Old Fashioned Cinnamon Christmas Ornaments

 One of the best parts of Christmas are all the old-fashioned holiday traditions.  Homemade ornaments are reminiscent of a simpler time when fancy glass ornaments weren't available to the masses and many people used simple ingredients to create their own Christmas ornaments each year.  Stringing popcorn or cranberries, hanging pinecones or nuts, and even these simple cinnamon ornaments are all examples of homemade ornaments.  These cinnamon ornaments can be customized with any shape or size of cookie cutter and the recipe is so easy, making it a great activity for children of all ages.  I used our Kentucky cookie cutter for my ornaments and I love the way they turned out!

All you need is two ingredients: applesauce and lots of cinnamon!  

To make 10-15 ornaments:

3/4 cup of applesauce

2 (2.37 ounce) jars of ground cinnamon

Preheat your oven to 200 degrees.  Mix your applesauce and cinnamon together in a large bowl (I used a stand mixer).   Mix thoroughly until you have a well blended ball of dough.  

Dust a large surface with extra cinnamon (like you would with flour).  Grab a small portion of your dough (about 1/4 of the ball) and using a rolling pin, roll it out on top of the cinnamon.  Add more cinnamon as needed if your dough is sticking at all.

Roll your dough to about 1/3 or 1/4 inch thickness.  

Use a cookie cutter to cut out as many shapes as you can on your rolled out portion of dough. 

Repeat these steps with the remaining dough until you have used it all.

Place your cut outs on a baking sheet.  Use a straw to poke a hole in your ornaments.    

Bake at 200 degrees for 2 1/2 hours and then cool on wire racks.  You can also just skip the baking and air dry your ornaments at room temperature for a couple of days, flipping a few times.

After they have dried or cooled, string a small piece of twine or ribbon through your holes and tie it in a loop (or you can twist a wire ornament hanger around the hole).   If you are making these with children they can also decorate them with paint pens!  When you are all done you can hang them from your tree, use them as present toppers, or give them as gifts!  I don't have much patience for baking so this is a great excuse for me to use my vintage cookie cutters without all the fuss!   I just love that this is such an easy, cheap, and fairly quick craft that your entire family can enjoy together year after year!    

xoxo

Emily