{ Scrabble Made out of Gingerbread }

I have a fondness for all things wordy and lettery, hense loving SCRABBLE. I made those scrabble necklaces and my little sister loved it! So I just stumbled onto this from a girl named Ali, she is the creative soul behind gimmesomeoven.com and I had to post it. Such a cute idea.


Here is the Method of pure cuteness:


Heat oven to 350F.

Prepare the gingerbread cookie dough.  Once it is ready, place a dough third on a large piece of lightly floured parchment paper or wax paper. Using a rolling pin, roll dough 1/8 inch thick. (Refrigerate again for 5-10 minutes to make it easier to cut out the cookies if needed.)

Using a knife or a pizza cutter, carefully cut the dough to make a grid of Scrabble tiles.  You can be as precise about this as you would like.  (Mine were not that precise!)  Actual Scrabble tiles measure 2 cm x 1.5 cm, so if you want to be exact, I would size them 1/2 cm smaller, knowing that they will expand slightly when cooked.  In American Scrabble, there are traditionally 100 tiles.  See the tip below for the letter and points distribution.

Once you have your desired amount of “tiles”, lay them out on a cookie sheet at least 1″ apart, and bake until crisp but not darkened, 7 to 9 minutes. Remove from oven. Let sit a few minutes and then use a metal spatula to transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

Prepare your Royal icing according to directions, and carefully make a strong border around the outside of each tile.  Then fill with the slighly diluted icing.  Use an edible marker to write a letter and point value on each “tile”.

Then use them to play, eat, and enjoy!!

• 2 blank tiles (scoring 0 points)
• 1 point: E ×12, A ×9, I ×9, O ×8, N ×6, R ×6, T ×6, L ×4, S ×4, U ×4
• 2 points: D ×4, G ×3
• 3 points: B ×2, C ×2, M ×2, P ×2
• 4 points: F ×2, H ×2, V ×2, W ×2, Y ×2
• 5 points: K ×1
• 8 points: J ×1, X ×1
• 10 points: Q ×1, Z ×1

Homemade Vanilla Gifts

I found this great idea for HOMEMADE VANILLA EXTRACT..YUMMMM. The mastermind behind this project is Lisa of Laundry Tree. And now, notes and recipes in Lisa's words:

Vanilla Extract Recipe
Some recipes call for Everclear. I had Smirnoff vodka so that's what I used.

16-ounce jar or bottle with tight-fitting lid
16 ounces vodka, top-shelf brands not required
6 vanilla beans

Cut the six vanilla beans in half lengthwise, leaving about 1 inch connected at one end. Put the beans into the jar and pour in the 16 ounces of vodka. Cover tightly and store in a cool, dark place for about 8 weeks. Give it a gentle shake about once a week.

I EVEN ENCLOSED THE LINK TO THE LABELS I USED!
http://www.laundrytree.com/labels/vanilla_extract_label.pdf

Vanilla Sugar Recipe
I used spent beans from making vanilla extract to flavor the sugar. Dry them a couple of days before adding them to the sugar.

1 vanilla bean, whole or scraped
2 cups granulated sugar

If vanilla bean is whole, slice down side of bean with back of knife and scrape seeds into airtight container with the sugar. Bury bean in sugar and seal tightly with lid. Let sit for 1 to 2 weeks. Use as you would regular, granulated sugar.

ENJOY.