4th of July and decided on cookies. I knew I didn't have much time to decorate individual cookies, though, so I decided to attempt to bake a giant cookie. I lined my cookie sheet with foil and sprayed it with cooking spray before I baked it. I just used the same sugar cookie recipe I always use and baked it at the same temperature. I needed to add only three or four minutes to the cooking time.

I used a cooling rack to help flip the cookie out of the pan so the bottom wouldn't burn as it cooled. Then, I used another cooling rack to flip the cookie right-side up.



I was really disappointed to see that the rack left deep grooves in the cookie. I was upset at first, thinking the lines would mess up my design and make the glace icing flow in the wrong directions. Then, I realized something...there were exactly 14 bars on the cooling rack, which made 14 lines in the cookie...which created 13 perfectly straight stripes across the cake. I was able to ice the cookie with the image of the American flag quickly, without having to painstakingly measure straight lines. I couldn't have planned it any better.



The flag has exactly 13 stripes and 50 "stars." Go ahead. Count 'em. :o)



*Next time I would use less cookie dough. This baked up to be about half an inch thick. I think it would have been better if it was only a quarter inch thick, making a better cookie/icing ratio.