This Apple Basket Cookies tutorial is courtesy of our contributor Amy of BZ Bees Sweet Treats…I can hardly believe it’s almost fall! The temperature has already started cooling down and I can practically smell the aromas of apple, cinnamon and pumpkin spice in the air. These sweet little apple basket cookies are just what I need while I’m waiting for the orchards to ripen for picking season!
The key to these cookies is Wilton basketweave tip #47. You can use it with the ridges facing up for a textured basket, or flip them downward if you’d like a flat band of icing. It’s such a versatile piping tool!
Apple Basket Cookies – What You’ll Need:
- Rectangle shaped cookies (sugar cookie recipe)
- brown piping icing (fitted with Wilton tip #47) royal icing recipe
- red 20 second icing
- green piping icing (fitted with PME ST50 or Wilton #65)
- black medium/piping icing (fitted with Wilton #1)
- Americolor white gel food coloring and small brush
- white piping icing (fitted with Wilton #1 or #2)
Let’s get started on the baskets! I like to pipe from left to right so I start with my cookie positioned vertically. Holding the tip with the ridges facing you, pipe 6 evenly spaced lines of icing down the left side of your cookie. Be sure to make each line the same length – approx 1/2 inch.
Rotate your cookie horizontally and pipe a single band of icing along the top edges of the 6 short bands you just piped.
Rotate vertically and pipe a second set of bands in between each of the original ones.
Be sure to extend these second set of bands up and over the single line of icing
Repeat the steps above to create a second basket row.
Pipe a set of half height bands between the second row you just created.
Pipe one last horizontal band across your entire cookie to create the top lip of the basket. Allow the icing to dry before adding the apples.
Pipe a few heart shaped apples across the top of the cookie. Stagger the spacing and height just a bit.
Allow the apples to dry at least 30 min, then add a few more to the pile. The drying time in between will help create dimension and definition. Once you have enough apples in the baskets, allow the icing to dry completely.
Add a tiny leaf to each apple, alternating the direction and placement.
Add a stem to each apple using the black icing.
Pipe a small angled rectangle on one side of the basket. I suggest a looser piping consistency icing for the black here because you want it to be somewhat spreadable but not so loose that it leaks through the basketweave causing craters. When you mix your black icing, aim for slightly looser than the consistency of toothpaste.
Fill in any large dips in the basketweave with small dots of icing, and then fill in the entire rectangle. Use a scribe or toothpick to help smooth out the icing tags.
While the tags are drying, paint a reflection line on each apple using the white gel food coloring.
Once the tags are dry, pipe a bit of twine to connect the tag to the basket. Next, pipe a price or message on each tag using the white piping icing. You can also paint the text on with white gel coloring if you’d like more of a chalkboard effect.
These cookies would be perfect for a back-to-school teacher gift, autumn gathering or even a child’s “apple of my eye” themed birthday party! Happy Harvest!
We’d like to extend a big THANK YOU to Amy for sharing these fun cookies with us. Be sure to follow her on Facebook & Instagram for adorable cookie decorating ideas. You can also order cookies from her! Check out the FAQ section of her website for more information.