How to Craft Reindeer Out of Gingerbread Men
The holidays offer an opportunity for the crafty and creative to let their imaginations run wild, turning all manner of common household items into seasonal crafts and decorations. Food items play a large role in this, from the traditional bowl of nuts to less common crafts such as suncatchers made from dried citrus fruit. Christmas cookies are another holiday essential, whether you turn out sophisticated European-style offerings or basic sugar cookies and gingerbread men. If your selection of seasonal cookie cutters is limited, you can alter one cookie into another. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Rolling pin
- Gingerbread man cookie cutter
- Paring knife
- Baking sheet
- Icing
Instructions
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Roll the gingerbread cookie dough to a quarter-inch thickness using a rolling pin.
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2
Use a gingerbread man cookie cutter to make as many cookies as you can with the rolled out dough, then gather up and reroll the scraps. Repeat until all the dough is used.
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3
Turn a gingerbread man on its side, with the head facing to your left. Reshape the head, making it higher at the shoulder and tapering gently to a blunt or rounded nose. The effect should be a roughly egg-shaped oblong.
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4
Trim away the upper arm and leg with the tip of a paring knife, and reserve them. Leave a small portion of the upper leg to serve as the reindeer's tail.
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5
Bend and shape the new foreleg and hind leg to narrow and taper them. Do not make them too thin. Trim with the tip of your paring knife, if necessary.
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6
Shape a cut off arm or leg into a Y-shaped antler, with the rear tine longer than the front. Press the antler to the top rear of the head.
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Transfer carefully to a baking sheet and bake. Decorate the reindeer with icing eyes, harnesses and other details once cooled.
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Tips & Warnings
If there are kids in the house, let them modify a gingerbread man of their own. It might not look as neat as yours, but they'll take great pride in making their own "Rudolph."
Some cutters adapt more easily to reindeer than others. If you have several to choose from, appraise them beforehand with this in mind.
References
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
