Christmas cookies, like sparkling lights, mistletoe, and the jolly old man, himself, are annual traditions that bring a jingle to any jangle. I cannot envision any Christmas celebration without them.
If you’re doing any Christmas baking this year, it’s highly likely that cookie recipe ingredients are on your shopping list. Below are some favorites of my family that are a must bake for me, every year.
Thumbprint Jam Cookies
These are, by far, one of my favorite cookies during the holiday season. The cookie’s crispy texture combines perfectly with the jam filled centers.
Ingredients
- 16 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar or dark brown sugar, lightly packed
- 2 large eggs, separated
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon table salt
- 1/2 cup almond flour
- 2 1/2 to 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 3/4 to 1 cup finely diced chopped nuts
- 3/4 cup jam, or the filling of your choice
- Line two baking sheets with parchment, or use a non-stick baking sheet; greasing the pans isn’t sufficient to prevent sticking.
- In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugars until very light.
- Beat in the egg yolks, vanilla, and salt.
- Add the nut flour and the lesser amount of all-purpose flour, stirring until well blended. If the dough seems too sticky, add just enough additional flour to make it workable.
- Cover and chill the dough for an hour.
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- While the dough chills, cover the egg whites and leave them out of the refrigerator to warm up to room temperature.
- In a small bowl, whip the egg whites until they’re foamy.
- Break off pieces of dough and roll them between your palms to form 1″ balls.
- Dip the balls into the egg whites, and roll them in the chopped nuts. Place the cookies about 2″ apart on the prepared baking sheets.
- Bake the thumbprint cookies for 8 minutes, then remove them from the oven.
- Make a deep thumbprint in the center of each cookie.
- Return to the oven, and bake until they’re a light, golden brown, about 4 to 6 minutes.
- Remove the thumbprint cookies from the oven, and transfer them to a rack to cool.
- Fill the thumbprint with the filling of your choice, using about 1/2 teaspoon for each.
- Serve the thumbprint cookies at room temperature.
Peanut Butter Blossoms
Peanut Butter Blossom cookies are, perhaps, one of the most popular cookies on every Christmas cookie tray, and for good reason. I can’t think of anything more tempting than biting into a delicious peanut butter cookie, mixed with the classic Hershey’s Candy Kiss.
Ingredients
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3/4 cup peanut butter, creamy
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup light brown sugar or dark brown sugar, packed
- 1 large egg
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon table salt
- granulated sugar, for topping
- Hershey Chocolate Candy Kisses, for topping
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment; if you don’t have parchment, don’t grease the baking sheets; it’s not necessary.
- In a large bowl, beat the butter and peanut butter until well blended.
- Add the sugars; beat until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg, milk and vanilla, and beat well.
- Stir in the flour, soda, and salt.
- Shape the dough into 1″ balls, and roll or shake them in sugar. Place the balls on the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 1 ½” apart.
- Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes, or until they appear set in the center.
- Remove them from the oven and immediately place one Hershey kiss on each cookie.
- Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool completely.
- Store peanut butter blossoms at room temperature, well-wrapped, for up to a week; freeze for longer storage.
Butterball (aka Snowball) Cookies
Sugary sweet with a light crispy crunch, Butterball cookies are as yummy as they look. These are a must have cookie on any Christmas cookie tray.
Ingredients
Dough
- 16 tablespoons unsalted butter*
- 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract, optional
- 1 teaspoon table salt*
- 3/4 cup almond flour, or blanched almonds, finely ground
- 2 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- *If you use salted butter, reduce the amount of added salt to 1/2 teaspoon.
Coating
- 1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. Lightly grease (or line with parchment) two baking sheets.
- In a large bowl, beat together the butter, sugar, vanilla, almond extract, and salt.
- Beat in the almond flour, then the all-purpose flour.
- Scoop chestnut-sized (1″) pieces of dough, and roll them into balls. A level teaspoon cookie scoop will give you just the right amount of dough. Place the balls on the prepared baking sheets, leaving 1″ between them.
- Bake the cookies for 15 to 20 minutes, until they feel set on top: some of them may start to barely brown around the edges.
- While the wedding cookies are baking, put the topping sugar in a shallow bowl.
- Remove the wedding cookies from the oven, allow them to cool on the pan for a few minutes, and then transfer them, 5 or 6 at a time, to the bowl.
- Roll them in the sugar to coat, then transfer them to a rack to cool.
- When the cookies are cool, roll them in the sugar again; they should be thoroughly coated and snowy white.
- Store leftover cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for several days; freeze for longer storage.
