shortbread

Favorite Christmas Cookie Recipes – Last Installment

Posted on by keepingupwithkate91

As promised, here is the last installment of my Christmas Cookie recipes.  These last three recipes have been added in the last 10 years.  Of course, there is a little story behind each recipe.

Buttery Shortbread:  This is the easy recipe of all the cookies I make – and the richest.  If I don’t have time to make cookies – I still find time to make these cookies.  I even have a 12 days of Christmas pan I use for them.  If you don’t have a speacial shortbread pan, I’ve used glass  pan pans.  This recipe is from some dear friends who I met during my time in Dallas.  It actually comes from England.  2 Cups of Flour, 1/2 Cup Cornstartch, 1/2 Cup Sugar, 2 sticks (1/2 lb) butter – unsalted (melted).  Preheat the over to 300 degrees.  Sift the flour, cornstarch and sugar into a medium bolw.  Stir in the melted butter (I microwave the butter).  Knead lightly; press into 8 inch round cake or pie pans.  Prick the dough all over with a fork (if using a pie pan I prick the dough so it looks like slices of pie).  Back for 35 minutes, until set but not browned.  Remove from the oven and cut.  Let cool on a wire rack.

Great Big Oatmeal Cookies:  These cookies are courtesy of The Great American Home Cooking Recipe cards.  Yes, those requests to join a recipe club.  I never joined, but I kept the recipe because the cookies had coconut in them.  One year instead of making the Oatmeal Crispies (see my first Christmas cookie recipe post) I decided to make these cookies to see how everyone liked them.  They were a hit; although my Dad still prefers the Oatmeal Crispies.  1 1/2 cup flaked coconut, 3 cups rolled oats, 1 1/4 Cups flour, 1 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 cup unsalted butter (softened), 1 1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar, 2 large eggs (room temp), 1 tsp vanilla & 1/4 cup milk.  Spread the coconut and oats over a large baking sheet.  Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes or until toasted, stirring often.  Cool.  Mix the flour, baking soda and salt.  Cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl at medium speed for 1 minute.  Add the eggs and vanilla to the butter mixture.  Beat int he milk.  Stir in the flour, then the coconut and the oats.  Drop dough in 1/4 cup amounts, 3 inches aprt onto baking sheets.  Bake for 12 minutes at 350.  Let cool 1 minute; transfer to a rack.

Laurie Womer’s Coffee Bean Cookies:  My Mom found this recipe in The Patriot Newspaper – Harrisburg, PA.  This came from a reader in Lower Paxton Twp.  My Mom knows I enjoy my coffee and thought these would be a hit.  She made these cookies for me one Christmas and gave me the recipe.  The are obviously great with a nice cup of coffee.  1/2 cup butter (unsalted) (softened), 1/2 cup solid shortening (Crisco), 1/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup packed brown sugar, 2 large eggs (room temp), 1 tsp vanilla extract, 2 1/4 cup flour, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1 cup chopped almonds, 1 cup chocolate covered coffee beans, 1 cup Heath Toffee bits.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees  Beat the butter and shortening on medium speed of an electric mixer until creamy.  Gradually add sugars and beat well.  Add eggs and vanilla; beat well.  Combine flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon; add to butter mixture, beating well.  Stir in almonds, coffe beens and Heath bits.  Cover and chill dough for several hours or overnight.  Drop dough by heaping teaspoonfuls onto cookie sheets.  Bake 10 – 11 minutes or until golden.  Cook on cookie sheets for 1 minute; remove to wire racks and cool completely.  Makes 4 dozen.  Note:  Find chocolate covered coffee beans at local coffee houses or coffee kiosks at some grocery stores.

Happy Baking!  Enjoy!!  Let me know if you try any of the recipes and if they were a hit or not.

Favortie Cookie Recipes – Nostalgic

Posted on by keepingupwithkate91

Throughout the years, I’ve added recipes to the base cookies.  I started adding to the baseline when I lived in Virginnia and I made cookies for some of my co-workers.  I really got into it when I lived in Dallas.  One year, two of my friends and I made cookies for everyone on each of our team.  It even included decorated, sugar cookies (that was a lucky year for my team – I didn’t make them again).  The following Christmas I was on my own and back to my Black & Decker hand mixer – the following January I purchased my Kitchen Aid…what a difference that made.

I’ve decided to break-up my additional cookie recipes into 2 blogs:  One Nostalgic (this one) and One New Age (more like recent in the last 10 years – and it will give me another blog).

The 3 recipes I’m sharing with you today are Peanut Blossoms, No Bake Cookies, Sugar (not the ones from my Dallas story) and Christmas Crunchies.  Each one has a memory.

Peanut Blossoms:  This is my Mom-Mom’s recipe.  I remember making them as a kid with her (I’m assuming around Christmas time).  At some point, I got the recipe (either from my Mom or my Mom-Mom’s recipe box).  Here it is (this is my  Sister-in-Law’s favorite cookie).  1/2 Cup Butter, 1/2 Cup Peanut Butter, 1/2 Cup Sugar, 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar, 1 egg (room temp), 1 tsp vanilla, 1 3/4 Cup Flour, 1 tsp baking soad, 1/2 tsp salt and 1 bag of Hershey Kisses.  Cream butter, peanut butter, sugar and brown sugar.  Add egg; beat and add vanilla.  Add flour, baking soda and salt.  Roll rounded teaspons of dough into balls; then roll in sugar.  Bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes.  Remove from oven, top each with a solid Hershey Kiss (I’ve even tried other Hershey Kisses) press down firmly so cookie bracks around edge.  Return to oven and bake 2-5 minutes longer.

No Bake Cookies (also called stove top):  I remember making these cookies at a friend’s house as a little girl (Becky Legg’s house – wow her last name just came to me…she only lived near me for about a year of so).  I also think we made these cookies in Home Ec in middle school.  These are my brother’s favorite.  1 1/2 cup sugar, 2 TBSP Cocoa Powder, 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 cup butter, 1 tsp vanilla, 1/2 cup peanut butter, 3 cups quick cooking oats.  In a large, heavy saucepan mix and bring to boil sugar, cocoa, milk and butter – stirring occassionally.  Boil 1 1/2 minutes.  Remove from heat and add vanilla, peanut butter and oats; mix well.  Drop by rounded tsps on wax paper or spread in a greased 9x9x1 inch pan.  Cool a few hours or until firm (I sometimes put outside or in freezer to speed up the process).

Sugar Cookies:  My roommate from college used to make these.  The recipe came from her boyfriend (at the time) grandmother.  If you read my previous post, I had the Tollhouse cookie recipe memorized – she had this one memorized.  She would make these quite a bit…good thing we walked everywhere and had fast metobolisms.  These are not your typical sugar cookies – you don’t roll them out – they have a sort of cake consisentency. The original recipe calls for nutmeg – I made them one time not knowing you don’t add the nutmeg…they so didn’t taste the same. 2 Cups Sugar, 1 Cup Butter, 1 Cup Milk, 3 Eggs (room temp), 3 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 2 tsp vanilla, 4 Cups Sugar.  Cream sugar, butter and eggs.  Sift dry ingredients.  Add dry ingredients alternating with milk to the creamed mixture.  Baked on ungreased cookie sheet at 375.  You’ll have to check on these cookies as the recipe doesn’t have the time.  🙂  These are great cookies to add sugar sprinkles or other decoration.

Christmas Crunchies:    I’m not sure when I started making these cookies.  I don’t think I’ve made them very oftern either.  However, they have a special place in my heart as I received this recipe as a child in a Christmas card from my Mom-Mom and Pop-Pop (price on card was $0.35!).  1/2 cup butter, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup white (this is what is actually in the card) sugar, 1 egg (well beaten), 1/2 tsp vanilla, 1 cup flour, 1/2 tsp soda (baking), 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp baking powder, 1 cup oatmeal, 1 cup corn flakes, 1/2 cup coconut, 1/2 cup chopped nuts (pecans).  Cream butter, add sugars then egg and vanilla.  Sift dry ingredients together and add to creamed mixture.  Last, add corn flakes, oatmeal, coconuts and nuts.  Roll into small balls and place about 2 inches apart on cookied sheet.  Bake at 350 degrees for 10 – 15 minutes.

Do you have any favorite cookie recipes?  What are they?  Let me know if you try any of the recipes and what you think of them.  ENJOY!!

Have a wonderful Saturday!!