Classic Christmas Cookies Recipes

Christmas Fortune Cookies

Ingredients:

• 3 egg whites
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon instant tea (not iced tea!)
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1/2 cup melted margarine
• food colorings if desired (paste work best)
• fortunes on slips of paper

Directions:

Cream the egg whites, sugar, and salt thoroughly in a medium bowl.

Mix in the remaining ingredients in order, except for the fortunes. Cover the bowl and chill for 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease a cookie sheet.

Set out a few muffin tins and clean white cotton gloves.

Do not shape and bake more than 2 cookies at a time or else you will be in big trouble.

For each cookie, drop 1 teaspoonful of batter onto the prepared cookie sheet.

Gently spread the batter with the back of a spoon to make about a 3-inch circle.

Bake for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the edges just barely turn light brown.

Very quickly remove the cookie sheet from the oven.

Slide one cookie off of the sheet with a spatula and place on the counter or table.

Wearing the cotton gloves, place a fortune in the center of the circle and bring 2 sides of the cookie into the center and pinch to form a traditional fortune cookie shape.

Place the folded cookie carefully in a muffin tin to cool without losing its shape. Repeat the process.

If cookies get too stiff to mold, place the cookie sheet back in the oven for 30 seconds.

Store the cookies in an airtight container.

Eggnog Cookies

Ingredients:

• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 2/3 cup unsalted butter
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup eggnog
• 1/2 cup finely crushed butterscotch candies
• 1 recipe eggnog glaze (follows)
• additional nutmeg

Directions:

Mix together dry ingredients.

Cut in butter until the pieces are the size of peas. Make a well in the center. In a small bowl beat together the egg and eggnog until well mixed.

Pour the eggnog mixture into the well and stir until moistened.

Cover the dough and chill for at least 3 hours. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with foil and lightly grease.

Roll out the dough on a well floured surface to 1/4 inch thickness. Using cookie cutters in two sizes, cut out cookies.

Cut out cookies with the large cutter first, and then cut out centers with the smaller cutter. Reroll the dough and continue to cut.

Place the cookies on the foil lined cookie sheet about 1 inch apart from each other. Sprinkle the crushed candies into the center of the cookies.

Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the edges are firm and lightly golden brown. Cool the cookies on the sheets for 5 minutes.

Transfer the foil with the cookies attached to a baking rack. Once the cookies are cooled, carefully remove the foil from the bottoms of the cookies.

Spread the tops with eggnog glaze and sprinkle with additional crushed candy and/or nutmeg if desired.

How to make the eggnog glaze

Mix 3 cups sifted powdered sugar, 1/2 teaspoon rum extract, and 2 tablespoons eggnog.

Article © Itsxmastime.com