Get into the holiday spirit with these 6 classic Christmas cookie recipes! We’ve gathered the best from the November 2023 edition of Seed & Sow Magazine. Prepare yourself for a scrumptious holiday season like never before.

Molasses Cookies 

Ingredients

• 6 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking soda
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 tablespoon ground ginger
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 1-1/2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
• additional ingredients (for each batch):
• 3/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 egg, room temperature
• 1/4 cup molasses
• Additional sugar

Directions

• In a large bowl, combine the first 9 ingredients. Divide into 3 batches; store in airtight containers in a cool, dry place for up to 6 months. Yield: 3 batches (9 cups total).
• To prepare cookies: Preheat oven to 375°. In a large bowl, cream butter until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Add egg and molasses; mix well. Add 3 cups cookie mix; beat until smooth.
• Shape into 1-in. balls and roll in sugar. Place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake until the edges are firm and the surface cracks, 9-11 minutes. Cool on wire racks.

Italian Holiday Cookies (Italian Knot Cookies)

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 6 Tbsp oil
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp almond, anise, or vanilla extract
• 2 cups flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 pinch salt

For the Glaze:

• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 tsp almond, anise, or vanilla extract
• 1 pinch salt
• 3 Tbsp cream or milk, warmed 

Directions

1. Whisk together eggs, oil, sugar, and extract in a mixing bowl. Stir in flour, baking powder, and salt.
2. Roll dough by tablespoonfuls into balls. Chill balls of dough for at least an hour, or freeze for 15-20 minutes.  Place cold dough balls on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. (Or, roll out a ball of dough into a medium-length strand and tie it into a knot. See how here.)
3. Bake at 350° for about 9 minutes, or till the tops are set. Bottoms will be lightly browned, but tops should still be white. Remove cookies to cooling racks and cool completely.
4. For glaze, combine all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk till smooth, adding enough warm cream to get a thin but creamy consistency.
5. Dip the tops of the cookies in the glaze, then top with sprinkles.

Gingerbread Men Cookies 

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1/3 cup molasses
• 1 large egg, room temperature
• 2 tablespoons water
• 2-2/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
• Frosting of choice

Instructions

• Cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Beat in molasses, egg, and water. In another bowl, whisk together the remaining ingredients minus frosting; gradually beat into the creamed mixture. Divide dough in half. Shape each into a disk; cover. Refrigerate until easy to handle, about 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350°. On a lightly floured surface, roll each portion of dough to 1/8-inch. thickness. Cut with a floured 4-in. gingerbread man cookie cutter. Place 2 in. apart on greased baking sheets.
• Bake until edges are firm, 8-10 minutes. Remove to wire racks to cool completely. Frost as desired.

Classic Snickerdoodle Cookies

Ingredients

For the cookie dough:

• 1 1/2 c. granulated sugar
• 2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp. cream of tartar
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 8 T. unsalted butter, softened
• 8 T. shortening (such as Crisco)
• 2 eggs

For rolling the cookies:

• 1/3 c. granulated sugar
• 1 T. ground cinnamon

Instructions:

1. In a small shallow bowl, combine the 1/3 cup sugar and cinnamon for rolling the cookies. Set aside.
2. Using an electric mixer, beat together butter, shortening, and 1 1/2 cups sugar on medium speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating about 30 seconds after each addition.
3. In a separate bowl, combine flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. Reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly add the flour mixture to the butter mixture. Mix for about 30 seconds until just combined.
4. For each cookie, roll 2 tablespoons of dough into a ball. Roll in cinnamon sugar to coat completely, and place on a cookie baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough, placing 2 inches apart on the baking sheet.
5. Bake at 375℉ until edges are set and just beginning to brown but middles are still puffy and soft, about 10 minutes.
6. Let cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes.  Use a spatula to transfer cookies to a wire cooling rack and let cool completely.

Old-Fashioned Peanut Butter Cookies 

Ingredients

• 1 cup shortening
• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 375°. In a large bowl, cream shortening, peanut butter, and sugars until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine flour, baking soda, and salt; add to creamed mixture and mix well.

Roll into 1-1/2-in. balls. Place 3 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Flatten with a meat mallet or fork if desired. Bake 10-15 minutes. Remove to wire racks to cool.

Tiny Tim’s Plum Pudding 

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 3/4 cup dry bread crumbs
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon grated orange zest
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 cans (15 ounces each) of plums, drained, pitted, and chopped
• 1-3/4 cups chopped dates
• 1 cup golden raisins
• 1 cup shredded carrots
• 1/2 cup dried currants
• hard sauce:
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3 cups confectioners’ sugar
• 1/4 cup dark rum or orange juice

Directions

Generously grease an ovenproof bowl; set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. In another bowl, mix bread crumbs, flour, orange zest, cinnamon, baking soda, nutmeg, salt, and cloves; gradually add to the creamed mixture. Fold in plums, dates, raisins, carrots, and currants.

Transfer to prepared bowl. Cover tightly with heavy-duty foil; tie foil with kitchen string to secure.

Place on a rack in a stockpot; add 3 in. hot water to the pot. Bring water to a gentle boil; steam cake, covered, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 2 to 2-1/2 hours, adding more water to the pot as needed. Remove pudding from pot; let stand 5 minutes before unmolding.

Meanwhile, in a bowl, beat hard sauce ingredients until smooth and creamy. Unmold pudding onto a serving plate; serve warm with sauce.

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 30th, 2023 at 11:38 am and is filed under News & Updates. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.