Rustic Watermelon Cookies

You know what? I LOVE watermelon!  I have been known to buy a watermelon and have the whole thing polished off the second day:)  I also love cookies, so naturally watermelon cookies are a favorite of mine.  Something about them just makes me happy:)

These particular cookies were inspired by an awesome design created by Sweetambs.  She decorated her cookies entirely with royal icing and I meant to do the same, but at the last minute decided to "paint" them using gel food coloring and food markers.

 No two are exactly alike and their primitive charm appeals to me.

  To achieve the rustic look, after I applied the red coloring I used a toothpick to scrape the entire red area, back and forth, until I achieved the look I wanted. 

I like how they turned out, if I do say so myself. :)

I'm pretty sure I will be trying this technique again on more cookies.

Rustic Watermelon Cookies

Ingredients

Round Sugar Cookies (mine are 3-inch)

White royal icing

Decorating bag with a #3 tip

AmeriColor Gel Paste Food Colors: Bright White, Electric Green, Super Red

Wilton Icing Color: Pink 

AmeriColor Food Markers: Green and Black

Small paint brushes (used for food only)

Cotton Swabs

Toothpicks

Round cookie cutter, smaller than finished cookies

Directions

1. Using the decorating bag and #3 tip, outline the cookies with the white royal icing and then immediately fill with the same icing. Let cookies dry overnight.

2. Use the smaller round cookie cutter and trace around the center of the cookie with the green food marker.

3. Color in the outer green band with the green marker. (It doesn't have to be completely precision and perfect.) 

3. Add a little bit of pink gel into a small "glob" (technical term) of red gel, and mix well.

4. Using a small paint brush, paint a big round circle in the middle of the cookie, leaving a small, white border around the outer ring of the red.  (If you need to, use a cotton swab to remove some of the red gel to make it more round, and to help achieve the thin white border.)

5. Using a very small paint brush, apply a thin, white border around the red.

6.  Using a very small paint brush, apply the electric green along the outside border of the white.

(None of these applications need to be precise, as you can see in the photos.)

7. With a toothpick, scrape the red area completely with a back and forth motion, scraping off any excess gel, until it is "dry".

8.  Apply the black dots (seeds) with the black food marker.

Have Fun!