FOOD

MACARON

A macaron is a sweet treat popularized in France that now appears all over the world. What's your favorite flavor of macaron? Let's learn how to make it using polymer clay!

TOOLS & MATERIALS

* Polymer clay in light green and white translucent

* Rolling tool

* Circle cutter

* Pointed detail tool or sewing pin

STEP 1

Separate the green clay into two balls, making one of the balls about one-quarter the size of the other. Form the translucent clay into a ball the same size as the smaller green one.

Then mix the small balls of translucent and green clay together.

STEP 2

Use a rolling tool to flatten the clay mixture to about 1/8" (3 mm) thick. With a round cutter, cut out two small circles.

STEP 3

Using a pointed detail tool or sewing pin, lightly swirl the sides of the circles to add texture.

STEP 4

Continue swirling all around the edges of the two circles.

Then use a roller to flatten out the light green clay to about half the thickness of the other circles. Place the light green clay in the center of the macaron halves, with the textured sides facing the center.

STEP 5

Bake in the oven according to the instructions on the package of clay to finish making your delicious French macaron!

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE

I love chocolate chip cookies, and these make a fun, easy project for beginners!

TOOLS & MATERIALS

* Polymer clay in ecru or tan, translucent, and dark brown

* Rolling tool or pasta machine

* Sharp edge or blade cutter

* Tan and red-brown chalk pastels

* Toothbrush

STEP 1

Start with a 1:1 ratio of ecru and translucent clay. Mix until thoroughly combined and set aside.

STEP 2

Roll out a thin sheet of dark brown clay, and then bake it in the oven for about 5 minutes to harden. Let the clay cool.

STEP 3

Use a sharp tool to chop the sheet into chunks.

STEP 4

Flatten the ecru-translucent mixture from step 1, creating a disc. Place the chunks from step 3 onto the disc, and mix to distribute evenly.

STEP 5

Use your fingers to press up the edges of the cookie and create a round shape.

STEP 6

With a clean toothbrush, add more texture to the cookie.

STEP 7

Shave some tan and red-brown chalk pastels using a sharp blade. Then brush the tan chalk pastels all over the cookie.

STEP 8

Brush red-brown chalk pastels onto the raised parts of the cookie.

STEP 9

Follow the baking instructions on the package of clay, and now you've made a delicious little chocolate chip cookie!

FRUIT CANES

In addition to making three-dimensional pieces like the ones you've already seen in this book, you can try combining two or more colors of clay into a single rod. Cutting the rod into slices creates a two-dimensional pattern that's ideal for making flowers, jewelry, and buttons. This rod is called a "cane," and here, we'll use this technique to create slices of fruit, starting with an orange and then moving on to a strawberry. The slices can be used to garnish the fruit tart shown here.

ORANGE SLICES

TOOLS & MATERIALS

* Polymer clay in translucent, orange, and white

* Blade tool

* Rolling tool

* Toothpick or small, round detail tool

STEP 1

Start with equal parts of translucent and orange clay, and mix the two together. Then shape your clay into a thick wheel.

STEP 2

With the blade tool, slice the wheel into 8 equal parts, and set them aside.

STEP 3

Use a roller to roll out a thin sheet of white clay.

STEP 4

Cut a strip of white clay the same width as your orange slices, and lay three of the orange slices on top as shown. Trim off any excess clay.

Cut another strip half the length of the first, and place it between two orange slices.

STEP 5

Continue adding slices of white clay all the way around your orange wheel. Then cut a strip of white clay to cover the sides of your orange wheel.

STEP 6

Wrap the white clay around the orange wheel and cut off any excess. Repeat, using orange clay this time.

STEP 7

Using your fingers, pinch, roll, and pull the orange wheel to create a log.

STEP 8

Use your blade tool to cut a few slices from the log.

STEP 9

Leave the orange slices as they are, or use a toothpick or round detail tool to poke the orange flesh and add texture. Then bake according to the directions on the package of clay.

STRAWBERRY SLICES

TOOLS & MATERIALS

* Polymer clay in white, translucent, and red

* Rolling tool

* Blade tool

* Optional: toothpick

STEP 1

Mix together 8 balls of clay, gradated from red to translucent white, as shown.

STEP 2

Using the third-lightest pink color, form a teardrop shape. Pinch its sides to make it thicker and more blocklike.

STEP 3

With the next-lightest shade, form a thick strip, and wrap it around the teardrop shape. Pinch or roll the clay on a flat surface to bind the colors.

STEP 4

Repeat step 3 with the lightest color you mixed.

STEP 5

Pinch and pull the clay to form a thick log. This will be the center of the strawberry. Set it aside for now.

STEP 6

Reserving the red clay, shape the four remaining pink colors into thick rectangles. To mix the colors, we'll use the Skinner Blend technique, which is described here.

Stack the rectangles, and press to flatten them.

STEP 7

Use a rolling tool to create a long strip of these 4 colors. Fold the strip over, placing the two alike colors together, and roll and flatten again.

STEP 8

Fold and roll your clay mixture about 15 to 20 times to create a smooth gradient. Shape the finished gradient into a long rectangle.

STEP 9

Use your blade tool to cut the rectangle into 12 equal pieces. Then roll out a thin strip of white clay.

STEP 10

Cut a piece of white clay to fit between two of the slices, with the end hanging out. Fold the white clay to one side. Repeat with all of the slices.

STEP 11

Cut a strip of white clay the length of the entire rectangular shape, and place it along the side of the rectangle. Wrap the outer layer around the center layer of the strawberry.

STEP 12

Squeeze and pull the rectangle to combine the layers.

STEP 13

With the red clay that you reserved, roll out a thin layer, and wrap it around the strawberry cane. Pinch and pull, maintaining a rounded triangle, until you've created a long cane.

STEP 14

Cut into the center of your cane to find the most even-looking area. It's normal for the ends of the cane to look a bit squished or warped; you can fix their shape if...