Clam Cookies With Pearls & Simple Assembly For Mermaid Party

Clam Cookies with pearls AND a simple assembly!? Sign me up!! I hesitated to even call this Semi-homemade because you could use store bought frosting and just put them together!

I decided to use my favorite cream cheese frosting recipe however. Anyone else obsessed with cream cheese!? Cause I really really love it.

Simple Clam Cookie Supplies

You'll need a good source for Madeleine Cookies. I found them at Costco and Trader Joe's. Any French Bakery will carry them and some grocery store bakeries will too.

They have the perfect shape for a good clam or oyster shell and taste way better than the other options. You'll need 2 cookies per clam, I used 2 dozen total.

Trim Madeleines

Each madeleine cookie has a bump on the bottom where it's baked up in the pan. I trimmed them flat so the frosting would lay nicely.

But only trim ONE side, as the bump raises the upper shell a bit more so you can see the “clam” and pearl inside more easily. I trimmed both sides and regretted it.

Mix Pink Frosting

After laying out your base layer of madeleines, color a batch of frosting. I prefer cream cheese frosting, as I may have mentioned a few times before, but my favorite buttercream frosting recipe is here.

Or buy a ready made tub at the store for the ultimate simplicity. {although it definitely does not taste as good!}

Pipe Frosting Onto Clam Cookies

After your frosting is tinted to the perfect clammy shade of pink, spoon it into a piping bag, or my FAVORITE hack ever……a gallon size zippered bag! I adore these bag holders and end up piping everything from a plastic bag.

I didn't get a photo of the pink frosting but I used the same set up with honey vanilla greek yogurt for our Mermaid Parfaits! {and these Shark Pudding Cups}

Add Pearls And “Hinge”

After your frosting is all piped in the center you'll want to add a little dot of frosting at the end to keep the hinge ends of the shells stuck together and prevent the clam shells from falling apart.

Then gently place a “pearl” on each clam bed. Use Sixlets candy or other round candy coated chocolate decorating pieces.

Place Top Clam Shell

Now you're ready to add the top cookie for the final presentation. Leaving the bump on the top cookie would add a little more lift, but you might need to compensate with a little extra frosting.

All in all I'm really happy with how they turned out. Sometimes I get a chance to do a trial run, but not on these. So take heart. If I can make these little clam cookies the first try, so can you!

Display Clam Cookies

Now that they're done, how will you display them?

I chose to display the dozen clam cookies on a cake plate with the sweetest ceramic mermaid tail in the center. {That I happened to find at Dollar Tree. Score!!} Add a few fun food labels and your Mermaid Party Food Table is all set! Whether you call them clams, oysters, or shell cookies, if you try them, I want to see!

If you try it out, let me know in the comments below. And if you share, I want to see! Please tag @partieswithacause on Pinterest, Instagram, and Facebook. We love showing off all your hard work and are so happy to be part of your celebration.

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Additional Mermaid Reading

Keep checking back for more fun mermaid party ideas. There's lots more to share!

• Mermaid Birthday Party Favors Simple DIY
• Mermaid Table Decoration Ideas {coming soon}
• Under The Sea Mermaid Yogurt Parfaits {coming soon}
• Veggie Coral Reef Healthy Mermaid Snacks {coming soon}