Thar she blows! You’ll have a whale of a time making these easy, adorable, 3-dimensional cookies. I simply baked some of my favorite pressed sugar cookies, cut them apart, and re-assembled the pieces to form whales. Just a little bit of blue candy melt holds them together.

Plate up a beautiful bunch of them for a kid’s birthday party or baby shower. Or how about using them as cupcake toppers, playfully placed on a sea of frosting!

Did you know that a group of whales is called a “pod?” I only know this because my daughter’s class is studying the ocean at school this month. (Thank you Scholastic News Weekly Reader.) I think these whale cookies would make for a really fun food craft in the classroom, don’t you?

For the Cookies:

(Makes approx. 16 servings)

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 4-1/2 cups flour
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 1-2 drops blue gel food coloring

For the Assembly: 

• 1 cup blue candy melt wafers
• 1/2 cup white candy melt wafers
• Black decorator candy balls
• Two small squeeze bottles
• Serrated knife
• Small heart cookie cutter

Step 1
Cream the sugars with butter, then beat in the eggs and oil.

In a separate bowl, combine all dry ingredients. Gradually add to wet mixture. Mix in vanilla, almond extract and blue food coloring. Place in a bowl, cover, and refrigerate 4-6 hours or overnight.

Step 2
Roll 16 small, teardrop-shaped balls of dough (approx. 2-1/2 inches long). Place them on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.

Step 3
Press the dough flat, using the bottom of a glass dipped in granulated sugar.

Step 4
Bake each sheet of cookies for 12 minutes at 350 degrees. While the cookies are still warm, cut them in half to form the two sides of the whale.

Step 5
Roll 24 small, round balls of dough (approx. 1 inch.) Place them on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Press the dough balls flat, using the bottom of a glass dipped in granulated sugar.

Step 6
Bake each sheet of cookies for 12 minutes at 350 degrees. While the cookies are still warm, cut 8 of them into quarters. These will become the whale’s fins.

Step 7
Using a small heart-shaped cookie cutter, cut hearts from the remaining cookies. These will be the whale’s tail. Set cookies aside and let them cool.

Step 8
To make the whale water spouts, melt 1/2 cup white candy melt wafers in the microwave for 30-second intervals, stirring each time until smooth. Pour the candy melt into a small squeeze bottle. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and pipe small water spouts with the candy melt. Allow to cool and harden.

Step 9
Add white eyes to both sides of each whale cookie with the white candy melt. Insert a black decorator candy ball for the center of the eyes. Allow to cool and harden.

Step 10
Assemble the whales using the assorted cookie pieces and blue candy melts. Melt 1 cup of blue candy melt wafers in the microwave for 30-second intervals, stirring each time until smooth. Pour the candy melt into a small squeeze bottle. Sandwich together the whale body, making sure to insert a water spout. Attach the fins and the tail.

To make the tails stand up, place a spoon under the heart cookie as you attach it to the whale body. Allow everything to cool and harden in place before you move or plate the cookies.

Whale cookies will keep at room temperature for 3 days or refrigerated for up to a week.

Water you waiting for? Dive in!