Welcome...

I think my friend Kristan summed it up best; cookies should be mandatory for new neighbors. 

I realize we probably have too many laws on the books, so legislation might be out of the question.  It should be an unwritten law, like returning your empty shopping cart to the cart carousel.
(Actually, I'm all for legislating that one.)

When we moved to Alabama, I still remember my husband walking in the door with a plate of fresh chocolate chip cookies from our neighbor.  I knew we would be fast friends.

So, imagine my HORROR when we returned from being gone from home 8 days to find that someone had moved into the vacant house next to us!!!  There was no moving truck, no boxes...they were in and SETTLED!  What must they have thought?!?  No cookies!

I contemplated slipping a note under their door that went something like this, 

"Hi, I'm Bridget...from next door.  I promise we're nice people...and you WILL get cookies.  It's just that we've been gone for 8 days and we have no clean underwear. Or groceries.  So, I must do laundry and go to the grocery store.  And do you know that royal icing has to dry overnight?  I promise, I'm not ignoring you.  I'll be over with cookies soon."

Mr. E thought that was a little overkill.

So, I just made the cookies. 

To make the Welcome house cookies, you'll need:

• house-shaped sugar cookies
• royal icing, tinted with AmeriColor Super Red, Turquoise and Bright White
• disposable icing bags
• couplers and tips (#3 & #1)
• squeeze bottles
• toothpicks

With a #3 tip, outline the house shape in red.

Thin the turquoise and white icings to the consistency of a thick syrup.  Add the water a bit at a time, stirring gently with a silicone spatula.  Cover with a damp dish towel and let sit for several minutes.

Stir gently again to pop any air bubbles that have formed.   Transfer to squeeze bottles.

Working 6 at a time, flood the cookies with turquoise icing.  Use a toothpick to guide to corners and fill in the cookies.

Go back to the first filled cookie and add dots on top of the wet icing.

Let dry at least one hour.

Change the tip on the red icing to a #1.  Pipe "welcome" across the cookie.

{I've become a bit obsessed with writing in cursive on baked goods ever since making Hostess Cupcakes.}

Let dry uncovered for 6-8 hours or overnight.

Maybe you'll want to make some Welcome cookies, too.  
Remember it's mandatory.