Christmas baking season is upon us!!! I love making massive batches of cookies and freezing them around the holidays and then whipping them out in the nick of time right before a work dinner/a brunch with friends/a cocktail party. Pop them into a fancy little treat bag and your loved ones will be beyond impressed and grateful for the gesture.
My two favourite recipes are Raspberry Linzer cookies and Ginger Molasses cookies. Although I'm the first to admit that I can get carried away with my food adventures, when it comes to Christmas baking, I'm all about easy, quick recipes. Turn up the tunes or put on a movie, and invite a friend over and you'll be surprised at how fast you end up with dozens of little buttery miracles just in time for the holidays.
Raspberry Linzer Cookies
Ingredients
1 cup salted butter, softened1 cup sugar
½ tsp salt
1 large egg
1 egg yolk
¾ tsp vanilla
2½ cups all-purpose flour, sifted
rapsberry jam
Preparation
- Cream together the butter, sugar, and salt in a mixer until the mixture becomes light and fluffy.
- Next, add the egg yolk, mix a little and then add in the other whole egg. Mix in the vanilla.
- Add the sifted flour and mix until well-combined.
- Now the next step is really important!! Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and put it in the fridge for at least an hour. I often do it the night before and then make the cookies the next morning to break up the baking process (cause I'm an old lady and sometimes I get tired baking). Or if you're in a big rush just pop the dough in the freezer for 20 minutes.
- When you're ready to bake the cookies let the dough come to room temperature for at least 10 minutes, then knead it to make it smooth.
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Sprinkle some flour on your rolling surface and roll out the dough to ¼ inch thickness.
- Use cookie cutters to cut out your desired holiday shapes! Then place the cookies on a parchment lined baking sheet.
- This next step is also really important, place the cookies on the sheet in the freezer for 10 minutes. This will make sure that the cookies keep their shape.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes depending on the size and shape of your cookies, but keep checking to make sure they haven't started to brown around the edges.
- Let them cool for a while before filling the bottoms with a dollop of raspberry jam and sealing the cookie with the top!!
Ginger Molasses Cookies
Ingredients
3/4 cup shortening1 cup white sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1 egg
2 cups flour
2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Preparation
- Mix all ingredients together and form 1" balls.
- Roll in a small bowl of white sugar (not included in ingredients), and press lightly with a fork in a criss-cross.
- Bake at 350℉ for 8 minutes or until they crack. Don't over bake!!
- Using oven mitts, bang the pan on a counter so that the cookies flatten. This makes them really flat and chewy.
