I love the holiday baking season! It gives me the excuse to be in the kitchen baking and testing recipes until my heart’s content, and then I can surprise people with holiday treats and not have a plethora of baked goods at home hanging out on the counter tempting me to eat dessert before dinner. (Although, I’m sure I have plenty of people in my life who absolutely are willing to take baked goods off my hands, holiday season or not.)
Last year I had great fun making Christmas cookie boxes and then playing Santa dropping them off to friends and family. I like to put together a variety of flavors, shapes, and textures. And you know I like to be prepared, so I keep the freezer stocked with all the cookie dough and then just bake off what I need when I’m ready to deliver treat boxes.
If you search for images of Christmas cookie boxes, you’ll get some great ideas for how to display your cookies beautifully. I usually use paper muffin cups to help separate my cookies and then fill in empty spaces with a few pieces of small Christmas candies.
I have three new cookie recipes for you below, all staples of the Christmas Cookie Box at my house, but don’t forget our family favorite Chocolate Chip Cookie from a few weeks ago.
The Chocolate Chip “Brookies” (brownie cookies) are shiny and crackly on top, but so soft in the middle, and rich with chocolate flavors (including more chocolate stirred into the batter). Sure to please the chocolate lover in your family!
The Cinnamon Pecan Crecent Cookies are my dad’s absolute favorite. We won’t get into how many he can eat in one sitting. (Right, Dad?) They really are a kind of rugelach recipe, but we always called them “crescent cookies” so that’s what I’m sticking with. The dough (which is surprisingly easy to work with) is light and flaky, and the cinnamon-sugar-pecan filling adds just the right amount of sweetness.
And the Molasses Cookies are my father-in-law’s favorite. He likes to keep a container of them by his recliner and take them as his nightly “medicine”. They are chewy and buttery and full of warm spices perfect for this season.
I hope you’ll make one or two of these recipes either for your own family (also perfect for cookies for Santa!) or to give to others and spread holiday cheer!
MONDAY - Roast Chicken and Potatoes, Green Beans
I love to spatchcock a whole chicken (it cooks faster and more evenly!) and roast it with little potatoes all around. It makes me feel like we did a fancy dinner on a weeknight.
TUESDAY - Chicken, Broccoli, and Rice Casserole
Last one out of the freezer, I’ll have to make more! But not prepping dinner tonight gives me time to work on some other things on my list.
WEDNESDAY - Beef and Shells
My version of a homemade hamburger helper, and maybe the Kiddo’s favorite thing ever. I have an evening meeting, so I’ll make it ahead.
THURSDAY - Patty Melts and French Fries
For when we feel a craving for fast food without actually getting fast food.
FRIDAY - Friday night pick up!
SATURDAY - Dinner at Yaya’s! (the in-laws)
Her wonderful sister came to help while she recovers from knee surgery, so with family in town, who knows what we’ll have. But I can throw together a casserole pretty easily if needed!
SUNDAY - Dinner at my Dad’s!
He found a recipe for Autumn Pork Chops and Gravy in an old cookbook. Egg noodles and broccoli on the side.
LUNCHES for this week - Quinoa and Hummus Bowls
I’m still feeling like I need healthy lunches to balance all the heavy winter foods and holiday treats, and I love a “bowl situation”! I’ll top these with crunchy fresh veggies and pepitas.
EXTRAS for this week
I need to make more oatmeal for the freezer for these cold mornings! I prefer the texture of steel cut oats, so I’ll make a big batch and then freeze individual portions in muffin pans. A quick zap in the microwave and I have a hot breakfast every morning.
Chocolate Chip “Brookies” - (Brownie Cookies)
Makes about 24 cookies.
· 8 ounces Semi-Sweet Chocolate (chips or chopped bar)
· 2 ounces Unsweet Chocolate (chips or chopped bar)
· 3 tablespoons Butter
· 2 large Eggs, room temperature
· 2/3 cup Brown Sugar
· 1 teaspoon Vanilla
· ¼ cup Flour
· ¼ teaspoon Baking Powder
· ¼ teaspoon kosher Salt (Morton or other store-brand)
· ½ cup Chocolate Chips (dealer’s choice – dark chocolate, semi sweet, minis, etc)
In small bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In microwave safe bowl or measuring cup, heat both chopped chocolates and butter in 30 second intervals, stirring after each, until chocolate is just melted (60-90 seconds). Be sure not to over heat.
In large bowl, beat eggs, brown sugar, and vanilla with a hand held mixer (or use a stand mixer) on medium speed until well combined and thicker and lighter in color. About 3-5 minutes.
Beat melted chocolate into eggs and sugar until well combined. With a spatula, stir in flour mixture until almost no flour remains. Add chocolate chips and continue stirring gently until all combined.
Chill dough for 30 minutes. This is a good time to preheat your oven to 350 and arrange a rack in the top third.
Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Use a small scoop (#40 if yours has a size number) to scoop the cookie dough and place 1-2” apart on baking sheet.
Bake one pan at a time for 8-10 minutes. You will see cracks starting to form in the tops.
Cool completely before removing from pans.
Store in an airtight container at room temperature.
NOTES: For Christmas cookies, I like to roll the tops of the dough balls in red and green sprinkles. You could also roll the tops in crushed peppermint sticks or chopped nuts.
You can freeze the cookie dough. To bake from frozen, follow the instructions as above, adding an extra minute of baking time if needed.
Cinnamon Pecan Crescent Cookies
Makes 60 cookies.
Dough
· 1 cup Butter (2 sticks), chilled and cubed
· 2 cups Flour
· ¾ cup Sour Cream
· 1 Egg Yolk
· 1/8 teaspoon kosher Salt (Morton or other store brand)
Filling
· ¾ cup White Sugar
· ¾ cup finely chopped Pecans
· 1 teaspoon ground Cinnamon
Place flour and cubed butter into the bowl of a food processor and pulse several times until it is combined and resembles coarse meal with a couple of larger “pea size” pieces. (You could also do this part by hand and cut the butter into the flour with a pastry blender.) Transfer the mixture to a large bowl.
In a separate smaller bowl, stir together sour cream, egg yolk, and salt. Stir into flour and butter mixture until a dough forms. You may have to knead the dough with your hand a few times to make it come together. It will be shaggy, that’s okay!
Dump the dough out onto a large piece of plastic wrap and form into a fat log shape. Cover tightly and chill for at least 2 hours. (You can make the dough a day ahead.)
Combine sugar, cinnamon, and pecans for filling. Set aside.
When ready to bake cookies, preheat oven to 350⁰ and arrange a rack in the upper third. Line a couple of baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove the dough from the refrigerator, and with a sharp knife, cut the log into 5 equal sections. Work with only one dough section at a time; leave the other pieces in the refrigerator.
On a well-floured surface, roll each piece into a circle 8-9 inches across. Sprinkle with one-fifth of the filling mixture (about ¼ cup). Cut into 12 wedges (using your knife or a pizza wheel) and roll each wedge into a crescent shape. Place on baking sheet with the pointed end tucked under and curve slightly.
Bake for 18-20 minutes until golden brown. Some of the sugar mixture may come out and caramelize on your pan. Cool slightly before removing from pan. You can leave the lacy sugar edges on the cookies or gently knock them off.
Store in an airtight container at room temperature.
NOTES: You can freeze the cookie dough. To bake from frozen, follow the instructions as above, adding an extra minute of baking time if needed.
Molasses Cookies
Makes about 30-36 cookies.
· ¾ cup Butter, melted
· ½ cup White Sugar
· ½ cup Brown Sugar
· ¼ cup Molasses
· 1 large Egg
· 2 cups all-purpose Flour
· 2 teaspoons Baking Soda
· 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
· 1 teaspoon ground Ginger
· ½ teaspoon ground Cloves
· ½ teaspoon kosher Salt (Morton or other store brand)
· ½ - 1 cup extra White Sugar for coating cookie dough
In large bowl, combine melted butter, white and brown sugar, and molasses with a whisk until well combined. Whisk in egg. Mix well.
With a sturdy spoon or spatula, stir in flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and salt until a cohesive dough forms.
Chill dough in bowl for 30 minutes.
Place extra 1/2 cup of sugar in a shallow bowl. With a small/medium cookie scoop (#40 if yours has a number) scoop dough into balls, drop into sugar, and gently roll around to coat. Add more sugar to bowl if needed.
Place dough balls on a parchment lined baking sheet (they can be close together) and freeze for at least one hour. Bake or store in freezer bag for later.
To bake – preheat oven to 375, arrange oven rack to upper third of oven.
Place frozen cookie dough 2” apart (I do 12 on a sheet) on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake for 11-12 minutes. They may look puffy and soft, this is okay, do not over bake. Cool completely. They will become flat and chewy as they cool.
Store in an airtight container at room temperature.