You can make these cute sheep without a special cookie cutter--cut the body with a cup, and the head with a spoon! Each one ends up a little different, and has it’s own personality.
The position of the head determines whether your sheep will be facing forward or if it is a side view of the sheep. Make the front view of the sheep by putting the head in the middle (like the sheep on the left.) For a side view of the sheep, put the head on one side, like the sheep on the right.
Feet can add personality, too. For the front view, only make 2 feet (the sheep on the left.) For the side view, you can make 2 legs,( like the 2 sheep on the right above), or (4 legs, like the sheep in the photo to the left.) Which do you think looks cuter?
Cut the bodies with a cup or biscuit cutter. For the smaller sized body, add legs to it. For the larger sized body, cut the legs out of the circle.
To make the larger sheep, use a spoon to scoop off the dough to the left and right bottom side of the circle. Cut 4 legs together or leave a gap between 2 sets of 2 legs.
Optional: make a small tail for the side version of the sheep.
1.Make heads with a small spoon. Use the tip of the spoon to cut the chin.
2. Then turn the spoon around and use the tip to cut the top of the head.
Make a larger head for the larger sheep by using a larger spoon, or use the spoon to cut the ears on the outside of the head outline, rather than inside the head outline as shown in the photo above.
Make heads by cutting the dough with a bottle cap as shown here, or with a spoon, as shown below.
Another option make your sheep “wooly” is to draw the icing on the baked cookie. Put white icing in a plastic bag and cut off a tiny corner. Twist the empty part of the bag so the icing doesn’t squirt out the back. Hold the part of the bag that is holding icing in your hand, with the twisted part between your pointer finger and thumb. Squeeze the bag as you draw spirals onto the sheep. Don’t actually touch the surface of the cookie with the plastic bag--hold it just above the surface of the cookie. When the spiral ends, stop squeezing, and jerk the bag away from the icing for a clean break. It takes some practice to get good at “drawing” with icing, so practice on a cookie sheet until you get better before you try it on cookies.
Two more ways make your sheep “wooly”:
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1.Spread icing on the sheep with a knife, then sprinkle with coconut
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2.Spread icing on the sheep with a knife, then press miniature marshmallows into the icing
There are several ways to make the sheep look wooly. Whether you do this to the uncooked dough , or on the icing that has been spread on a baked cookie, here are 3 ways to :
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1.Press a new toothbrush all over the dough or icing (not the legs or face)
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2.Hold a handful of plastic drinking straws in your hand and press the ends of the straws to “draw”circles into the dough or icing.
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3.Use the tines of a fork or several toothpicks to lightly press all over the dough or icing.
3. Use the handle of the spoon, or a knife, to cut the ears.
4. Use the handle of the spoon, or a knife to press 2 indentations to form the nostrils.
5. Dip your finger in water and rub where the the eyes will go to make sure they stick to the head. Form 2 small balls with your fingers for the eyes. Place them just below the ears. Poke a hole in each eye with a skewer or toothpick.
6. Use the tip of the spoon, or the handle, to press indentations into each ear. Make these indentations toward the bottom edge of each ear.
To make the smaller sheep, form bits of dough into legs and press them onto the body. Rub a bit of water onto body if the dough doesn’t want to stick.
Make the face narrower by pressing it a bit with your fingers. Form 2 small balls with your fingers for the eyes. Place them just below the ears. Poke a hole in each eye with a skewer or toothpick.
Use the tip of the spoon, or the handle, to press indentations into each ear. Make these indentations toward the bottom edge of each ear.
Use the handle of the spoon, or a table knife, to cut the ears. Make nostrils by poking the tip of the knife or spoon handle into the lower edge of the nose.
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You have to wonder, with the sheep on the right, what the other 2 sheep are laughing about. Make a their mouths by leaving one side of the head wider. Draw the mouth with chocolate icing, then once it has dried, put little dabs of white icing for the teeth.
There are 2 ways to make the eyes dark. While the cookies are still hot out of the oven, put a crumb of chocolate on each eye, and the heat will melt it a bit. When it cools, they will stuck onto the eyes. The other way is to make chocolate icing, and fill in the holes in the eyes.
A quicker way to make the heads and bodies is to form logs of the cookie dough--a larger diameter for the bodies, and a smaller diameter for the heads. Wrap each log in plastic wrap or put in a zip-lock bag and put in the refrigerator for an hour or two to firm up. Then slice circle cookies. Shape the bodies and heads as described above.