Graduation Cookie

So, my husband walks in the Graduation Ceremony tomorrow.  He will then defend his Dissertation in Mid-July.  So, he won't really be done till then, but since tomorrow is the day he actually walks and wears all his regalia, it's still a big day.  At least I think so! :)  So I wanted to make him something, but not have to spend too much time on it like a fancy cake.  So I decided to make a cookie pizza and decorate that!

I googled for a recipe and found a great one, so I thought.  I made up the dough and put it in the oven and it exploded over the sides of the pizza pan and burned within about 10 minutes...  :(  I know I probably filled that pizza pan too much, but also it's this crazy oven!  Why don't they put better ones in apartments?!?  Oh well....

So, I felt rather defeated, but I kept my head up high and was still determined to make a cookie pizza.  So, I just decided to use the tried and true Toll House Cookie recipe.  :)  That's what I should have done from the start...but, well, I didn't.  Anyways, I made up a batch of dough.  (I put about 1/2 the amount of Choc. Chips in though, and didn't add nuts because my mother-in-law is allergic.  I also used 1/2 and 1/2 flour as always.)  I started putting it in the pan, and only used just over half of it.  Then I pressed it down evenly until it was in a circle in the middle of the pan.  And it was about 2-3 inches away from the edge.  Then there was plenty of room for it to expand without overflowing.  I only baked it about 15 minutes at 350degrees.  But when you are doing it, be sure to check on it a lot!  (Or else your crazy oven might burn it ...)  :)

So, now I am playing the waiting game with my cookie...so I can frost it.  :)  Still thinking of how exactly to decorate it too....

Ok, I forgot to keep track of just how long it took for it to cool off completely...  It wasn't as long as I thought actually. :)

Here's how I decorated it.  :)  It made a scroll, then wrote his class year in it.  Then I did the shells around the cookie.  Then I decided it needed a little bit more, so I made flowers.  Since I don't know how to do roses yet, I made some that look like one of my hubby's favorite flowers.  Azaleas.

(Random fact, azalea was also the color of our wedding...basically fuchsia.)  :)  I think these turned out pretty well like azaleas.  Although I'm pretty sure they are never yellow! lol  Anyway, I wanted to do CSU's colors, so that's why it is green and gold.  And yes, I tried to make my green as dark as possible and it wouldn't go any darker than this.  I tried paste food coloring and liquid...bizarre!  I still think it turned out pretty well though.  For my first time making a cookie pizza cake thing!  :)

Oh and after I posted this, I decided to go back and write "Congrats" and my hubby's name at the top.  So, you can do whatever you want if you make one too!  :)