Are you a Christmas cookie lover like I am? If so, get ready for some Christmas cookie recipes that have stood the test of time — along with some new ones that have quickly become our family’s favorites. It’s time for the Christmas Cookie bake off using recipes old and new.
Let the Planning Begin!
As soon as Thanksgiving ends and the Christmas season starts, the cookie planning process begins. My daughter and I start creating our Christmas Cookie wish list. It’s a tough job, but somebody has to do it!
Each year, we bake Christmas cookies together during the weeks leading up to Christmas. It’s our way to have fun, spend time together, and create lasting Christmas memories.
Christmas Cookie Traditions of Old
This Christmas cookie baking tradition began long ago from my grandmother and aunt. During the holidays, they baked morning, noon, and night making Christmas cookies of all kinds to have ready for us to eat during our Christmas festivities. It’s amazing that they never felt the need to deviate from their tried and true recipes. For example, we could always expect my grandmother’s famous Italian lemon cookies, chocolate nut drops, Christmas spritz cookies in fun, festive colors, and pizzelles too. Their philosophy was ‘if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it!’ Furthermore, they never felt the need to write down their recipes either. They knew the ingredients by heart.
When Christmas Eve came around, we’d have a big family dinner, go to mass, and come home to devour a plate full of cookies as we gathered around the table for food and good old-fashioned conversation. But it didn’t stop there. On Christmas day, we’d be back for another home cooked meal along with more cookies to enjoy plus some homemade desserts too. These are some of my most cherished childhood memories.
Christmas Cookie Traditions That Are New
Today, my daughter and I still carry on this baking tradition. We make a few of the old Christmas cookie recipes my grandmother used to make. But, we’ve added some new ones to the mix too. For example, baking gingerbread cookies and sugar cookies are my daughter’s favorites now. But she doesn’t just enjoy the baking part. Her real passion is decorating the cookies – an art she has quickly mastered. Cookie decorating may not be my gift, however, I carry on the old tradition of baking my grandmother’s signature Italian lemon cookies and Italian pizzelles. Each year, when I make these cookies, memories of Christmas past with my grandparents come flooding back. Baking is a way to keep these special family traditions alive.
It’s Never Too Late to Start
If you bake Christmas cookies each year, keep the tradition going! If not, don’t lose heart. It’s never too late to start new traditions.
In our family, carrying on these traditions is part of our Christmas celebration. And, while I don’t have the recipes memorized by heart like my grandmother did, the memories are what count. The times my daughter and I spend baking together are what we will remember most.
Let the Baking Begin!
Ok, enough talking about cookie recipes. Now, it’s time to start baking!
Below are the recipes (old and new) we’ve relied on to keep our Christmas cookie baking tradition fun, festive, and tasty!
I hope you enjoy the recipes with your own family and that maybe you’ll start a Christmas cookie tradition of your own too.
Happy baking and eating!
Italian Lemon Cookies
Ingredients:
4 eggs
¾ cup sugar
¼ lb. margarine (or butter) melted and cooled
3 cups flour
3 tsp lemon extract
3 heaping tsp. baking powder
Beat eggs, sugar, and margarine (butter) until combined. Slowly add flour, lemon extract, and baking powder beating until incorporated.
Drop on greased or lined cookie sheet with teaspoon. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.
Icing:
2 cups confectioner’s sugar
3 – 4 tbsp of milk
A drop of lemon extract
Sprinkles for decorating
Decorate cookies with icing and sprinkles when cool.
Pizzelle
Ingredients:
½ lb. margarine (or butter) melted and cooled
1 ¾ cup sugar
6 eggs
3 ½ cups four
4 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp vanilla
*You will need a pizzelle iron to bake these cookies. They are not baked in the oven.
Beat sugar, eggs, and margarine (butter). Add flour and baking powder and beat until combined. Add 2 tbsp vanilla.
Spray pizzelle iron before use. Place a small amount of batter on iron being careful not to overflow it. Close iron and check on pizzelle’s every 2 minutes.
The Most Wonderful Gingerbread Cookies
Ingredients:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
¾ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
1 tbsp ground ginger
1 ¾ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground cloves
6 tbsp unsalted butter
¾ cup dark brown sugar
1 large egg
½ cup molasses
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp finely grated lemon zest (optional)
In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, and cloves until well blended. In a large bowl, beat butter, brown sugar, and egg on medium speed until well blended. Add molasses, vanilla, and lemon zest and continue to mix until well blended. Gradually stir in dry ingredients until blended and smooth.
Divide dough in half and wrap each half in plastic and let stand at room temperature for at least 2 hours or up to 8 hours.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Prepare baking sheets by lining with parchment paper.
(Dough can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 days but return to room temp before using.)
Place one portion of the dough on a lightly floured surface. Sprinkle flour over dough and rolling pin. Roll dough to a scant 1/4-inch thick. Use additional flour to avoid sticking. Cut out cookies with desired cutter– the gingerbread man is our favorite of course. Space cookies 1 ½ -inches apart. Bake 1 sheet at a time for 7-10 minutes (the lower time will give you softer cookies). Remove cookie sheet from oven and allow the cookies to stand until the cookies are firm enough to move to a wire rack. Decorate cookies after cooling with royal icing or any way you’d like.
Classic Sugar Cookies
Ingredients:
3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp milk
Powdered sugar, for rolling out dough
Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. Place butter and sugar in large bowl of electric stand mixer and beat until light in color. Add egg and milk and beat to combine. Put mixer on low speed, gradually add flour, and beat until mixture pulls away from the side of the bowl. Divide the dough in half, wrap in waxed paper, and refrigerate for 2 hours.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Sprinkle surface where you will roll out dough with powdered sugar. Remove 1 wrapped pack of dough from refrigerator at a time, sprinkle rolling pin with powdered sugar, and roll out dough to 1/4-inch thick. Move the dough around and check underneath frequently to make sure it is not sticking. If dough has warmed during rolling, place cold cookie sheet on top for 10 minutes to chill. Cut into desired shape, place at least 1-inch apart on greased baking sheet, parchment, or silicone baking mat, and bake for 7 to 9 minutes or until cookies are just beginning to turn brown around the edges, rotating cookie sheet halfway through baking time. Let sit on baking sheet for 2 minutes after removal from oven and then move to complete cooling on wire rack. Serve as is or ice as desired. Store in airtight container for up to 1 week.
*Recipe courtesy of Food Network – Alton Brown’s Sugar Cookies
Do you have a family favorite Christmas cookie recipe? If so, please share in the comments section below.
Loved reading about the Christmas cookie baking tradition
Thanks, Lynda!
Love the cookie recipes and all the memories that go with them. We treasure them in our hearts. We are blessed to have experienced those wonderful years
past.
Yes, they were wonderful times!