Homemade Cookie Cutters

Last month, I wrote about the fish cookie cutter I made for my daughter's birthday.  It was pretty easy to make and very inexpensive since I already had all the materials on hand.  In order to make your own cookie cutter you will need a pair of scissors, a stapler, and a disposable aluminum casserole dish, cake pan, loaf pan, or any other disposable aluminum dish.

I started by drawing the shape I wanted on a piece of paper.  Once it was drawn, I cut it out then took a string and laid it along the edges of the cutout shape.  My purpose here was to measure how much aluminum I would need and to make sure I had a big enough pan.  The cookies I was making were small, so I was able to use an old disposable aluminum loaf pan. When doing this step, it is important to plan for a little extra aluminum because you will be overlapping the ends a bit.  I cut the bottom out of the pan, then cut a thin strip - maybe an inch-and-a-half wide or so.  Once I had the strip cut, I made a small fold along both of the long edges to prevent cutting myself on the sharp edges.  I then began to carefully shape the metal strip around the paper shape I had cut out.  It took a bit of working with the metal to get it to the shape I wanted, but with a bit of patience and persistence, I successfully had a goldfish-shaped cookie cutter!  When you're cutting your cookies, gently press the cutter into the dough so it doesn't bend.

The strip cut out of the bottom of the loaf pan.

The edges folded down to prevent cuts.

Beginning to shape the metal around the paper cutout.

Once the metal is shaped, overlap the ends and close with a staple.

The finished product!

Keep in mind that only one side of the cookie cutter needs to be the exact shape you're looking for.  Because the aluminum is so flimsy, it was difficult to properly shape both sides.  As long as the other side was fine, I didn't mind that this one was a little off.  I simply used the good side for my cookies.

These aren't the most sturdy or long-lasting cookie cutters because the metal they're made with is so flimsy.  If you'd like a more sturdy cookie cutter, you can use metal ribbon and follow the instructions here. 

Next week we'll talk about different ways to decorate sugar cookies, as well as give icing recipes!