The Science Mouse

Making solar cookies with my brother and sister while learning about the sun.

To make your own edible model of the sun, all you need are a few basic ingredients and a good cookie recipe to start with.  Any recipe will do fine, just remember that you will have to frost it.  A simple recipe for sugar cookies and butter frosting may be found at the end of this entry.

Once you have cooled your cookies and frosted them, you are ready to make your own solar cookies!  Assemble the following ingredients:

1. Mini M&M’s
2. Twizzlers
3. Red & yellow colored sugar

The surface of the sun has a granular appearance because of temperature differences.  Sprinkle the colored sugar on top of your frosting to show this on your cookies.

Next, place the dark M&Ms in pairs on your solar cookie to represent sunspots.

Then take the Twizzlers and cut them to size.  Bend them into small arcs and press both ends into the frosting to represent solar prominences erupting from the surface of the sun.

Finally, enjoy your solar cookies!

My brother's finished solar cookie. Looks goo0od!

(Solar) Sugar Cookies

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup margarine softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg unbeaten
• 2 teaspoons lemon extract or 1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract
• 1/2 teaspoons nutmeg
• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

Cream margarine and sugar.  Add next five ingredients and mix thoroughly.  Add flour and baking soda.  Roll dough and flatten.  Bake on ungreased cookie sheet 12 to 15  minutes. Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Next you will need some icing to hold the decorations on your model.  This recipe makes a LOT of frosting because it is meant for cakes.  You can either make lots of cookies, or you may want to halve the recipe.

Butter Frosting

• 3/4 cup butter softened
• 9 cups powdered sugar
• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla

In a very large mixing bowl beat butter until smooth.  Gradually add 2 cups of the powdered sugar beating well.  Slowly beat in the 1/4 cup milk and vanilla.  Gradually beat in remaining powdered sugar.  Beat in enough additional milk to reach spreading consistency.  A few drops of yellow food coloring will make your icing look more like the surface of the sun.