Meet Daniela!

I often boast that I have some of most talented cookie friends in the world, and it's true!  Today, I would like to introduce you to the work of another cookie friend.  I first met Daniela via Flickr, an online photo-sharing site and since the beginning, she has never failed to amaze me. 

Daniela is quite talented.  Since she started she has produced very cute, well-designed cookies. She seemed to skip the awkward cookie stage so many of us have.  I've watched her grow from WOW to SUPER WOW in a very short period of time. 

She also has a special type of determination and ENERGY.  When she decides she's going to do something, she does, and she does it WELL!  Whether it's baking or losing 100 lbs, *yes she did, and she rocks it* D approaches everything with a can-do attitude and gives it 150%, and does it with a smile!  To her cookie friends she is known as the cheerleader, and after a few minutes with her, it's not very hard to see why!  She accomplishes everything she puts her mind to, and convinces those around her that they can too!

I put together a short little interview...Well, I lie...  Daniela did all  of the work.  In my usual rush, instead of emailing her a form, I texted her a slew of random things I wanted to talk about in this post.  After a little bit, I when I slowed down enough to think, I started to feel bad. I shot her a quick text telling her to give me a moment to type out something coherent...but I was too late.  She was finished.  It was already organized and complete, waiting for me in my inbox!  When there's something that needs to get done, Dani is your girl!!! 

*Drumroll PLEASE*

I would like everyone to meet my talented friend, Daniela, of Sugar Rush Treats =)

My first big querstion for D was: How did you get into decorating cookies?

I've made decorated sugar cookies since I was a kid at Christmas with my dad . Nothing super fancy but we did use RI made with egg whites from what I remember and it was more of a glaze and I remember it being runny then we did details with thicker icing. So last Christmas I decided to make a bunch of cookies for friends and family and thought I'd make some decorated sugar cookies too. I had a Flickr account and decided to search for some cookie ideas and WOW was I blown away!!! I made some simple snowflakes but I was pretty much hooked ever since and researched everything I could about cookies from recipes to decorating techniques. I thought I can do this! I knew my cookies weren't going to be spectacular but I just kept at it because it was fun and it kept me busy.

 I  LOVE these cookies...they make me smile!

Interesting fact:  Daniela actually learned to bake from her dad!  One of her first memories is a Wilton birthday cake made by him =)

And look what she has been up to this holiday season!

 My hubby voted these best collection of the season! (Yes, I make him look at cookies all day)

And Although Christmas has been fun, I am still haven't gotten over her Halloween designs!

 Did I mention that Daniela is ENERGETIC? Just call her SUPERBAKER!  She and another one of my cookie friends, Dawn, who also owns a bakery in Michigan called,  Knead-a-Cookie,  just completed an order for 6000 cookies in five weeks.  *No, that's not a typo*  6000 cookies, 5 weeks!!!  Oh yes, and they both still took care of their "real" jobs and orders!

 (This is only, 600, one tenth of them!)

I had to know if 6000 cookies taught Daniela anything...

Yes, I think I've got better at knowing my RI after making what seemed like a million batches, {okay, it was more like 100} that's a lot of icing...and cookies, and powdered sugar, and butter, and eggs, and disco dust.  *29 jars to be exact* 

D uses Antonia74's recipe for royal icing, BTW...


My kiddos LOVE Daniela too.  When I am looking at her photos, they don't leave my side.  (Is it any wonder why?)

 Like I said, this girl is amazing!  If you would like to see more of Daniela's work, you can hop on her FB page and say hello, or visit her blog Sugar Rush Treats, which is currently under construction, and PEER PRESSURE her into blogging her cookie adventures.  Believe me, they are VERY interesting!

She also generously shared  some of her favorite tips and gadgets for all of the aspiring super decorators out there!

Daniela's Tips and Gadgets =)

Tips:

- Practice, practice, practice...meaning try different recipes see what works best for YOU.

- I roll all my dough (right after I mix it) between parchment paper then stick it in the freezer before I cut it. This prevents spreading when you bake cookies and it's just easier to cut in my opinion.

- I used bags & bottles to decorate just depends on what I'm doing but when I use bags I put my RI in saran wrap before I put them in the bags. Makes for easy clean up.

*To watch a how-to video on this visit:  Karen's cookies. This is one of MANY=)


Gadgets, or should I say *must haves*:

- I can not live without my PME tips! I love them for outlining cookies, doing details, & writing.

- I use the needle end tool in this kit instead of toothpicks. I LOVE it for popping air bubbles and pushing around flood icing if I need too. You can just wipe it off with a wet paper towel instead of wasting a bunch of toothpicks!


It's easy to see why Daniela is one of my cookie decorators!  For the complete collection of Dani's baking exploits, and an organized collection of her work, catch her on Flickr!

Check back the rest of this week  for fun new cookie collections, and stay tuned next week for a *super exciting guest post*  I cannot wait for that one!

Christmas time is upon us, for those of you with too much snow, send some my way.  It was 85° here today, and I'm having a hard time getting into the Christmas spirit in this weather!

 

PS-All of these photos are copyrighted and the property of Sugar Rush Treats, so DON'T STEAL THEM =)