Spring Cookie Crush!

Isn’t it hard to believe that Easter is just a few days away already?  I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling rather rushed this holiday season with all these celebrations following each other so closely!  And even though it’s so fun to have all these opportunities for festivities and family gatherings, when you mix them in with the business of everyday life it can get a little hairy!  But I still refuse to pass up a reason to create something special for the holiday…it just needs to be easy!  So what’s easier and quicker than prepared cookie dough?!  I love to keep a pack or two in my freezer so I can whip up something sweet in a pinch and with far less mess to clean up!  I’m sure you all scroll through Pinterest like I do to find inspiration for just about anything, right?  Well, I spied these adorable cookies and have been wanting to create them…so i had a little fun in the kitchen making some sweet treats for the new season!  And wait ’til you see the cuties made with the extra dough!  With Easter around the corner and spring making it’s grand entrance yesterday…you may want to try these oh-so-simple and cute cookies for your celebrations!

celebrate spring with…cookies!

i’ve always wanted to make cookie “nests”/Easter baskets for spring…they look like they’d be pretty easy AND are so darn cute!  so with a simple package of sugar cookie dough, a mini cupcake pan, and toppings…i gave it a whirl!

the package of cookies says to bake straight out of the freezer, but since you need to press the dough into your pan…it’s easier if it’s thawed!  just plop the cookie balls into a greased mini cupcake pan and press…

you can use a melon scoop or just your fingers to press the cookie dough up the sides of the pan…

bake according to the package…but watch them to make sure they don’t get too brown.  i didn’t bake the entire package in the cupcake tins…i used the leftover cookie dough and made regular cookies too.  they didn’t take as long to bake and all the dough was thawed so that reduced the baking times a bit.  once you remove the “nest” cookies from the oven make sure to let them cool COMPLETELY before removing them from the pan or they’ll just come apart!

AND…just so you don’t panic when you try to get the cooled cookies out of the tin, mine felt like they were permanently stuck to the pan even though i sprayed it well.  i found if i gently, but firmly held the edges of the cookie and twisted it in the pan (like removing a jar lid), it actually gave way and popped right out unscathed!  so be patient taking them out of the pan…it’s worth the tiny bit of extra time ’cause look how cute the end result is!  a blob of icing, candy shred, and malted eggs topped off these cookies so easily!

and the rest of the batch got a tiny, bunny cookie as a topper…i just love it!  these mini vanilla & chocolate bunnies are in most grocery stores and make such cute toppings for cookies and cakes!  they’re packaged in a bag like goldfish crackers so they are COVERED in crumbs!  i just used a pastry brush to clean them up a bit…

ready to serve…

even though this is a really simple treat, it was still easy to make the table look special for spring!  a quick update to my backdrop…a new paper garland and silk flowers were just attached with push pins to replace the gold and shamrocks.  i simply covered the tabletop with some Easter grass and plastic eggs…so easy!

and this adorable chalkboard bunny from…you guessed it…the Target dollar bins!

and these cute napkins from Home Goods…

i just LOVE them!

so i piled up the cookies on some cake stands and set them in the Easter grass…

ready for our friends who were riding with us to a school fundraiser…funny thing was that our Uber driver got to the house so quickly we didn’t eat a one!!  but no matter, my boys had plenty of extra sweets to indulge on while we were out!  and they were SO easy and fun to make…it really didn’t matter!  i think i might bake some more for Easter day!

so if you feel like making a REALLY easy and yummy Easter treat…go grab some frozen dough and have some family fun baking up these spring inspired cookies!

i hope you’re crushing on these cookies as much as i am!

happy baking!