Best Cookie Spread to Share with your Loved Ones this Holiday Season
Tis the season for baked goods to sweeten the day from the bitter cold.
My grandfather always made the same cookies for Christmas, and I can’t imagine celebrating with my family without them. They are called Snowballs or Russian Tea Cakes or even Mexican Wedding cookies. They’re little walnut buttery cookies coated in powdered sugar, and they crumble so perfectly in your mouth. Below are the directions for making about 6 dozen.
Ingredients
1 cup (2 sticks) of softened unsalted butter
5 Tablespoons of granulated sugar
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon of salt
2 cups of flour
2 cups of FINELY chopped walnuts
1 & ½ cups of confectioner’s sugar (aka powdered sugar) for dusting cookies twice
Cooking Directions
You will need containers to refrigerate dough, and this recipe will use an electric mixer. If you do not have one, still follow the steps just mix your flour into your butter (wet) mixture slowly.
Cream together butter and sugar. (paddle attachment is recommended)
Beat in vanilla extract and salt.
Add flour in ½ cup at a time, beat after each addition. (this means adding ½ cup of flour 4 times)
Stir in nuts and mix until fully incorporated.
Divide dough in half and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes
Preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit
Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside
Put the confectioner’s sugar (powdered sugar) in a bowl big enough to roll a cookie in
Now take out the dough, and get a big spoonful. Roll the dough in your hands to make 1 inch small rounded balls.
Place dough balls 1 & ½ inches apart on the prepared (UNGREASED) baking sheets.
Cook for 12-14 minutes, until they are beginning to brown. DO NOT OVER BAKE! The cookies should not crack, and the underside should only be slightly brown.
Cool on wire rack for approximately 2 minutes.
WHILE COOKIES ARE STILL WARM- roll in confectioner’s sugar (powdered sugar)
Place the once rolled cookies back on the wire rack to completely cool
Roll the cookies once more (this is the second and last time) in confectioner’s sugar (powdered sugar) and place on rack or plate
Another holiday favorite is the simple, but tasty Peanut Butter Blossoms. It is a peanut butter cookie, rolled in sugar (with a little cinnamon) and a Hershey's kiss placed on top. Forbidden Kisses are so good it’s dangerous. Really dangerous for those with a peanut allergy. Below is the directions to make about 36 servings (3 dozen).
Ingredients
½ cup of granulated sugar
½ cup of packed brown sugar (light or dark is fine, dark results in thicker/denser cookies)
½ cup (1 stick) of softened butter
½ cup of creamy peanut butter (any peanut butter will do, creamy is preferable)
1 egg
1 & ½ cup of flour
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon baking powder
Additional granulated sugar (with a little cinnamon- optional)
Hershey’s kisses (about 36) unwrapped (milk chocolate is suggested, but if you prefer dark or whatever that works fine)
Cooking Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a large bowl, beat granulated sugar (the half cup NOT additional), brown sugar, butter, peanut butter, and egg until well blended.
In small bowl mix together flour, baking soda, and baking powder. (dash of salt optional)
Add the small dry bowl to the large wet bowl.
Get your additional sugar in a bowl big enough to roll the cookies in.
Shape dough into 1 inch balls, roll in the additional sugar, and place them about 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet (UNGREASED)
Bake 8-10 minutes until sides are light golden brown
IMMEDIATELY after cookies are taken out of the oven, place/press 1 Hershey’s Kiss in the center of each cookie!!!!
Place cookies on cooling rack.
You can’t make a holiday cookie spread without sugar cookies! Except these sugar cookies will be a Wintersday Swirl. (red and green swirl)
Ingredients
4 cups of flour
1 teaspoon of baking powder
¼ teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 & ⅓ cup of softened butter
1 & ¾ cup of granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
Red and green food coloring
Cooking Directions
In a small bowl sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Whisk the eggs in a separate dish until well beaten, then add to large bowl with butter and sugar. Then also add the vanilla extract. Beat until smooth.
Gradually mix in small bowl of dry (flour) into large wet bowl (butter,sugar,eggs) until evenly blended.
Divide dough into 2 equal parts and place in separate bowls.
Make one bowl red, the other green. Slowly add the food coloring and mix well until desired richness.
For this next step you will need wax paper and a rolling pin.Now set out the wax paper and place the red dough on it. Your goal is to use the rolling pin to flatten the dough to be ¼ inch (in thickness). Do the same with the green dough. If the dough is too sticky, or hard to work with then cover the top with a sheet of wax paper and refrigerate for 15 minutes and try again.
Carefully flip the green dough on top of the red dough. Remove wax paper.
Beginning on one edge, roll the dough into a log so the 2 colors spiral together.
Wrap the log in wax paper, then a clean cotton towel. Freeze for 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees fahrenheit. Lightly grease 2 baking sheets. (using parchment paper instead of light grease also works)
Unwrap the dough and place onto lightly floured surface. Take a sharp knife and cut log into ⅛ inch thick slices. (if you own a cheese slicer, feel free to use instead)
Place the slices onto the baking sheet, and bake for about 8 minutes.
Place on cooling rack when done.
Whenever cookies are mentioned there is always a person expecting an amazing chocolate chip cookie. To not make a batch of chocolate chip cookies would be completely against the holiday spirit. Here’s my family recipe to wow your loved ones.
Ingredients
2 & ¼ cup of flour
¼ cup granulated sugar
¾ cup packed brown sugar (light or dark works, however dark tends to results in thicker/denser cookies)
1 cup of softened butter
1 small box of vanilla instant pudding
2 eggs
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1 12oz bag of semi sweet chocolate chips (milk chocolate works, but really adds to the sweetness)
Cooking Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees fahrenheit, line cookie sheet with parchment
In a large bowl; combine butter, sugars, vanilla extract, and vanilla pudding. Beat until smooth and creamy.
Beat both eggs into the large bowl (butter, sugar, vanilla mixture)
In a small bowl combine flour and baking soda (dash of salt optional)
Add small bowl of dry ingredients to the large bowl of wet ingredients
Stir in chocolate chips
Drop by spoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet. (chilling the dough before will make them more flavorful and easier to handle)
Bake 8-11 minutes, until golden brown
Place cookies on wire cooling rack
Enjoy!
