I love making christmas cookies. There was a time in my life when most of the gifts i gave were food. Cookies, fruit breads, fruitcake, candies. All handmade, some old family recipes, and some i just decided might be good.
Got to the point when either the money wasn’t there, or the time wasn’t there, often I would get cookie dough made and it was the day before christmas eve when i baked it. But there were always at least 7 or 8 different kinds of cookies. (I just found out that is part of the Scandinavian tradition to have at least 7 different kinds of cookies). But we got into a rut, and then we had way too many cookies. So we cut back on the number of cookies, and stuck to the few favorites….everyone in the house got to pick one kind, and then a standard or two was included. This year I decided to be adventurous. There will be two standards, but everything else will be new and different. Below are the choices of cookies I may add, and the standards too.
And now it’s time to watch “Frosty the Snowman” one of my favorites of the Christmas animated shows.
Almond Icebox Cookies – Mandelsmåkager
Ingredients:
6 cups flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 lb. soft butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
2 2/3 cups shelled almonds, ground
Directions:
Sift flour and measure. Add cinnamon and baking powder and sift 3 times.
Cream butter. Add sugars, a little at a time, and beat until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and beat thoroughly. Fold in the ground nuts.
Add flour gradually and mix well. Shape the dough in rolls about 1½ inches thick. Refrigerate them for at least 12 hours. Slice very thin.
Bake 10 minutes on greased baking sheets in a preheated 400º oven.
Cinnamon Stars-(zimtsterne)
Ingredients:
2-1/4 cups whole almonds (a little over 1 lb.)
5 egg whites
2 cups Confectioner’s sugar, sifted
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon Kirschwasser
star pattern cookie cutter
Directions:
Scald almonds with boiling water, remove their skins and let cool. Grind finely. Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Gently fold in Confectioner’s sugar and set aside 1 cup of the egg and sugar mixture. Fold in ground almonds, cinnamon and the Kirschwasser, then quickly form a dough. Let the dough rest covered for one hour in the refrigerator.
Cover a work surface with sugar and roll out the chilled dough to 1 cm thick. Cut out stars. Cover each star evenly with the reserved egg and sugar mixture, place on an ungreased cookie sheet and let the uncooked cookies dry overnight at room temperature.
Preheat the oven to 425° F and bake for 5 minutes. Check the cookies often while baking so the top stays white and the insides remain soft.
Notes:
Cinnamon stars can be found throughout Germany during the Christmas season. As the holiday approaches, local bakeries pack these light, spicy cookies into small cellophane bags — just the right size for a quick purchase and immediate snack. You will notice that they have an unusual preparation method that helps them keep their shape, as well as making them light and a little crispy.
Cranberry White Chocolate Shortbread
Ingredients:
2 cups butter, softened
1 cup sugar
4 cups flour
1 package white chocolate chips, 6oz
1 1/2 cups dried cranberries
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Beat butter and sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add flour; mix well.
Stir in chocolate and cranberries. Drop rounded tablespoons of dough, 2 inches apart, onto ungreased baking sheets. Flatten each ball of dough slightly.
Bake 10 to 14 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool 5 minutes on baking sheets. Remove to wire racks; cool completely.
Danish Butter Cookies
Recipe By: Ellen Peterson Stoltz
Ingredients:
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 egg
1 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon salt
Directions:
Cream butter and sugar well, add egg, beat again, add dry ingredients.
Drop by 1/2 teaspoons onto cookie sheet.
Preheat oven to 375. 8-10 minutes on an ungreased cookie sheet. about 2″ apart.
Devil’s Food Cookies
Serving Size: 48
Ingredients:
1 box (18 1/4 ounces) devil’s food cake mix
2 eggs
1/4 cup hot coffee or hot water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup semisweet chocolate pieces
1 cup chopped pecans
3/4 cup bits of chocolate-toffee candy
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Combine cake mix, eggs, coffee, oil and flour in large bowl. Beat on low speed until all ingredients are moistened; then beat on high speed for 2 minutes. Dough will be sticky. Fold in chocolate pieces, pecans and candy until evenly distributed. Using about half of the batter, drop by heaping tablespoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheet, spacing 2 inches apart.
Bake for 12 to 14 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet on a wire rack for 4 to 5 minutes or until firm. With a metal spatula, transfer the cookies to the wire rack to cool. Repeat with the remaining batter. Serve slightly warm or store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
Diet Bars
Ingredients:
1 cup butter/marg
1 cup flour
1.5 cup brown sugar
2 Tablespoon flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
.5 teaspoon salt
2 medium eggs , slightly beaten
1.5 teaspoon vanilla
.5 cup ground nuts
.5 cup shredded coconut
1 bag chocolate chips
Directions:
mix butter, 1c flour together, put into 9×9 pan, bake 15 minutes at 325.
blend rest of ingredients together. Sprinkle chocolate chips over bottom of base, spread coconut batter over chips. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.
Make a struesel topping (flour, butter and sugar) put on top of bars for the last 10 minutes of baking.
Drop Sugar Cookies
Ingredients:
1 cup butter
1 cup oil
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 cups flour
Directions:
Combine fats and sugars, beat until light, add flavorings, colors and dry ingredients.
drop onto ungreased cookie pan
350° 10-12 min
Eggnog Thumbprints
Ingredients:
3/4 cup butter, softened
.5 cup white sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 tablespoon rum
1 pinch ground nutmeg
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
In a medium bowl, cream together 3/4 cup butter, white sugar, and brown sugar until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine flour and salt; stir into the creamed mixture by hand to form a soft dough. Roll dough into 1 inch balls, and place balls 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Make an indention in the center of each cookie using your finger or thumb.
Bake for 12 minutes in preheated oven. Cool completely.
In a small bowl, mix together 1/4 cup butter, confectioners’ sugar, and rum. Spoon rounded teaspoonfuls of filling onto cookies. Sprinkle with nutmeg. Let stand until set before storing in an airtight container.
Notes:
“Thumbprint cookies with a delicious filling, these are perfect for Christmas. Does not use eggnog, but they have an eggnog taste. You can substitute 1/4 teaspoon rum extract and 1 tablespoon milk for the rum.”
Gingersnaps – Chewy
Ingredients:
1 1/3 c. oil (canola)
2 eggs
2 c. sugar
1/2 cup molasses
4 c. all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons ginger
1 teaspoon salt
Directions:
Sift together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and salt, set aside. Mix together oil, eggs, sugar and molasses just until combined. Add flour mixure and stir until all ingredients are incorporated. Roll dough into small balls, about 1 tsp each. Dip 1/2 of each ball into sugar and place sugar side up on cookie sheet. Space several inchs apart.
Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes.
