Cinnamon Applesauce Holiday Ornaments

Total Time: 6 hrs 45 mins Preparation Time: 45 mins

Ingredients

• 3 cups applesauce
• 8 -10 ounces ground cinnamon
• 24 -48 pieces ribbon (6 inches long, shiny red or gold works well)

Recipe

• 1 line a strainer with cheesecloth or paper towels and place over a large bowl.
• 2 pour applesauce into strainer and let it drain for about 8 hours.
• 3 there will be at least a cup of liquid to drain off (if you're in a hurry, you may eliminate this step, but you will need about 3 or 4 ounces extra cinnamon to get a firm dough) starting with half of the cinnamon, add to the applesauce and stir until blended.
• 4 gradually add more cinnamon until dough is stiff enough to roll out.
• 5 you may not need the entire amount of cinnamon called for.
• 6 place portion of the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap or wax paper and place another sheet on top of this.
• 7 use a rolling pin, and roll to 1/4-inch; thickness.
• 8 peel off the top sheet of plastic wrap.
• 9 cut into shapes using seasonal cookie cutters.
• 10 carefully slide a spatula under the cut cookie shapes and carefully place each of these on a baking pan coated with pam.
• 11 next, use a toothpick and poke a hole near the top of each shape (for threading with hanging-ribbon later).
• 12 make sure the hole is big enough to accommodate the ribbon as it will shrink quite a bit during the baking.
• 13 run the toothpick around the edges of each ornament, smoothing any uneven edges, if necessary.
• 14 place in 175°f oven for 6 to 8 hours, until firm and dry (your house will smell wonderful during this time!) remove "cookies" carefully and cool completely.
• 15 you may decorate with glue, glitter, paint, etc. (i prefer these without decoration) lace with ribbon, tie off at top & hang on tree.