How to Make Decorated Uncle Sam Hat Sugar Cookies

How to decorate patriotic Uncle Sam Hat sugar cookies for Independence Day.

Sometimes I over complicate things. And by "sometimes" -- I mean "very nearly every stinking second of my life." Like taking my kids to the pool.

A normal person would make sure everyone is wearing a swim suit and sunscreen and...that would be it.

But I have to make sure that everyone has a perfectly fitting , age appropriate swimsuit. And 2 kinds of sunscreen because the spray kind makes their eyes all red when they get splashed too much by the crazy 4 year old we've got around here. And they need towels that are long enough for them to lay on , but not so wide that they touch the ground when they put them around their shoulders. Because I do NOT want to be bringing dirty puddled pool water back to my house. And they need shoes that can get wet , but also shoes that they can walk in since I make them walk the 3 blocks to the pool. (The horror!) And snacks. But not amazing snacks because I want them to swim , not eat. But not gross snacks , because then they will just sit in the sun going bad while everyone looks at them with hunger in their bellies and resentment in their eyes. And I do NOT appreciate resentment eyes. Especially at the pool. So the snacks have to be just the right balance of filling and desirable but not mesmerizing. And everyone needs their own color-coded water bottle so there is no fighting when the baby drinks out of every one else's water bottle except her own. Oh! And pool toys. And shampoo to wash their hair. And sunglasses. And at this point we're taking the wagon AND the wagon trailer. And I'm exhausted before we even begin.

Don't even get me started on going to the grocery store. Or picking out a new shirt. Or planning a date night. Or CHOOSING ICING COLORS.

I had to practically sit on my hands to leave these Uncle Sam hat cookies alone. Well , to be honest , what I really did was watch Netflix until my brain said that I never wanted to do anything else ever again. It's not an elegant solution...but it worked. And *then* my brain went into over time saying that I couldn't possibly post such easy cookies on my blog. But I'm doing it anyway while I'm super tired from making all those pool planning decisions.

1. Outline and fill the brim area of the hat with dark blue icing. Immediately drop some white star sprinkles on to the wet icing. Let it dry for an hour.
2. Use medium consistency red icing to outline and then fill in the vertical stripes. Keep the tip close to the cookie for the puffy looking icing. Outline and fill the brim of the hat with the same icing. Let it dry for at least 4 hours.
3. Fill in the empty spaces with medium consistency white icing. Use a scriber or toothpick to clean up the top edge if needed.