Party Favor Idea - Homemade Fortune Cookies

You don't have to eat at a Chinese restaurant to get a fortune cookie. You can make your own fortune cookies at home! Homemade fortune cookies are actually quite easy to make. And since you can personalize the little message inside the cookie, homemade fortune cookies make the perfect party favor to give to your guests for any occasion. You can put a fortune cookie on their dinner plate and have fun listening to everyone read their fortunes. Or you can send them home with a decorative little bag with a nice big fortune cookie inside (you can make whatever size fortune cookie you want) and have the message say "thank you for coming to my party." You can also make fortune cookies as party favors for your wedding or baby shower. No matter which holiday or event you are celebrating, a personalized homemade fortune cookie will be a big hit.

Before you start making your cookies, you will need to have your fortunes ready. Print your fortunes using your computer printer and cut the fortunes into strips about 1/2 inch by 2 inches big. You can use colored paper to suit the holiday or occasion. Pink or blue fortunes are great for a baby showers. Green fortunes are great for Christmas for Saint Patrick's day. Red fortunes are nice for Valentine's Day. Just be creative!

You will need the following ingredients to make fortune cookies: 3 eggs, 2 tablespoons of water, 1/2 cup confectioner's sugar, 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 teaspoon lemon extract (you could also use vanilla or almond). You will need the following tools to make fortune cookies: mixing bowl, measuring cup and spoons, electric mixer, non-stick griddle or non-stick frying pan, spatula, paper fortunes.

Crack the eggs into the bowl and add the water and beat with the mixer at medium speed for about two minutes. Add the sugar and continue to beat for about 10 more minutes (you can let the kids do this tedious step). Then gradually add the flour and fold it in with a spoon. After you fold in the flour, add the extract then beat with the electric mixer for another two minutes.

Heat your non-stick griddle or frying pan on low to medium heat and let it come to temperature. Drop about two tablespoons of the batter onto the pan and quickly spread it so it makes a flat pancake that measures about 3 inches across. You can make a bigger pancake if you want. It will make a bigger fortune cookie!

Cook the pancake for about one minute then flip it using the spatula and cook for about one minute on the other side. The pancakes should be golden. If they are not cooked enough you need to turn the heat up a bit. If they look brown you have to turn down the heat. You may have to play with the heat a bit until you get it right (the practice cookies can go to your kids).

When your pancake is just right (do not be overly fussy!) remove it from the pan and let it cool just a bit. While it is still warm and soft, place one of the fortunes in the center of the cookie and fold it over in half with the fortune inside. Then bend the two corners of the folded cookie back to make the familiar fortune cookie shape. Put the cookies aside and let them air dry for several hours until they harden. If you are making cookies with a specific fortune for certain people you can write that person's name on a baggie and put the cookie in the baggie so you don't get the cookies mixed up. But leave the baggie open so the cookie will dry. You can also write each person's name on the bottom of a paper muffin cup and put the cookies in the muffin cup to dry. To keep extra large fortune cookies from getting mixed up, write the names on the bottom of a coffee filter and sort the cookies that way.

If you have children, you will really enjoy my other articles. I have lots of craft recipes here on Associated Content and also some fun games your kids can play. For some easy floor games that you can make at home read this article [Easy Floor Games for Kids] and for a super easy play dough recipe read this article [How to Make Flour Modeling Dough]. If you need recipes for glue or paste, simply click on my profile then search for glue in the search box under my published content. Then do a search for paste. You will find a lot of fun glue and paste recipes!