The Art of Christmas Cookies
Why do we eat cookies for Christmas? For lots of us, it is not Christmas without cookies. Kids leave cookies out for Santa, we spend weeks baking and decorating, and there is always a plate or two of cookies at any party, but why do we do we make Christmas cookies? I read an article recently stating the rise of the tradition of Christmas cookies started when cookie cutters were invented. It also said that historians believe the tradition of leaving Santa cookies begun during the Great Depression, as a way for parents to encourage generosity in their children. The tradition stuck, and Santa isn’t in danger of needing a smaller suit any time soon!
I know for my family every year we block out a day before the holidays where we make cookies together. My mom, sister, and I have been doing this for as long as I can remember. We gain and lose a few family members each year, but you can always count on the three of us to have our aprons on and baking up a storm.
We have our “must haves” that everyone in the family loves but we also try to introduce a new cookie each year. This year I am going to try my hand at a ginger-molasses cookie. I saw this on a Hallmark Christmas movie and it not only sounded delicious it looked delicious! Some of the other cookies we make are chocolate chip, peanut butter kiss, no bake, Mexican wedding cookie, and decorated sugar cookies.
I have a love/hate relationship with sugar cookies. I can never get my sugar cookies to turn out. They always swell up and fill the entire pan and make one giant sugar cookie. This year I reached out to my friend and roommate from college, Courtney to see how she gets her cookies so perfect and if she would be willing to share some tips and tricks. She not only shared her sugar cookie recipe but also her frosting recipe. Courtney even said she went as far as getting a scale to weigh all her ingredients. I can tell you I will not be doing that, but I will try to follow her steps as best I can. Here are a couple of her tips
- Butter vs. margarine. Margarine will affect the spread and texture of final result.
- Do not scoop the flour out of the bag or canister. Spoon it first to fluff it up then spoon it out into the measuring cup. This helps the flour get air and keeps it fluffy.
- Measure everything precisely.
I rarely measure. I am a make it up as you go kind of chef. I have learned the hard way this is not true for baking. Courtney said to me the other day, “cooking is an art and baking is a science,” and boy is that true. With that being said, I am going to give sugar cookies one more chance and hope they turn out. My sister said every year you try them and every year we toss them. Well this is my year, friends. This year my sugar cookies will turn out and I will have Hallmark worthy cookies!
Do you and your family bake cookies? What are some of your favorite cookies? We’d love to see pictures!