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Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments

cinnamon applesauce ornaments

Being a kindergarten teacher has its perks. One of them is making cinnamon applesauce ornaments every December. Many students in our school have limited experiences with holiday traditions such as baking or cooking. I like to spend an afternoon with my students making “gingerbread” men that they can put on their tree for years to come.

Making Cinnamon Applesauce ornaments is at the top of the traditions list. These are easy and fun for kids of all ages. I started making them 10 years ago and I still put my very first one on my kitchen tree each year. It still smells so good year after year.

cinnamon applesauce ornament

With just 3 ingredients, 1 of them being optional, all these require is some bake time before sending them home in backpacks. If you’re making these at home, they should dry over a couple of days or do the slow and low bake off.

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I also suggest investing in a good set of gingerbread cookie cutters. Using these year after year, they are still perfect. They do not warp or leave gaps at the bottom. I got these from Williams’ Sonoma many moons ago after getting frustrated with warping cheap cutters.

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For prep, have a big bowl and sturdy spoon, a few cookie sheets, parchment paper, and a measuring cup. If you’re doing this with a class, have a sharpie handy to write initials on the parchment.

cinnamon applesauce ornaments prep

 

You’ll need a little more cinnamon than the recipe to use as “flour”. I also highly suggest whoever is working with the dough should wear latex gloves. Cinnamon is a hot spice. After several minutes of direct contact on your hands, your skin might experience burning and irritation and it can last a few hours. Trust me on this one.

If you’re making a lot of these at home with kids and plan to make a lot of them, put gloves on the kids. Anybody with extended contact with a cinnamon-based dough should be protected from burning.

For the school kids, they only touch the dough long enough to pat out a ball and make a cut. I make sure to send them quickly to wash their hands.

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This recipe makes a class set of 20-22 medium-sized ornaments.

Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments

Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments

Yield: 20
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 10 minutes

Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments are a great way to create lasting holiday traditions with kids.

Ingredients

  • 4 cups ground cinnamon
  • 2 cups unsweetened applesauce
  • Elmer's school glue

Instructions

  1. Line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper.
  2. In a large bowl, add cinnamon, applesauce, and 3 turns of glue.
  3. With gloved hands, work the dough until completely mixed. Dough should feel a little crumbly and dry.
  4. Roll into small balls and let kids pat them until 1/2 inch thickness. Using cookie cutter, cut out gingerbread ornament.
  5. Using a straw, cut out a hole for a ribbon hanger.
  6. Let dry over a couple of days, turning once. Or, bake on 250* for a couple of hours. Decorate and hang on tree.

Notes

The liquid school glue is just an extra layer of protection to keep them from breaking in transition from school to home. Use about 3 wide turns around the bowl and adjust more if needed to desired consistency.

This is so messy and so fun! Happy Christmas ornament-making!

Michelle Stacey

Sunday 28th of November 2021

Tried this today with my kids. Major bomb did not make dough just powder.

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