Chocolate Gingerbread

These Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies are a new recipe for me this year.  I wanted a change from the rest of the cookies I make at Christmastime, which tend to be fairly "vanilla" in their flavouring.  But, I knew that moving too far away from the family favourites would mean a lot of leftovers in the cookie jar and was hesitant to go too far afield.

I ultimately chose Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread because all of the Christmas spices make it different than the rest of my cookie repertoire and the CHOCOLATE CHUNKS should keep everyone happy!  They were easy to make and turned out beautifully.

I haven't had the chance to share these cookies with anyone else yet, but I think this recipie will be a keeper.

Sugar Cookies

Yum!

Sugar cookies are one of those cookies that NEVER taste good when bought from the store, but are delicious homemade.  And, they are so fun to decorate.  I've made snowflakes for the past two or three years and I think I am ready to move on, but they have to be one of the most admired cookies I have ever made.  

Chewy, crunchy, sweet, perfection.  

Candy Cane Shortbread

My most festive cookie of the season!

Candy Cane Shortbread became an instant classic way back when I first started experimenting with baking after moving out on my own.  The first year I remember making them was 1997.  Yikes!

I can't recall where I got the recipe I originally used, but I now follow this Icebox Shortbread recipe.  I replace the vanilla with peppermint extract and top each cookie, before baking, with about half a  teaspoon of crushed candy canes.    They are perfect.  Minty and buttery, crispy and crumbly.

Preparing for tea and cookies with a friend.
My new (to me) tea pot!

Just add tea.

Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti

The fourth item on my Christmas baking agenda was Chocolate Hazelnut Biscotti.   This is my favourite biscotti recipe although I've never made it at Christmas before.  Biscotti is delicious and sturdy.  I think it will be a great addition to my cookie tins!

Shortbread

My Christmas baking has begun!  Beginning with last weekend, I plan to bake at least one batch of Christmas cookies per week until Christmas arrives.

And, first on display is . . . Martha Stewart's Basic Shortbread!  This seems a dull name for such a tasty cookie, but it is true that it is very simple.

Martha suggests dipping the cooled cookies in chocolate but, instead, I finished them off with a toss in vanilla bean scented sugar while they were still warm.  These cookies are so delicious, I've had to use a significant amount of willpower in order to avoid eating the whole batch.

Nothing says Christmas like shortbread!

Chocolate Chews

I am not sure how I came across the recipe for these cookies, but I had a craving for chocolate and limited ingredients in the cupboards.

As I was going for something light and sweet, I omitted the filling the recipe calls for and shaped the cookies into disks. The final product was a winner - easy to make, grain free, chewy and delicious.

I will be making these again. Soon.

Christmas Cookies - Outrageous Chocolate

So far, I've made my "must have Christmas cookie" and I've made my "most fun to make Christmas cookie". And now, I have also made my "absolute all-time-favourite cookie" - the Outrageous Chocolate Cookie. This cookie contains more chocolate than any other ingredient and you can taste it! They are chewy, dense treats and are basically brownies masquerading as cookies.

I made one regular batch and added crushed candy canes to a second batch (which are pictured here, but you can hardly tell that they contain candy cane pieces). And, almost impossibly, the Outrageous Chocolate Candy Cane Cookies are even better than the original! Yum!

Christmas Cookies - White Chocolate Candy Cane Drops

A lot of people are surprised when I tell them that I put candy canes in cookies, but cookie + peppermint candy is a delicious combination. Plus, candy cane pounding can be an excellent stress reliever!

I usually make Candy Cane Shortbread, but decided to try something new this year when I found a recipe for White Chocolate Candy Cane Drops in Better Homes and Gardens' 100 Best Cookies issue. Very minty and very festive!

My one caution about the recipe is that it says it makes 50 cookies while my batch only made 22. I did make them larger than the recipe called for, but they were not huge and, even at half the size, 50 would be stretching it.

Stay tuned for my next minty recipe!

Christmas Cookies - Classic Sugar, Take Two

After my first attempt at sugar cookies did not quite work out, I decided to go for it one more time.

And, it worked! Yay! No icing troubles here!

I cut my second batch as snowflakes and I must say that I love the white on white. I need to track down a more interesting snowflake cutter, but I think that snowflake sugar cookies will be a tradition from here on out.

Christmas Cookies - Classic Sugar

Last weekend was sugar cookie weekend! Sugar cookies are my favourite to make; they are practically edible art.

I used my regular Martha Stewart recipe.

I cut out many mittens, bows and trees.

I piped.

I flooded.

And I sprinkled.

Unfortunately, something went wrong with my Royal Icing (likely a speck of grease on a spoon or bowl) and it did not set properly. The cookies still taste good and look pretty (though not as pretty as I had planned), but they are bit too sticky to send to my parents and, as such, will be potluck cookies.

A vinegar bath awaits my baking supplies as I prepare for sugar cookie round two!

Christmas Cookies - Shortbread

I can't believe another year has passed! I feel like 2010 has just begun and yet I began my Christmas baking last weekend. I plan to bake at least one cookie recipe per week for the next four weeks. Most of these goodies will go to my parents, but there will be plenty of leftovers for every visitor, work gathering and party over the next month.

I began with Basic Shortbread. While shortbread is not my favourite eating cookie, it is one treat that the Christmas season isn't complete without. Yum!

Christmas Recovery Program

Oh dear, I seem to have gotten off track with my blogging. I've been cooking a lot and taking lots of pictures . . . but not making it as far as the final bloggy step. Life has been uncomfortably hectic lately for no apparent reason. I can't explain it, but I hope it stops.

In any case, the cooking part of life has been going well. I went home for Christmas and, while I NEED to be home for Christmas, it always takes a bit of recuperation after the fact. So, on New Year's weekend I had a major cleaning, cooking, baking fiesta of self care!

First, I made my last batch of Christmas cookies. It just had to be done:

Mmmm. Pecan Snowballs. Next, I baked some Cheesy Pull-Apart Bread. I just followed my standard whole wheat bread recipe, cut it into chunks after the first rise and tossed in about 1 cup of dill havarti. It turned out well, but I would add more cheese next time.

Finally, I made my absolute favourite soup: African Yam Peanut.

Self care complete!

Christmas Cookies - Week 3!

I didn't get around to baking quite as many types of cookies as I would have liked to this year, but I had to make sure to get in my favourites - Martha Stewart's Outrageous Chocolate Cookies.  These cookies are absolutely divine and always a big hit.  I made one batch with semi-sweet chocolate chunks (as the recipe calls for) and another with white chocolate chunks.  Both are amazing!

Christmas Cookies - Week 2!

This week was sugar cookie week.  Sugar cookies are one of my favourite things to bake.  I love the artistic aspect of them - the colours, the shapes and the sprinkles.  I did go a bit overboard this year though.  Between making some for a cookie exchange, some for my family and some for gifts, I think I made at least 12 dozen.  I am now ready for a sugar cookie break until Christmas 2009!

Sugar Cookies!

"Flooding" the cookies.

And done, yay!

Christmas Cookies - Week 1!

I'm not a Christian, but I grew up in a Christian home and I love Christmas.  For me, Christmas is more about the preparation and the  general sense of celebration than the actual day.  I love the rituals - the baking, the Christmas tree hunt, the decorating, the gift wrapping . . . all of it!  

I start my Christmas off by baking a different kind of cookies each week for the 5-6 weeks prior to Christmas.  My mom gives me a list of her selections (she tends to like spicy and simple cookies), I add in a few of my favorites (I like anything with chocolate or sprinkles) and I always try something new as well.   

This weekend I started off with shortbread.  I made two versions - traditional (mom's favorite) and peppermint (my favourite).  Mmmmm.

Traditional Shortbread

Peppermint Shortbread Stars