Hutchinson - Creative cookie decorating: buttercream frosting designs and tips for every occasion

Copyright 2019 by Emily Hutchinson Photographs copyright 2019 by Johannah Chadwick, unless otherwise noted All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without the express written consent of the publisher, except in the case of brief excerpts in critical reviews or articles. All inquiries should be addressed to Good Books, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018. Good Books books may be purchased in bulk at special discounts for sales promotion, corporate gifts, fund-raising, or educational purposes. Special editions can also be created to specifications. For details, contact the Special Sales Department, Good Books, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018 or .

Good Books is an imprint of Skyhorse Publishing, Inc., a Delaware corporation. Visit our website at www.goodbooks.com. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file. Cover design by Laura Klynstra Cover photograph by Emily Hutchinson Special thanks for: Editing: Nicole Frail Christmas sign: Kala Klein designs Flowers: Sprig Flower Co. New cake stands: Amalfi Decor Cookie cutters: Posh Little Designs, Baked on Brighton Vintage items from the kitchen and from the drawer: Celia Johnson Barn for Christmas shoot: The Younger Family Print ISBN: 978-1-68099-484-1 Ebook ISBN: 978-1-68099-485-8 Printed in China To Mike and the Kids This book is a piece of our story together, so thank you for helping me make it possible. You make me better every day of my life.

Baking and decorating gives me joy because of the excitement you have shown me from the beginning. I am inspired by you in all that I do. We have been through so much as a family and are stronger today than ever before. We know all too well how short life is, and I know thats why we hold each other so close. I cherish the memories we have made over the years in the kitchen together. I know there are more fun days of baking and decorating ahead.

This book is for you. We are, forever, all in! Contents Introduction How It All Started Lets go back to the before the beginning, so I can help you see the big picture of how it started. When I was a little girl, I loved nothing more than being in the kitchen and baking with my Grandma Loopie (yes, Loopie means crazy, but in the most perfect way). I was always in awe of her as I watched her bake. I caught on very fast and loved cracking eggs, measuring flour, and sampling the goodies. She taught me the basics of baking and shared some secret recipes with me that my family still treasures.

My grandmother was such a patient teacher while having the sweetest way of making me feel like I could do anything. Sadly, my family and I lost her to cancer, and baking didnt feel the same after she was gone. The passion was still in my heart, but I just pushed it aside. Beauty from Ashes Fast forward to having two amazing children, Reese and Nick, to meeting my husband Mike, who became their stepdad. Mike and I decided to have a child of our own in 2007 and named her Jennifer Louise after my mother and grandmother. We loved on her so much; she was the piece that solidified our family.

When Jenny was two and a half months old, she suddenly passed away in her sleep; it was classified as SIDS because they couldnt find a reason for her death. This left us broken, angry, and beyond devastated. We were all hurting so much from losing her. How could we go on living life without our child? Time seemed to go on, but I was stuck. We decided to get pregnant right away in the midst of our grief. We were blessed when our son Mikie came along in 2009.

He was born exactly one year and 10 days after Jenny had passed. Having him felt like our family was once again complete. Everyone told us how strong we were, but little did everyone know, Mike and I were still in so much pain from losing Jenny. With all these wonderful things happening, I still had this ache in my heart. This hole that still left me half alive. Reese, Nick, and Mikie brought every joy and light into my life.

My children were the reason I got up every day, but I was still struggling. Its hard to explain that loss unless you have lived it. Losing a child feels like your heart is physically broken. We were all trying to survive this together. A few years after Mikie was born, friends of ours invited us to the Grove Church in Marysville. Something happened that day to my husband and me.

God lifted us up, opened our eyes, and met us right where we were. We began finding joy in the everyday things. My family and I started attending regularly. The Grove does a community outreach every summer where they volunteer to clean up parks, paint and clean schools, and serve for a week out of the summer. That hooked us because we could now see a purpose and a bigger picture of what God was doing. We shifted our eyes toward Jesus and away from everything else.

For the first time since we lost our Jenny, we found hope. With that newfound hope came the desire to really live my life fully for my family so I decided to start baking again. I realized how much I had missed it. Somehow being in the kitchen baking and creating was helping me find myself. I can look at a blank cookie and see so many possibilities. My mom and my sisters will joke with me about not being able to draw a stick figure to save my life, but as soon as I pick up a piping bag, magic happens.

In using these special techniques, I have set myself apart. Im a self-taught baker with a background from Grandma Loopie, Betty Crocker, and old-school Wilton decorating books. I also created videos to show people how to frost cookies with buttercream frosting. I would look around and see beautiful bouquets of flowers and think, how can I make this a cookie? My passion had now turned into a business: The Hutch Oven. Baking and decorating has always been a safe haven for me. It has been a stress relief; I am in a peaceful place as I decorate beautiful cookies.

The best way to describe my mission with The Hutch Oven is that I want to keep my daughters memory alive as I share my story of hope. I thought a book would be the perfect place to not only share what Im deeply passionate about but encourage whoever may read this that you can do it, too! The step-by-step photos allow anyone to learn these techniques. Lets Get Familiar The techniques Im sharing with you work best for me, so with that being said, if you have a way that works better, then please use it. My hope is that I can prevent you from the fails and disasters Ive had along the way, from powdered sugar explosions and wilted-looking petals, to overbaked cookies that had to be thrown out. My recipes have evolved over the years, as has my baking. I think the way for us to learn and grow is from failures and mistakes.

I use circles, squares, and rectangles in many different ways. I do love a cute cookie cutter, but I realize that not everyone has them. You can find templates online to print out and trace cookie shapes with a knife. I find a lot of inexpensive cookie cutters at secondhand stores and online.