Leaf Cookies

What you need:

• leaf shapes (cut from construction paper, copied from a book, or traced from real leaves you pick up on a nature walk) 
• refrigerated cookie dough 
• plastic knives or tongue depressors 
• rolling pins 
• cookie sheets 
• 3 egg yolks (separated from whites) 
• food coloring 
• 3/4 cup water 
• new paintbrushes

What to do:

1. Roll out the refrigerated dough. 
2. Use the leaf shapes as patterns to cut leaves out of dough. Supervise children carefully if they are using plastic knives. (Tongue depressors can be used instead.) 
3. Mix egg yolks and food coloring and pour the mixture into small paper cups, bowls, or mini-muffin tins. Add a few drops of food coloring in leafy hues (green, yellow, orange, red, brown) to each. 
4. Use the paintbrushes to paint the leaf-shaped cookies. 
5. Bake cookies according to package directions and eat!