🎄TIS THE SEASON

Every holiday season I loved opening up the kitchen to my boy’s friends, neighbors, children to create fun Holiday cookies. Regardless of flour, sprinkles, and sugar flying everywhere, we created some amazing cookies. I have been looking thru the archives of photos and have been unsuccessful in finding photos of our years rolling the dough out on the kitchen counter filled with happiness and cookie chefs! I woke up at 5:00 this morning wanting to make cookies; even though I eat very little sweets; I was hungry for the feeling of being in the kitchen and continuing the tradition. So, today there will be many near and far I will share the Holiday love wrapped up in a jar. Here are the three recipes from today. I have also attached a few links to some awesome recipes for cookies from around the world. One important tip when baking is to read the recipes fully as some of them require refrigerating dough before baking. Also, I find it very beneficial to measure out all ingredients before starting the recipe. Baking does require a little more attention than any other dish. Also, frozen cookie dough is the best last-minute treat to have!
WISHING YOU A BEAUTIFUL, SAFE AND HEALTHY HOLIDAY FILLED WITH LOVE AND LAUGHTER❤

Great-Grandmas Swedish Spritz Recipe

Kourampiedes (Greek Christmas Cookies)

Alfajores de Maizena (Sandwich Cookies Filled with Dulce de Leche)

Lemongrass Chai with Ginger and Mint

Gluten-free & Vegan Baking

Sugar Cookies

Chewy Gingerbread Cookies

OATMEAL COOKIES

Yield – approx 3 dozen

For years I have been making this recipe and have had requests to make the cookies with raisins or chocolate chips. So, I split this recipe in half to accommodate everyone’s palate.

Time – 45 minutes (depending on oven capacity)
PREHEAT OVEN 350 degrees
1 cup unsalted butter, softened (2 sticks)
1 cup dark brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 Tspn salt
1 Tspn baking soda
1 Tspn ground cinnamon
1/4 Tspn ground nutmeg
1/4 Tspn ground cardamom
3 cups of rolled oats ( not instant)
1 1/2 cups currants ***(or 3/4 cups of chocolate chips & 3/4 cups of currants)
*** if you want to make 2 versions, split the dough in half after adding in the oats. Add in the Currants in one half and chocolate chips in the other.
Line 2-3 cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone liner. I made 1 1/2 inch cookies so I needed to use 4 cookie sheets.
Place softened butter in a large bowl and beat until creamy.
Add both sugars and beat till fluffy, about 3 minutes.
Beat in eggs, one at a time, until fully incorporated. Then, beat in the vanilla extract.
In a separate bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, cinnamon, and cardamom.
Slowly pour flour mixture into butter mixture, mixing at a low speed.
Stir in oats.
At this point split the mixture in half if making chocolate chip cookies and currant cookies.
Scoop out tablespoon size of dough and roll into a ball. Place on cookies sheet 2 inches apart.
Bake approx. 12-14 minutes or until edges turn golden brown.
Cool on a wire rack and store in a glass airtight jar for up to 2 weeks.

CHEWY GINGERBREAD COOKIES

Yield – approx 24-30 cookies

I am truly a big fan of ginger cookies and love all types from crispy to chewy. This recipe is packed with both chewy textures, crisp edge, and warm spices.
Recipe inspired by the NYT Cooking…Sohla El-Waylla
I made a few personal tweaks…
Time – prep – 35 minutes plus chilling dough overnight
14 tbsp butter room temperature
3 tbsp grated fresh ginger
1 tbsp ground ginger
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
2 cups confectioners sugar
3 tbsp un-sulfured molasses
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 large egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
For the finishing touch:
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp ground ginger

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter until foaming, about 3 minutes.
Continue cooking butter, stirring, and scraping frequently with a stiff silicone spatula, until the bubbling has subsided and butter looks deeply brown. Remove from heat, whisk in the fresh ginger and ground spices.
Scrape the butter and any brown bits at the bottom into a bowl.
Set aside and let cool approx. 2 hours.
Add confectioners sugar, mollasses, vanilla, salt and baking soda to the cooled butter.
Mix on low until creamy and well combined.
Add egg and mix on medium until pale and fluffy, stopping to scrape the bowl, about 2 minutes.
Add flour and mix until evenly combined.
Divide dough into three bathes and roll in plastic to create logs that you can slice after refrigerating overnight.
Removed chilled logs and slice approx. 1/2’’ or slightly thinner. Toss discs in a bowl filled with sugar and ground ginger.
Place on parchment lined cookie sheet 1’’ apart.
Bake approx. 10 minutes. Be careful not to overtake. They are done when slightly brown and still a little soft in texture.
Let cool and store for up to 2 weeks.
Note: I froze one of the logs for the future!

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE COOKIES

These double chocolate cookies are so fudgy I decided to make little snowballs
approx. 1’’ so they are stackable and you are not indulging in a huge cookie at one time. But, if you want that huge cookie satisfaction…by all means have three at one time 😆 For fun, I created this recipe the authentic way by measuring ingredients on a scale. So fun!!!
Note: you must refrigerator dough overnight

10 tablespoons/141 grams unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup/150 grams dark brown sugar
2/3 cup/133 grams granulated sugar
1 large egg
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup/145 grams all-purpose flour
3/4 cup/75 grams Dutch-process cocoa powder
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups/305 grams semisweet or bittersweet chocolate disc or chips
1 cup of confectioners sugar (for coating finished cookies)

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, salt, baking powder, and baking soda.
Set aside In stand up mixer with the paddle attachment, beat together butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until very light, about 5 minutes.
Add egg and vanilla and beat until well combined.
With the mixer on low, add the dry ingredients and beat just until combined.
Add the chocolate discs/chips and briefly mix. Press plastic wrap against the dough and chill for at least 24 hours. If you are using the large mixing bowl, you can put the dough in a smaller bowl, cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a few baking sheets with parchment paper.
Using a tablespoon, scoop out dough to form cute round balls approx 3/4’’ (2 1/2 ounces) and place on cookie sheets spacing 1’’ apart.
Bake the cookies until the edges start to crisp being careful not to overbake.
I found about 12-14 minutes of bake time was perfect. You want the center to be really soft.
Remove from oven and cool on a rack. Once cooled, toss 6-8 cookies carefully in a bag with the confectioners sugar.
Let the cookies be completely cooled before storing in a jar.
They are totally awesome served warm too!
Store approximately 2 weeks. (That is if they last that long)

Bon appétit 🎄