Holiday Treats!

Every year I overdo it when it comes to baking, I would like to say that I am working on it but I am not! LOL. This year, I made all the cookies at once so that I could focus on making the more complicated dessert, The Yule Log. My attempt last year was OK for my first go, this will be round two!

Here are my favorite cookie Recipes that I made this year!

Gingerbread Cookies

• 1 Cup +2 TBS Butter

• 1 Cup Brown Sugar
• 1 Large Egg
• 1/4 Cup plus 2 TBS Molasses
• 2 1/2 Cups Flour
• 2 1/4 tsp Baking Soda
• 1 TBS Ground Ginger
• 1 TBS Ground Cinnamon
• 2 tsp Ground Cloves
• 1 1/2 tsp Ground Nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp Ground Allspice
• 2/3 Cup Sugar (To roll cookies in)

1. Beat Butter and Brown Sugar until creamy
2. Add egg and Molasses- Continue to Beat
3. Add dry ingredients (NOT SUGAR)
4. Cool for 2 hours
5. Heat oven to 350*
6. Roll dough into balls or cut shapes and dip in sugar
7. Bake 8-10 minutes (8 leaves them chewy once cool; 10 leaves them harder like biscuits)

Gingerdoodles (GingerSnaps)

• 2 Cups Flour
• 1 Egg
• 2 tsp Vanilla
• 1 TBS Cornstarch
• 2 tsp Baking Soda
• 2 tsp Ground Cinnamon
• 1 tsp Ground Ginger
• 1/4 tsp Ground Cloves
• 1/8 tsp Nutmeg
• 3/4 Cup Softened Butter
• 3/4 Cup Brown Sugar
• 1/2 Cup Sugar
• 1/4 Cup Molasses

1. Preheat to 350*
2. Mix Flour, Cornstarch, Baking Soda, Cinnamon, Ginger, Cloves, and Nutmeg
3. Mix Sugar and Cinnamon in small bowl- Set Aside
4. Cream Butter, Brown Sugar, and 1/4 cup Sugar
5. Add Molasses, Egg and Vanilla when fully mixed
6. Add Dry ingredients
7. Roll into Balls and Cover in Cinnamon Sugar mix
8. Bake 8-10 Minutes
9. Store in airtight container

Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 1 Cup Butter

• 1 Cup White Sugar

• 1 Cup Brown Sugar

• 2 tsp Vanilla

• 2 Large Eggs

• 3 Cups Flour

• 1 tsp Baking Soda

• 1/2 tsp Baking Powder

• 2 Cups Chocolate Chips

1. Heat over to 375*
2. Mix Flour, Baking Soda, Baking Powder
3. Cream Butter, Both Sugars, and Eggs
4. Add Dry INgredients
5. Add 1/2 Chocolate Chips
6. Roll Dough Balls
7. Cook 8 minutes
8. Add Extra Chocolate Chips when cookies are removed
9. Freeze Unused Dough

Snickerdoodle

• 1 Cup Butter

• 1 1/2 Cup Sugar

• 2 Eggs

• 2 tsp Vanilla

• 2 3/4 Cup Flour

• 1 1/2 tsp Cream of Tartar

• 1/2 tsp Baking Soda

1. Preheat to 350*
2. Mix Butter and Sugar until Fluffy
3. Scrape the bowl and add Eggs and Vanilla
4. Stir in Flour, Cream of Tartar, and Baking Soda
5. Cool for 30 minutes
6. Make Cinnamon Sugar Mixture for dough
7. Roll balls in Cinnamon/ Sugar mixture
8. Press flat
9. Bake 10 minutes

Peanut Butter Cookies

• 2 1/2 Cup Flour

• 1 tsp Baking Soda

• 1/2 tsp Baking Powder

• 3/4 Cup Sugar

• 1 Cup Softened Butter

• 1 Cup Peanut Butter

• 3/4 Cup Brown Sugar

• 2 Large Eggs

• Extra Sugar (For rolling dough in)

1. Mix Flour, Baking Soda, and Baking Powder in a bowl
2. Beat Butter, Peanut Butter, and both sugars
3. Add eggs one at a timet ot he wet mix
4. Add dry mixture to wet
5. Roll Dough into balls and roll in Sugar
6. Bake 350* for 12min

If you want to cut shapes out of this dough, it doesn’t really work. I found that putting the dough onto a sheet pan, about half of the dough, then cooking it for 14 minutes will allow you to cut the sheet of cookie into various shapes.

Tye-dye trees

• 1 1/4 Cup Sugar
• 1 Cup Softened Butter
• 1 tsp Vanilla
• 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
• 1 Large Egg
• 3 Cups Flour
• 1/2 tsp Red Coloring
• 1/2 tsp Raspberry Flavor

1. Heat over to 350*
2. Beat Sugar, Butter, Vanilla, Baking Powder until Creamy
3. Add Egg
4. Add Flour
5. Divide dough in half and color half
6. Roll two doughs separately then roll in a spiral form
7. Roll dough flat and cool for 30 minutes
8. Cut shapes for cookies
9. Back for 10 minutes (if cookies are thin, cook for 7 minutes)

If you are having a hard time getting the shaped to stick, try cooling the dough for longer!

Snowball Cookies

• 1 Cup Softened butter

• 2 1/4 Cup Flour

• 1/2 Cup Powdered Sugar

• 3/4 Crushed Walnuts

• 1 tsp Vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 400*
2. Combine Flour and walnuts
3. Beat Butter, Vanilla, and Sugar until Creamy
4. Add Flour mixture slowly
5. Roll into Balls
6. Bake 8 minutes
7. Cool halfway and roll in powdered sugar; cool the rest of the way and roll again!

You can freeze these and eat them later if you want, just allow them to come to room temperature before eating them.