I know it's only October, but I've been trying to get organized for Christmas lately. I've been wanting to ask about this for a while, and after reading Cricket's thread in general chat, I don't feel so weird asking about Christmas. Anyway... I'm trying to come up with a list of cookies I want to make this year, and I'm coming up empty. I know I want to make gingerbread people and something else I don't know what they're called (you just wrap a fun-size Snickers in sugar cookie dough and bake... delicious!) I searched through posts from last Christmas but I didn't find much. Anyone have any cookie ideas for me? Please
I started to think about Christmas cookies last week so I don't think you're weird at all!
The traditional Christmas cookies in my family are: -chocolate chip -standard decorated cookies (usually a sort of plain shortbread with royal icing) -rum balls -leckerli (German sort of spicey bar cookie) and rugelach -some sort of jelly cookie. Either thumbprints or a few times my sister and I made "window" cookies. Like mini linzer tarts but we usually use a star shape in the center.
My grandma always makes some sort of round little balls with bits of almonds on the outside but I have no clue what they are.
I have a few recipes tagged in an old Martha Stewart Christmas magazine that I want to try out. I'll check when I get home.
we always made snowballs (I think they're actually called Russian Teacakes or Mexican Wedding Cakes, though). I can't remember the other ones...they're sort of like mini-brownies, with a minty icing in the middle. (SO. GOOD!)
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"We live in an age where unnecessary things are our only necessities." --Oscar Wilde
I have made sugar cookies with both cream cheese frosting and coffee frosting, mexican wedding cakes, pumpkin cookies (more Thansgiving-like, but I make them at Christmas), shortbread, and candy cane cookies (a sugar-like cookie topped with crushed peppermint candies).
we always have thumbprint cookies, russian teacakes, and mincemeat. and frosted sugar cookies, and chocoloate chip... my family is very big on baking. oh, and snickerdoodles and chocolate crinkle cookies...
I will get the recipe for you gals over the weekend. They are so soft and I love it when the frosting gets a little hard on the top. We make them kind of bite size, you just use a spoon to drop the batter on the pan (the batter is kind of gooey) So they are really easy to just pop in your mouth! mmm, can't wait for christmas! I will have the recipe by Monday!
Thanks for all the great ideas, girls! Everything sounds so yummy, I think I'll give them all a try ... if anyone thinks of anything from now until Christmas, don't forget about me Thanks again!
My two favorites are these balls (sorry don't know how else to describe them!) with Rice Krispies and peanut butter dipped in chocolate and some sort of white cake/cookie balls with powdered sugar on top.
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Bad taste is like a nice dash of paprika. We all could use more of it. It's no taste I'm against. -Diana Vreeland
bars that taste like heath bar. it involves saltines. it's so easy. let me know if you want the recipe. i think theres like four things needed.
decorated sugar cookies
my favorite: it's basically rice krispie treats, but you dye the marshmellows green, and use corn flakes instead of rice krispies. you then spoon the corn krispie mix and make a hole in the center to make an "O" shape. they look like wreaths. you then add three red hots for holly. freeze them. sooo cute and everyone loves the look of them. i like the corn flakes texture better than the rice krispie actually.
then the other thing we do for our chocolate fix is to take one package of chocolate chips with one package of butterscotch. you melt them. add chow mein noodles. you spoon them onto wax paper and add those red/green/white ball sprinkles and freeze. really good and really easy (4 ingredients total, and all you need is a microwave and freezer).
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"i tell you one lesson I learned
If you want to be something in life, You ain't gonna get it unless, You give a little bit of sacrifice, Oohh, sometimes before you smile you got to cry.." -The Roots
then the other thing we do for our chocolate fix is to take one package of chocolate chips with one package of butterscotch. you melt them. add chow mein noodles. you spoon them onto wax paper and add those red/green/white ball sprinkles and freeze. really good and really easy (4 ingredients total, and all you need is a microwave and freezer).
We used to make these, too... I forgot all about them! We'd put the noodles onto the wax paper so they looked like antlers (basically just two blobs next to each other) and put half of a maraschino cherry in the middle... Voila, It's Rudolph! Thanks for reminding me of those. Also, when/if you get a chance, I'd love the recipe for those Heath saltine things... thanks, shopgirl82!
. Also, when/if you get a chance, I'd love the recipe for those Heath saltine things... thanks, shopgirl82!
never done the cherry in the middle thing. interesting!
Heath Bar Cookies
1 pakage saltine crackers
1 c. light brown sugar
2 sticks of butter
1(12 oz.) package of milk chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 400. Melt butter and sugar. Boil 3 minutes. Line the jelly roll pan with parchment paper or foil. Lay crackers on pan. Pour sugar and butter mixture over crackers. Bake in oven for 7 minutes. Sprinkle chocolate chips over crackers. As chocolate melts, spread over crackers (the whole recipe is soo easy, just make sure you do the spreading fast). Put in the freezer to cool for about a 1/2 hour. Break or cut into pieces.
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"i tell you one lesson I learned
If you want to be something in life, You ain't gonna get it unless, You give a little bit of sacrifice, Oohh, sometimes before you smile you got to cry.." -The Roots
Stephanie wrote: . Also, when/if you get a chance, I'd love the recipe for those Heath saltine things... thanks, shopgirl82! never done the cherry in the middle thing. interesting! Heath Bar Cookies 1 pakage saltine crackers 1 c. light brown sugar 2 sticks of butter 1(12 oz.) package of milk chocolate chips Preheat oven to 400. Melt butter and sugar. Boil 3 minutes. Line the jelly roll pan with parchment paper or foil. Lay crackers on pan. Pour sugar and butter mixture over crackers. Bake in oven for 7 minutes. Sprinkle chocolate chips over crackers. As chocolate melts, spread over crackers (the whole recipe is soo easy, just make sure you do the spreading fast). Put in the freezer to cool for about a 1/2 hour. Break or cut into pieces.
shopgirl - these are the best cookies ever!! My mom and I used to make them all the time, so good!
last year i made fudge filled italian cookies and they were a huge hit -- i got the recipe off foodnetwork.com -- they were promoting "12 days of cookies" and they had a newsletter and every day you got a different cookie recipe. that may be of interest to you. happy baking!
Oh, I love this thread. I've begun to assemble my holiday recipes and make menus including hordes of christmas cookies.
So far the cookies that have made the "famed" list are
Pignoli Italian cookies (pine nut and almond flavored cookies) Italian anisette cookies toasted walnut cookie with vanillla cream filling Thumbprint cookies Mocha cookies with chocolate dipped ends