[Utensils 101] - Unique Cookie Cutters with Recipe

Every year, that "time of the year" comes rolling around, and you need to find a gift for your friends, families, co-workers and all the great people in your life. Even though it's still August, it's never too soon to start thinking because it's not easy to think of new gift ideas without breaking the bank nowadays. Plus, with the world becoming more tech-savvy, it makes things worse. So, what's something you can give to people without:

1. Breaking the bank
2. Doesn't look too cheap
3. They'll appreciate it one way or another 

Last holiday season, my sister and I came up with an idea that we thought would work and still make the gift receivers happy. What was it? It was baked goods! We made cookies shaped in trees, stockings, bells, snowmen, gingerbread people, etc, along with chocolate covered Oreo cookies and brownies.

We made hundreds of these cookies, chocolate covered Oreos and brownies! Then, we put a few of each into boxes with tissue paper and wax paper lining the inside. The boxes we used for the adults were 3D Christmas gift boxes and for the children, we used gingerbread house treat boxes. Both of the boxes were purchased from http://www.orientaltrading.com.

If you're interested in making cookies as a gift for someone or to eat yourself, check out the simple recipe I used:

Ingredients

Cookie

• 1 package of Pillsbury Funfetti Cake Mix*
• 1/3 cup of oil
• 2 eggs

*Any cake mix should work, but we found the Funfetti one to work best.

Decorating

• 1 tub of Frosting
• Any desired sprinkles
• 1 bag of white candy melts*
• 1 small ziplock bag

*You can pick other colored candy melts, but I found it easier to work with white

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 375°F.
2. Mix the cake mix, oil and eggs together in a large bowl until it turns doughy.
3. Shape dough into 1-inch balls and place it 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets OR use a rolling pin to roll the dough to about 1-inch and make fun shapes with cookie cutters, then place it on the ungreased cookie sheets.
4. Bake at 375°F for 6-8 minutes or until golden brown. Cool 1 minute and then remove from cookie sheets.
5. You can decorate the cookies with frosting and sprinkles OR you can melt the bag of white candy melts and then place it inside a ziplock bag. Now, snip a small corner on the bag and start decorating!

If you don't have any cookie cutters, here are some unique and cool ones to purchase!

ABC Cookie Cutters - Gingerbread Men from perpetual kid.

Ninjabread Men Cookie Cutters from Think Geek.