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There are so many Christmas cookie recipes around but often so little time to
bake during the busy holiday season.
The solution? A great tasting basic cookie recipe that quickly and easily turns
into such a variety of easy to make Christmas treats, friends and family will
think you poured over all your favorite Christmas cookie recipes.
Let's start with the basics.
Basic Cookie Dough Recipe
1/2 cup (or 1 stick) butter (or margarine) at room temperature
1/2 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients except the flour. Beat with an
electric mixer, scraping the sides of the bowl several times, until the mixture
is light and fluffy. With mixer at a low speed, add the flour gradually, beating
just until everything is well blended.
Place the mixture on a baking sheet using a tablespoon measure and press down
with a spoon to flatten a bit. Or roll our and cut into shapes with a cookie
cutter. Bake at 350ºF for about 12 to 15 minutes, until golden.
This basic cookie mixture is also the base for the following cookie recipes (all
baked in a preheated oven at 350ºF).
Orange Cookies (Makes about
32)
Add 1 tablespoon of grated orange zest to the recipe. Shape into a log that is
about 1 1/2" in diameter and refrigerate for 4 hours.
Slice dough into 1/4" thick slices. Place on cookie sheet. Cookies can be
decorated with candies, rolled in coloured sugar, or cut into pretty holiday
shapes before baking. Bake in preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, until lightly
browned.
Cherry Coconut Chocolate Squares
(Makes about 54 squares)
In addition to the basic dough you will need:
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3 cups flaked coconut
1/2 cup maraschino cherries, well drained and coarsely chopped
Line a 13"x9" baking pan with foil.
Stir cocoa powder into basic dough mixture. Press evenly into the prepared pan.
Bake for 10-15 minutes or until the crust looks dry.
In a medium bowl whisk together eggs, sugar, almond extract and baking powder
until well blended. Stir in coconut and cherries. Pour over the baked crust.
Bake for 30-35 minutes, until top just begins to brown and a toothpick inserted
near the centre comes out clean. Cool in the pan on a wire rack. Lift it out on
to a cutting board using the foil ends and cut into 1 1/2" squares. Squares can
be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.
Coconut Pineapple Cookies
(Makes about 36)
In addition to the basic dough you will need:
1 1/2 cups sweetened flaked coconut
1/3 cup pineapple preserves (use raspberry or apricot if you prefer)
Add 1 cup of the flaked coconut to the basic dough mixture and mix well. Shape
the dough into 1 1/2" balls and roll in the remaining coconut to coat them.
Place the balls 1" apart on lightly greased cookie sheets. Make a deep
indentation in the centre of each cookie with your fingertip.
Bake for 12-15 minutes until the cookie is firm and the coconut is lightly
toasted. When cooled, fill each hole in the centre of the cookies with the
preserves.
You can vary this basic dough to make a wide variety of Christmas cookie
recipes. Add other flavourings like maple, ginger or cinnamon. Add chopped dried
fruits like apricots or dates. Or bake them plain in holiday shapes and decorate
with coloured icing.
Christmas is such a wonderful time of year. Here's hoping these quick and easy
Christmas cookie recipes help keep the pressure off the cook.
Karen Ciancio is a cook and lover of all things food and cooking related. Her
website
http://www.cookingnook.com
contains easy dessert recipes, plus lots of other recipes, cooking tips,
measurement conversions and kitchen ideas.
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