El Nombre

Both my mom and Abuela have crazy stories about how they were named.  I had always heard everyone call my Abuela Eva, even my Abuelo.  It wasn’t until she was trying to get her residency that she found out that Eva wasn’t her real name.  A prerequisite to obtain her residency was to provide a birth certificate however, she did not have one.   So she went to La Presidencia of her town to request it.  After a lengthy search for this crucial document, they were unable find her birth certificate.  She went home frustrated and told everyone what had happened when suddenly her father disclosed that he never registered her as Eva. Her father stated that despite her mother wanting to name her Eva, he defiantly registered her as Maria.   According to the story, my Abuela’s father wanted a daughter named EVA.  AY DIO MIO!  She went back to La Presidencia, and processed a new request with the name MARIA and successfully obtained her birth certificate.  To this day, everyone close to her knows her as Eva.  Joking she claims that she was never married to my Abuelo because the marriage certificate says Eva–and her real name is Maria. LOL

Ironically, when my mother was born, everyone went crazy with joy.  She was the first baby in a long time.  So everyone wanted to contribute to the selection of her name–and like most Mexican families, everyone did. LOL Her uncles, aunts, padrinos, dad and mom all wanted a piece of her name so they named her Maria Estela del Rosario.  Maybe to some that might seem crazy but it was considered a privilege to carry names of those who have passed on.

Some of you may or may not know, but I have a niece on the way; the baby happens to be  my brother’s first born.  I’m so excited.  In fact, my brother and his wife, had a gender reveal party and on that day, revealed the name that they had chosen.  The beautiful baby girl who is expected later this month, will carry my sister’s name.  This is significant to me and my family, because my sister passed approximately 4 years ago.

Names can be a very important part of who you are.  Names can be a place value that represents a significance to life, history, and the future.

Today, I made a few cookies in preparation for the arrival of my brother’s baby.  We will distribute them as we celebrate our new family member and the blessing, that is life–so that maybe one day, she will share the story behind her name.

I can’t wait to meet Baby Ellie.

***I will leave the recipe below along with links to a couple of items that helped me create these beautifully personalized cookies.

Sugar Cookies Recipe

Ingredients

• 8 oz of butter (Room temp.)
• 7 oz of sugar
• 1 egg
• Pinch of salt
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 1 pound of All Purpose Flour (Sift with baking powder.)
• 1 teaspoon of of baking powder

Directions

• Combine sugar and butter.  Beat for 4 minutes.
• Add egg, salt and vanilla to butter and sugar mix.  Beat for 1 minute.
• Add flour to the wet ingredients a little at a time while mixing on slow setting.
• When you see flour has blended in, stop mixer and add the next batch of flour.
• Don’t mix too much.
• Take dough out of bow and knead.  DON’T OVER KNEAD.
• Wrap in clear wrap and let rest in fridge for 4 hours or over night.

Rolling Out Dough

• Take a portion out and put the rest back in fridge.
• Roll out 1/4″ thick, cut and transfer onto baking sheet.
• Place baking sheet in fridge for 15-30 minutes before taking.  This cooling is important when you want the cookies to keep its shape and nice edges.
• Bake at 370F 8-9 minutes.

I was going to make my own marshmallow fondant but got lazy.  Thanks to Wilton Cakes for the ready made fondant, it was easy to just roll it out and cut the pieces I needed for my stamps.  Just make sure to slightly wet the cookie’s edges before placing the fondant over the cookies so it sticks.  Here is a little video I watched to get a better idea on how to work the fondant.  I’m not a baker and these cookies were super easy to make but I’m not going to lie…It was work. LOL

I used food coloring gels to color the fondant.

Cookie Dough board from Three Sweet Chicks
Great board for your cookies and fondant to have same thickness.
https://threesweetchicks.com

Cookie stamps and cutters from Bread Stamps
Coupon code for 20% off MASMASA
https://artisanbreadandmore.com/shop/

***Cookie recipe by Artisan Bread and More.