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Sandy Moyer
BellaOnline's Home Cooking Editor

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Ornaments from the Kitchen

Have a Homemade Christmas with Ornaments from the Kitchen!


Cinnamon Dough Ornaments are easy to make. They'll add a homemade touch to your Christmas tree and the spicy aroma of cinnamon to a room.

You can paint and decorate them with cinnamon hearts, cloves, raisins, etc. but they also look nice with no enhancements, just a thin red or green ribbon for hanging.

In addition to being cute tree ornaments, they can be used in other ways -

  • Add them to a Christmas wreath, using a hot melt glue gun.

  • Personalize them and use in place of gift tags on extra special presents.

  • Hang one or two cinnamon dough ornaments from a ribbon on a mason jar filled with candy, potpourri, homemade apple butter, jam or gift in a jar mixes.

    Cinnamon dough ornaments are strictly for decorations and crafts. They are not for eating.

    Here's the directions for making them ...

    Cinnamon Dough Ornaments

    • 3/4 cup applesauce - canned works best here.
    • 1 cup cinnamon
    • 1 T. ground cloves (optional)
    • extra cinnamon for rolling the dough.
    • ribbon or yarn for hanging.

    Preparation -
    Mix applesauce with cinnamon to form a stiff but rollable dough. Adjust these amounts depending on the consistency of the applesaauce used. Roll to about 1/4 inch thickness. Use extra cinnamon for rolling the dough, as you would normally use flour.

    Cut with cookie cutters. Use a drinking straw to make a hole at the top of each one for hanging.

    To Dry - Place ornaments on a wire rack for 3 to 4 days, turning a few times each day for even drying. Decorate with acrylic craft paint if desired. String a piece of thin ribbon or yarn through the hole for hanging.

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    Salt Dough Ornaments are fun to make. Paint them with acrylic paint, then add a few coats of clear spray for colorful, long lasting, keepsake ornaments.

    Salt Dough Ornaments

  • 1 1/4 cups boiling water
  • 1 cup salt
  • 4 cups flour

    Preparation -
    Pour the boiling water over the salt and stir. Allow to cool, then add the flour. Mix well, forming a ball. Knead until the dough is soft and workable. Roll the dough on a floured surface. Cut with your favorite cookie cutters into desired shapes. Make a hole in the top of each one for hanging. A thin drinking straw works well for this. Place the cut out dough on a cookie sheet lined with foil. Bake at 175º for 2 hours or until the dough becomes hard. When thoroughly cooled and dry, paint and decorate the ornaments with acrylic craft paint. After the paint is dry, wait 24 hours, then spray with 2 or 3 coats of clear acrylic paint. Allowing complete drying between coats. Tie a small piece of ribbon or yarn through the hole for hanging.

    printer friendly version
  • Traditional gingerbread men (and ladies) make adorable ornaments. Add raisins, cloves, tiny cinnamon hearts or other candy decorations before baking and use Royal Icing to finish decorating them after baking. These are edible cookies if stored in a covered container. After hanging on a tree, especially if unwrapped, they'll harden and will no longer be edible. For use on a tree, spraying with with a clear craft spray is recommended.

    Gingerbread People

    • 1/2 cup sugar
    • 1/2 cup butter or margarine
    • 1/2 cup molasses
    • 1 egg
    • 2 1/4 cups flour
    • 1 tsp baking powder
    • 1/2 tsp baking soda
    • 1/2 tsp salt
    • 1 tsp. cinnamon
    • 1 tsp ginger
    • 1/2 tsp ground cloves
    • 1/4 tsp nutmeg

    Preparation -
    In a large bowl combine sugar, butter or margerine, molasses and beaten egg. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices. Add to first mixture. Beat at medium speed until well-mixed. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 1 hour.

    On a lightly floured surface, roll dough 1/8" thick. Cut with cookie cutters. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet, leaving a space between each cookie. Using a plastic drinking straw, make a hole in the top of each cookie. Insert raisins, small candies, etc. for buttons, eyes, nose, etc.

    Bake 8 minutes at 350º or until lightly browned.

    Remove from cookie sheet and place on wire racks to cool. Decorate with royal icing when completely cool. Tie a small piece of thin ribbon through the hole for hanging.

    Royal Icing

    Royal Icing dries very hard in a few minutes.

    • 3 egg whites
    • 1 lb. confectioner's sugar
    • 1/2 tsp.cream of tartar

    Preparation -
    Combine ingredients. Beat on high speed for about 7 minutes. Use a writing or small decorating tip and fill a pastry bag and to decorate completely cooled cookies. Keep the the bowl of icing covered with damp cloth while you're work to keep it from drying and hardening. Also wrap the decorator tip with a damp cloth as soon as you lay it down to keep the icing inside from hardening and clogging the tip.

    printer friendly version


    Betty Crocker 100 pc. Cake Decorating Set
    Create professional-looking pastries, cookies and holiday treats with the Betty Crocker® 100-Piece Decorating Set.The possibilities are limitless with seven decorative frosting tips, multiple decorative and letter stencils, icing bags, a frosting knife plus complete instructions and recipes. A plastic storage case keeps the set handy and ready to use.



  • The Home Cooking Recipe Index and Site Map
    Tis' the Season for Christmas Cookies!
    Christmas Candy Recipes
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    Content copyright © 2008 by Sandy Moyer. All rights reserved.
    This content was written by Sandy Moyer. If you wish to use this content in any manner, you need written permission. Contact Sandy Moyer for details.

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