One of my coworkers has been looking for a giant Toy Soldier for several years to complement our drummer tree. In honor of that, I found a Toy Soldier cookie cutter as a surprise for her.
I also love making Gingerbread. I love it when it is soft, full of flavor, and has just a little bit of snap when you bite into it. I had to dive deep into my mind (and Pinterest) thinking of how I would decorate the Soldiers. I found myself a little stumped. Nothing seemed quite right.
Richmond, VA
Then, by a stroke of luck, I attended our annual Holiday party at The Jefferson Hotel, where the perfect Soldier greeted me.
When I got home, I compared him to my adorable cutter, and I realized I had a small problem. My Soldier cutter has very short legs. I was going to have to choose boots or pants. I thought about drafting some renderings on my computer or sketching them, but I was eager to start icing the cookies.
I decided to try to make medium height boots and have a glimpse of the pants showing. First, I piped on some faces, and then I piped my hats and boots!
Before the hats had a chance to set, I added a flourish of holly berries. I prepped early in the season and made a couple hundred, so I could use them as often as I liked. (I LOVE feeling prepared).
I added the red jackets, blue pants, and some blue cuffs on the sleeves of the jackets. I thought there needed to be a touch more blue in the uniform (making up for the very short legs).
With the soldiers fully dressed, it was time to add details and embellishments. I tried a few different designs before finalizing. Gold cords around the cuffs, buttons, and shoulder tassels for the win! The other elements were a little too delicate for the amount of replication required.
I am also an Army veteran, so I got a kick out of lining up my soldiers in formation, boxing them in along with their squads, and deploying them. When they were dry the next day, I was able to draw on their faces (with a fine edible marker). A lot of Toy Soldiers have a mustache, but I’m not fond of it. So I kept a crisp, clean-shaven look.
