Tip: Press Vintage Glassware onto Your Sugar Cookies

So, you don't own a cookie mold, and you don't have the time (or maybe the steady hand) to pipe multi-colored icing. And yet you'd like to gussy up those plain sugar cookies somehow. This is a simple, two-second trick that requires no special equipment.

Well, unless you consider vintage glassware special equipment.

The thing is, you can do this trick with a lot of everyday kitchenware. While vintage glasses are more likely to have pretty little patterns cut into the bottom, some new ones do, too. Country Living, where we read this tip, mentions that you can also use silverware or Jell-O molds to press a design into your cut-out dough before baking.

We think a citrus reamer would work really well; just position the tip in the center of the cookie and rotate the reamer around, making ridges as you circle.

• See this and more sugar cookie ideas at Country Living.

(Image: Frances Janisch)

Comments (10)

My mom kept a special little juice glass that had kind of a star-like pattern on the bottom just for this purpose. Except she used it more for molasses cookies she dusted with sugar than for sugar cookies.

This is a great idea! I've tried a variation on this: using a sugar-dipped glass bottom to press out ball of cookie dough instead of rolling and cutting. But adding some decoration to the surface is so simple, so lovely!

What a great idea! Now if only I had some vintage glasses!

This does seem like a good idea, but please wrap the top of the glass with a kitchen towel because sometimes they do break, and the last thing you need is to slice your hand or wrist making pretty cookies.

Great post! I wish I could remember the baking cookbook that had a recipe for Waterford cookies calling for bakers to use the bottom of a Waterford crystal goblet to leave that beautiful starburst pattern behind.

That is a fantastic idea! Who comes up with this stuff??

Garage sales or second-hand stores might be a great place to go looking for glassware for just this purpose. I have a couple from my grandfather...but I'd never considered using them for cookies. Thinking back - we used to have plastic glasses with textured bottoms...this would eliminate the possiblity of broken glass. Elsa, I love your idea of pressed dough balls (with soft dough, of course) instead of rolling. I'm so going to have to try this!

And to think I was just using those glasses for a couple fingers of scotch!