Christmas Cookie Series #4: Sugar Cookies

Growing up, I was never a fan of sugar cookies. 

I thought they were boring and the taste was, meh. 

Once I started baking I knew that I needed to conquer this cookie and I set out to find the perfect recipe. 

After trying a few recipes and being disappointed with it's outcome I decided that it wasn't the recipe and that it was me. 

But that all changed when someone passed along this recipe to me while I was in hair school. 

And I've now realized that it actually wasn't me, it was other people's recipes. 

The truth is rough sometimes.

But I am forever grateful that I now have a delicious sugar cookie recipe for my recipe box.

This cookie is so easy and it calls for just a few ingredients. I hope you all enjoy!

Ingredients
makes approx. 3 dozen, depending on size of cookie
  
8oz package of cream cheese, room temp
1 1/2 sticks of salted butter, room temp
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda  

In a large mixing bowl, cream together cream cheese, butter, sugar and vanilla. Next, add in flour and baking soda. Mix until well combined. Cover your mixing bowl with plastic wrap and chill in your fridge for 20 minutes.
While your dough is chilling, preheat oven to 350 degrees.

*Here is my tip for rolling the dough and transferring your cookie cutouts. Use the precut parchment baking sheets. Lay a sheet out on your working surface and lightly flour it. Dump your dough onto the parchment and roll it out there. Once you've cut your cookie shapes and peeled away the excess dough, carefully transfer the paper with your cookie cutouts onto your baking sheet.

Bake for 8-12 minutes, or until edges are slightly golden (9 min for me).
Let your cookies cool for 1 minute on the baking sheet before transferring them to a cooling rack.
Cool them for at least an hour before attempting to decorate or you will have a big melt-y, frosting mess.

For the icing I use this recipe. It's a glace icing and it's amazing. I love the way royal icing looks but I cannot stand the taste. I find it quite disgusting actually. This icing is awesome. It hardens enough to decorate and package but is actually tasty and enjoyable to eat. So check it out, and use it. You won't regret it.

To see the rest of this Christmas cookie series, you can check it out here

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Christmas Cookie Series #3: Thumbprint cookies

I am back in the kitchen baking up my favorite Christmas time cookies. 

I took the week...okay, 2 weeks off but I am getting my act together and whipping a few batches to get us caught up. 

Has anyone ever had the Ghiradelli chocolate filled thumbprint cookies? They are delicious and I cannot find the boxed mix ANYWHERE! It is super depressing.

I figured, if I can't find the mix anywhere, I'll just have to try to whip up my own batch.

So, today I am sharing these little chocolate filled thumbprint cookies. They are so easy to make and will make a great addition to your Christmas cookie platters.

Ingredients
makes approx. 2 dozen
original recipe here

2 sticks salted butter, room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
teeny tiny, pinch of salt
2 1/2 cups flour

chocolate filling
1/2 bag of good quality, milk chocolate chips
4 tbs unsalted butter
*1 tsp light corn syrup

Preheat oven to 350
In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together softened butter, powdered sugar, vanilla and salt. Mix for 2 minutes on medium/high speed. Slowly add in flour and mix on medium speed until well combined.

Take a tablespoon size of dough and roll into a ball. Place dough balls 1 inch apart on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes, remove from the oven and press *thumb* into the center of the dough to make an indentation. Place the cookies back in the oven for another 6-8 minutes, until the edges are light brown. Remove from the oven and place cookies on cooling rack.

 Once your cookies have cooled, make your chocolate filling. Place chocolate chips, butter, and corn syrup in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave in 30 second increments, stirring each time, until your chocolate is melted and smooth. Carefully fill your cookies with the melted chocolate.

 *I use the back of a teaspoon to make my "thumb" print. I don't know about you, but sticking my finger into a hot cookie and burning the crap out of it just doesn't sound enjoyable. But if you're into that kind of thing, then by all means, go ahead and stick your finger into the lava cookie

* I made my chocolate filling sans corn syrup because I didn't want to buy a giant bottle to only use a tsp of it. So I opted out of it just added extra butter to my chocolate to help smooth it out and keep it runny. I probably used an extra tbs of butter. I think next time I will actually buy the corn syrup. The butter just made the chocolate a tad too...buttery and rich.

I hope you guys enjoy these

 and if you've missed my past posts you can check them out here.

Christmas Cookie Series #2: Rolo Cookies

Sorry, I am a day late in posting this recipe. Our trip from last weekend wiped me out. but that's another story and another blog post.

I have been making these cookies for the past 6 years, every Christmas, without fail.

 These are one of my husbands favorites. 

They do take a little extra time, just because you are having to unwrap a million little Rolos, and then you have to fold them inside of the cookie dough. 

But for the few extra minutes it takes you, it's well worth it. I promise these will be a hit for any cookie exchange, party, or self devouring.

Ingredients
makes approx. 4 dozen

2 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup cocoa
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp  salt
1 cup salted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
Bag of Rolo candies, unwrapped
extra sugar, for rolling dough in (about 1/4 cup)

Preheat oven to 375. Prepare your baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

Unwrap approx. 48 Rolos. Maybe a few extra because you will most likely eat a few along the way.

In a medium sized bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

In large bowl with a mixer, cream together the butter and sugars until smooth. Next add in your eggs
and mix. Scrape down the sides and add in vanilla extract and mix until blended.

Now slowly add in the flour mixture to the sugar mixture and mix until well combined. 
With a small sized cookie scoop, or spoon, take enough dough to wrap around one Rolo. It should make about a 1 inch sized cookie dough ball. Make sure the Rolo is completely covered.

Next take a bowl with 1/4 cup sugar and roll the dough ball until its completely covered in sugar. Place the dough ball on your prepared baking sheet.

Bake for 7-10 minutes. *7 minutes is perfect for me.
Remove from the oven and let it cool on the sheet for just a few minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack.

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Christmas Cookie Series: Pinecone Sugar Cookies

Now that November has finally arrived, I am ready to launch my Christmas cookie series! 

I am so excited for this...and so is my husband.  

I have been planning this since the beginning of the year. 

No joke.

There is just something about this time of the year that makes me want to bake all day long. 

Except I don't, because of the whole having to clean all the dishes, thing.

This series will not only have cookie recipes but ideas for decorating them. 

I am not a professional nor do I really know what I am doing, but hopefully that will help the average baker in not feeling so intimidated at attempting any of these ideas.

So pull out those fat pants, because the next 7 weeks are going to be filled with sugary, sweet cookies! 

To start us off, here's a little peek at these pine cone, chocolate sugar cookies I slaved over today. 

I'm not quite ready to share the cookie recipe yet because the ones I made were so awful. 

But I couldn't resist not sharing the pictures these little beauts. 

And maybe it's just me, but I'm kind of in love with how these turned out.

 

Stay tuned for a few of my favorite Christmas tradition cookies! 

And I would love to know if you have any traditional cookies you have to make every holiday season? 

Comment below to let me know! I'd love to try a few new recipes this year :)

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