Chocolate Covered Earth Oreo Cookies

So, to go along with my son's astronomy themed birthday party, I wanted something really special for the cupcake toppers...  These guys were really simple and each covering/decorating session only took 30 minutes (and that was with the baby playing in his highchair!)  With drying time, this will take you overnight to finish the oreos.  If you have ever decorated cookies, then these will be a breeze for you.  If you haven't, then don't worry, these are very forgiving and you will be able to do it, too!

These beauties tasted as good as they look!

Drying after their dunk...

Don't worry about the holes, they still taste awesome!

Done!

Materials:
Package of Oreos (only use unbroken ones, take the broken ones and put them in your mouth quickly - less time for sharing!) I got 25 usable cookies from one package.
Two packages white chocolate morsels (I like the flavor of the white chocolate, but if you have candy melts, then go for it!)
Chocolate food coloring - blue and green (I am sure you could use regular food coloring, but I haven't tried it.  We have a local food craft shop, so I buy it there cheap)
1 to 2 Tbsp. shortening
Sandwich baggie
Silpat or wax paper

Instructions:

1. Only use the beautifully intact cookies, you do not want crumbs in your white chocolate.
2. Melt one package of chips in a four cup mixing cup in microwave according to package directions and your microwave. (I way over cooked them in the past, so make sure and stay by your machine.)
3. I put a couple of tablespoons of shortening in the melted chips to thin them out for dipping and add your blue coloring.
4. Using a fork, plop a cookie in the white/blue chocolate and turn over.  Lift up with the fork and allow the excess chocolate to drip off.
5. Tap your fork on the side of the measuring cup, scraping the excess chocolate off the bottom of the fork and place gently on the silpat.
6. Allow to dry overnight.
7. Use about one cup of the second white chocolate morsels package with some shortening mixed with green coloring.  
8. After heating and getting a nice, not too runny consistency, place it in a sandwich baggie.  Cut off a small, tiny hole from the corner of the baggie.  You can always cut it bigger, go small at first.
9. Then start your outline of the continents.  After outlining, color in with the chocolate.  
10. Work one cookie at a time and keep your hand moving.  If someone asks if that's Australia and it's really Africa, they're cookies, it's ok...  :)

 They looked great and didn't last long.  They are very rich, so perfect for the cupcakes.

Hope these inspire you!

Take Care,
Morgan

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