Baking Christmas Cookies

Do you enjoy baking Christmas Cookies at your house? Do you have a special time that you bake them or a special kind you make? This year we’ve made 4 kinds of cookies…so far! (There might be more in the works!) Here’s a peek into our Christmas cookies escapades…

We started out making butter cookies, which were always one of my favorites as a kid. These are a cutout type of cookie.

Everything was going along just fine. The trays were filling up with cookies ready to be decorated before baking.

I started to roll out some more dough when…crack! Oh nooo!

My rolling pin was pretty old. I believe it belonged to my grandmother, so it’s rather sad that it broke. I think I will save it and turn it into the craft of some sort, but now how to roll out the rest of the cookie dough?? This calls for a trip to the store! There were only two rolling pins left in the store, but one was all I needed! And its a big one!

So we were back in business! Once the rest of the cookies were cutout and sprinkles were added, then on to the baking! Mmmm! It smelled so good in here!

Don’t they look delicious? 🙂 Don’t look too closely…some of them might be a little too brown.

I mixed up a second batch of cookie dough and put it in the fridge to chill. Then made the 3rd batch…ohhh…hmmm…I think I forgot the vanilla in the 2nd batch…oops! Back to the “drawing board”! Next I made some Molasses Crinkles cookies. (You can’t tell from this picture but some of them got too brown too. My oven and I are at war with each other!)

Next came the Russian Teacakes. Oh, man, do we love these! I turned my oven down, put the cookies on a higher rack and left them in for less time. Smart, right? Some still got too brown. But rolled in lots of powdered sugar you really can’t tell and they still taste great. 😉

Then it was time to go back to the ones I had to make over because of the forgotten vanilla. This was a new way to do cookies for me, using terra cotta cookie stamps.

The recipe said to bake the cookies and then stamp them right away when you take them out of the oven. I wanted to add some colored sugar on the cookies and wondered if I should add the sugar before or after baking and stamping? So I tried one tray with the sprinkled on sugar before baking and one tray without. I found out that it doesn’t work to have sugar on the cookies before stamping. So forget that idea. The right way is to bake, stamp and then sprinkle. 😉 So here are the Snowflake Cookies.

That’s all the cookies I’ve made so far. I’m thinking about some peanut butter ones…or maybe Peanut Butter and Jam bars. The moral of the story is that if your cookie baking doesn’t go perfectly, don’t sweat it! I had things go wrong and we have some cookies that only my husband and I will be eating, but mostly the cookies turned out tasty! 😉 I’d love to hear about your cookie baking traditions at your house and what kinds you like to make. Happy Eating! 🙂

Taste Testing Tuesday #69-Healthy (Mostly) No Bake Cookies

For today’s taste test, we’re bringing you some Healthy No Bake Cookies! It says “Mostly” healthy because the cookies themselves are pretty healthy, but then it depends on what you add to them how healthy they end up. 😉 For instance, if you add raisins, you’re all good. If you add mini M&M’s, well, not quite so good. Lol My daughter shared this recipe with me after her kids gobbled up a batch in record time. (Thanks, Megan!) Their batch of cookies looks awesome!

Here is the ingredient list:

In order to make this a taste test and to have some different types of cookies to choose from I made 4 kinds. But I’m getting ahead of myself! First, let’s gather up the ingredients.

Add everything to a medium sized bowl. Remember to melt the coconut oil.

Mix the ingredients together with a spoon. I didn’t add the “goodies” to begin with, but just mixed up the cookie dough.

I divided the dough into 4 small bowls and then added a different special ingredient to each bowl.

Mix the dough in each bowl and then make 3 or 4 cookies from each bowl by using a teaspoon to scoop out the dough onto a plate.

#1.) I added raisins.

#2.) I added mini M&M’s.

#3.) I added mini chocolate chips.

#4.) I added candy sprinkles.

Put the cookies into the fridge for a little while to help the cookies set up. I wonder what things you will add to your cookies? You could try some chopped nuts, peanut butter chips, butterscotch chips or maybe some tiny candies that match the season or holiday.

What type of cookie is your favorite? How about which one is your least favorite? I hope this will spark some ideas and fun for your family! 🙂 Happy Taste Testing Tuesday to you!

Taste Testing Tuesday #66 Sugar Wafer Cookies

Greetings on another Taste Testing Tuesday! Today we’re taking some vanilla sugar wafer cookies and dipping them in some yumminess and adding a few sprinkles on top for good measure! You will need some vanilla sugar wafer cookies, some different kinds of candy chips and some toppings.

I used peanut butter chips, milk chocolate chips and butterscotch chips. For the topping I used assorted sprinkles, chocolate sprinkles and some colored sugar.

We will be melting each kind of chips to dip the cookies in. If your candy chips seem too thick after melting, you can add a small amount of coconut oil to help thin it to a better consistency.

I chose to do 3 cookies in each type of candy but you can choose however many you want to use. Lay them out in a piece of wax paper to make the clean up easier.

I started out by melting a few peanut butter chips in a small bowl in the microwave.

Dip your cookies in the melted candy to coat the bottom half and immediately before it can harden, add some sprinkles or toppings.

Lay the cookies on another piece of waxed paper on a cookie sheet.

I bet it’s starting to smell good at your house! 😃 Do the same with each type of candy chips you are using. Melt the candy, dip the cookie in it and then lay the cookie on waxed paper and add your toppings. When you have finished making your fancy cookies, place them in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes so the candy can harden.

Here we have 3 peanut butter dipped cookies.

And 3 milk chocolate dipped sugar wafers…

And 3 butterscotch dipped cookies.

Do a taste test by sampling a cookie with each kind of candy on it. Which one is your favorite? Is there any you didn’t like? They do look pretty on a plate together, don’t you think? 😊

Have fun with your taste test of candy dipped sugar wafer cookies! 😃

Taste Testing Tuesday With Christmas Cookies

Things are a bit crazy around our house this year with a lot of things going on. So here is a repeat of a special Taste Testing Tuesday from last year. 🙂 And if you are worried about someone stealing your Christmas cookies, I’ve heard that certain elves can be bribed to guard them for you. 😉

It’s time to rev up your taste buds! Yep, it’s Taste Testing Tuesday once again. And I’m betting today’s taste test will be your all time favorite! What are we testing? Christmas Cookies!!! A special thank you goes out to my daughter, Megan, for sharing some pictures with me of some of the Christmas cookies they made at their house this week. 🙂 Here are some suggestions for yummy cookies you can make and test out:

#1.) Peanut Butter Blossoms. Oohh these are soooo yummy! A peanut butter cookie with a chocolate kiss added on top. Drooooooling…

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#2.) Rice Krispies Treats Christmas Trees. These are made just like the original Rice Krispies Treats recipe on the cereal box plus some green sugar and sprinkles added. Then cut them into triangles and you’re done!

#3.) Molasses Crinkles – This is one of my favorite cookies. I remember making them with my mom when I was a little girl. 🙂

#4.) Sour Cream Cookies – I was looking for the recipe that my Grandma used to make for us and these are similar but not quite the same. The recipe calls for adding a frosting glaze to these while they are still hot but I went with sprinkles instead to cut down on the amount of sugar.

#5.) Cut-Out Butter Cookies – Ok, this has to be my all-time favorite cookie! (Molasses Crinkles are a close 2nd.) This is another recipe I made with my mom when I was little. Well, and even after I got “big”. And then I made them with our kids and now our daughter made this batch with her kids. 🙂

I have to admit that decorated cut-out cookies get my vote for at least LOOKING the best! 😉

#6.) Russian Teacakes – This cookie is one of my hubby’s favorite cookies. They rank pretty high with me too. I make them with finely ground pecans but you can use other nuts instead. They are rolled in powdered sugar which helps to make them especially tasty.

#7.) Peanut Butter Cookies – Another one of our favorites! Ok, yes, there seems to be a pattern developing here, doesn’t there? I have a lot of favorite cookies! Haha! One of my jobs when I was little and helping my mom make these was to make the criss-cross pattern on each cookie. I always thought that was pretty cool. 😉

So what is your favorite Christmas cookie? Do you make Christmas cookies at your house? Maybe you buy some from a store? What is your all-time favorite cookie that you would ask for if you could have any cookie in the world? I hope you have a great Christmas cookie Taste Testing Tuesday at your house! 🙂

Fortune Cookie Day!

To be honest, I didn’t know there was such a thing as Fortune Cookie Day, but my calendar says today is the day!

My hubby has been sick, so today I brought some Chinese food home for him. And it included a fortune cookie! Ta dah!

If you’ve never had a fortune cookie, this is what they look like, up close and personal.

They are kinda like a folded over cookie that’s then bent in half. But first, a small slip of paper is placed inside the cookie, which is supposed to tell you your fortune when you break the cookie open. 🙂

So what was my fortune today? (My husband doesn’t eat the fortune cookies so I always get to eat them and read the fortune. So does that make it my fortune or his? Hmm…) 😉

“You are heading in the right direction.” Well, that’s good to know! LOL While I don’t really believe in the fortunes, it is rather fun to eat fortune cookies and read the fortunes. I hope you’ll try some soon and that your fortunes will be good! 😉

Taste Testing Tuesday – #20 – Christmas Cookies!

It’s time to rev up your taste buds! Yep, it’s Taste Testing Tuesday once again. And I’m betting today’s taste test will be your all time favorite! What are we testing? Christmas Cookies!!! A special thank you goes out to my daughter, Megan, for sharing some pictures with me of some of the Christmas cookies they made at their house this week. 🙂 Here are some suggestions for yummy cookies you can make and test out:

#1.) Peanut Butter Blossoms. Oohh these are soooo yummy! A peanut butter cookie with a chocolate kiss added on top. Drooooooling…

#2.) Rice Krispies Treats Christmas Trees. These are made just like the original Rice Krispies Treats recipe on the cereal box plus some green sugar and sprinkles added. Then cut them into triangles and you’re done!

#3.) Molasses Crinkles – This is one of my favorite cookies. I remember making them with my mom when I was a little girl. 🙂

#4.) Sour Cream Cookies – I was looking for the recipe that my Grandma used to make for us and these are similar but not quite the same. The recipe calls for adding a frosting glaze to these while they are still hot but I went with sprinkles instead to cut down on the amount of sugar.

#5.) Cut-Out Butter Cookies – Ok, this has to be my all-time favorite cookie! (Molasses Crinkles are a close 2nd.) This is another recipe I made with my mom when I was little. Well, and even after I got “big”. And then I made them with our kids and now our daughter made this batch with her kids. 🙂

I have to admit that decorated cut-out cookies get my vote for at least LOOKING the best! 😉

#6.) Russian Teacakes – This cookie is one of my hubby’s favorite cookies. They rank pretty high with me too. I make them with finely ground pecans but you can use other nuts instead. They are rolled in powdered sugar which helps to make them especially tasty.

#7.) Peanut Butter Cookies – Another one of our favorites! Ok, yes, there seems to be a pattern developing here, doesn’t there? I have a lot of favorite cookies! Haha! One of my jobs when I was little and helping my mom make these was to make the criss-cross pattern on each cookie. I always thought that was pretty cool. 😉

So what is your favorite Christmas cookie? Do you make Christmas cookies at your house? Maybe you buy some from a store? What is your all-time favorite cookie that you would ask for if you could have any cookie in the world? I hope you have a Christmas cookie Taste Testing Tuesday at your house!