First Christmas Cookie Blitz

Alright, new life skill acquired! Earned the Cookie Badge. I feel like I’m in Girl Scouts again. Except when you grow up, you actually have to bake, and don’t make any money. Now that I think about it, buying Thin Mints is so much easier…

But it’s the Experience

I learned how to concoct a variety of holiday cookies in just one short afternoon. Joe was working on his parents’ neighbor’s furnace, so I made cookies with his mom. A better deal if you ask me. I ended up making a few more batches on my own, but the bulk of them here.

Ye be warned – Going into a cookie blitz, you’re in for a detail-heavy day. Those with limited multi-tasking abilities need not apply. Also, must be great at managing cooking and chilling times for multiple baking projects. Some taste testing required for QA.

Here’s the yield:

These were simple! Gotta take the easy victories where I can, ya know? Just mix a box of brownie mix into mini muffin tins, and pop a Hershey’s kiss on top when they’ve cooled just enough. We made them with cherry and peppermint kisses.

Sugar cut-outs with icing/frosting. Do you say icing or frosting? Anyway, they are Steve, Michael and Jeff’s favorites. I made some cotton candy flavored ones later because these fly like hot cakes. A classic I guess! And you can’t tamper with a classic.

Bust out the big guns. These are serious business! Year after year, I’d gaze longingly at my mom’s vintage Betty Crocker cookbook at the spritz page. The prettiest cookie of them all. I would just look at them and sigh, never knowing they could be attained. Never allowed to make them.

Now I know why! The spitz press is a delicate piece of equipment. Basically you fill the canister with colored cookie dough, put a metal shape at the end and crank them out onto a pan. So many little cookie patters. They take some time, but they were 100% worth it. And they’re even better than I imagined! What do you think Betty?

Gingersnaps were a request to my mom and grandma. They make oh-so-yummy molasses cookies with real ginger.

Do we have an award for most team spirit? Or perhaps next year they’ll win most improved… These Wagon Wheels/Crinkle Cookies didn’t turn out quite like they should have. I oopsed and added the powdered sugar to the mix instead of rolling them in it after.

Oh so that’s what they should look like? Nailed it!

But these were my absolute favorite! I stumbled on this recipe for Cranberry Pistachio Cookies online and they are SO good. If you like cranberries and pistachios, that is. The recipe is simple. I’m going to just call them Green Grinch Cookies.

I would recommend baking them a few extra minutes, if your cookies were a little big like mine. Don’t tease them, they’re self conscious. Yum, this Cherry Pistachio recipe looks great too!

A little tin of cookie love.

So there it is, my riveting tale of cookie baking. Joe doesn’t get to have all the fun. He’s been building a snowboarding ramp and fixing his snowmobile, but we have a ton of projects in the making.

Oh and I got to play with a KitchenAid mixer for the first time! I’m hooked. Next year, let’s do a cookie swap. Who’s in? I’m ready. How was everybody’s Christmas?