OK, I promise this is the last Christmas cookie recipe I feel it necessary to post this year. Because I am done baking cookies. (Or at least I hope I am done.)   

So, I’m not going to keep you long. You have much better things to do with your time than read anything more from me!

But before I close the cookie recipe section on this blog for 2024, I want to provide you with this fantastic Christmas sugar cookie recipe. The cookie part is exactly like my recipe for Pink Cookies. And I’m serious when I say that this is the best sugar cookie recipe I have ever tasted. So, if you need a last-minute cookie to serve on Christmas, this is it. And everyone will love it. Well, maybe not everyone, if lightly almond flavored cookies are not your thing. But for most of us, these cookies have everything going for them. They are crisp and the frosting is delicious. And they are pretty.

So, enough said. You want to make the perfect Christmas cookie? Well then, this is the recipe for you.

And as always at this most wonderful time of the year, peace and love to all.    

For the cookies:

1½ c. powdered sugar

1 c. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 egg, room temperature

1 tsp. vanilla

½ tsp. almond extract

2½ c. unbleached all-purpose flour, fluffed

pinch of salt

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cream of tartar

sprinkles

Cream sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Mix in egg, vanilla, and almond extract. Whisk together the flour, salt, soda, and cream of tartar in a small bowl. Stir into the butter mixture. Place dough on a long piece of plastic wrap. Using your hands, wrap the dough into the plastic gently shaping it into a round log about 1½-inches wide. Refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 375-degrees.

Un-wrap log and slice dough a generous 1/3-inch thick. Arrange slices, about 2-inches apart on parchment paper lined or lightly greased baking sheets. Bake until delicately golden, 12-15 minutes. (Do not under-bake.)

Remove from oven and cool on baking sheets for 1 to 2 minutes. Then carefully transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting (see recipe below). After frosting, immediately decorate with sprinkles. Gently push the sprinkles into the soft frosting with your fingers. Let the frosting set until hard and store the cookies in a tightly covered container hidden away from your family.

Note: if you prefer to cut the cookies into shapes, refrigerate dough for 2 hours. Roll out to generous 1/3-inch. (Do not roll any thinner. The thicker the cookie, the better the flavor.) Cut into favorite shapes. Arrange cookies, about 2-inches apart on parchment paper lined or lightly greased baking sheets. Bake until delicately golden for 12-15 minutes in a pre-heated 375-degree oven. (Do not under-bake.) Cool on baking sheets for 1 to 2 minutes; transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting. Top with sprinkles immediately. Push down lightly with your fingers to set the sprinkles in the frosting.

Let the frosting set and get hard before storing the cookies in an airtight container.

For the frosting:

⅓ c. unsalted butter, room temp.

4½ c. powdered sugar

tiny pinch sea salt  

¼ c. whole milk, plus more as needed

½ tsp. vanilla extract  

½ tsp. good almond extract

food coloring, if desired

Cream softened butter, powdered sugar, salt, milk, vanilla extract, and almond extract together with a mixer. Add more milk if necessary to reach desired consistency. Add food coloring (optional). (But, why not?) (It’s Christmas!)  

When you’re sending Christmas cookies to your grown kids, it’s always nice to include a couple of cookie choices just for any little one that might be visiting or living with them. So, this year I decided a sugar cookie with red and green M&M’s and sprinkles on top would fit the bill nicely. Along with a couple of other simple cookies I knew young children would love, I felt I’d covered any child over the age of two. What I didn’t take into consideration were the big kids, like my husband, who found these cookies to be delightful. Well, silly me! Next time I make Christmas cookies, I will be certain to make a double batch and send some along in every goodie package.  

I found the basic recipe for this cookie on the celebratingsweets.com site. I made a couple of slight changes only to make life a bit easier for myself. (It’s all about me, right?) Anyway, the cookies are so good. Just the right amount of everything that’s required in a great cookie.

So, if you too are looking for a “Christmas cookie for all ages”, I highly recommend you give this recipe a try.

And you know, these cookies could be made at any old time of year with regular M&M’s or chocolate, butterscotch, peppermint, etc. chips and/or nuts of any kind. This dough is worthy of any kind of addition you decide upon.

Well, that’s it for today. Being Mrs. Santa is not an easy job. And I didn’t even apply for the position. I think it must just come with being a woman. One of those jobs a lot of us women (and yes, some of you guys too) take on because if we didn’t do it, it probably wouldn’t get done. (Sound familiar.) But believe me, I am not complaining. I just feel lucky to still be able to bake cookies and make Christmas as nice as I can for the people I love. And the goodie packages are all in UPS’s capable hands, which is always a relief. (One job done, only 43 more to go!) Like a few more gifts to purchase, finding the time to decorate the house and even though our tree is up, it is still devoid of lights and ornaments, and get to all the other tasks on my “TO DO” list without ending up driving Mr. C. crazy or driving our kitties into temporary seclusion under the guest bed! But enough about my desire to be queen of Christmas!  

So, before I go any further, I want to recommend you read Out of the Darkness by David A. Jacinto. A truly fascinating and horrifying story of coal mining in England during the middle of the 19^th century. Beautifully written and just an amazing story of courage and the will to make a better life for yourself and the people you love.

May you too be the person who strives to make the best life possible for those you love.

And as always, from our home to yours, peace and love. And MERRY CHRISTMAS.

1½ c. plus 1 T. unbleached all-purpose flour, fluffed

1 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. fine sea salt

½ c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temp.

½ c. granulated sugar

⅓ c. brown sugar, lightly packed

1 lg. egg

2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1½ c. red & green M&M’s

holiday sprinkles

Line a baking sheet that will fit in your refrigerator with parchment paper.

In a bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, beat the butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar together until well combined.

Add the egg and vanilla extract, mixing until combined, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed.

At low speed, add the flour mixture and mix until just combined.

Gently stir in the M&M’s. (I use a plain table knife for this type of mixing. “Cuts” through the dough nicely and works much better than a spatula.)  

Place a small number of sprinkles in a small, shallow bowl. (You can always add more when needed)

Using a #40 (1½ tablespoons) ice cream scoop, form balls of cookie dough. Press the top of each ball into the bowl of sprinkles. Place on the prepared baking sheet, sprinkles side up, as close together as possible. Place the baking sheet in your refrigerator for a few hours or overnight.

When ready to bake, place the dough balls onto parchment paper lined baking sheets leaving an inch or two for spreading.

Bake in a pre-heated 350-degree oven for 8-11 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies are set but the center is still slightly underdone. This helps create a soft cookie.  

Remove from oven and place the baking sheets on wire racks and allow the cookies to cool completely. They will firm up as they cool.

Store in an airtight container.

OK, all you people out there with a fruitcake phobia (you really don’t know what you’re missing), have I got a cookie for you! And of course, for all you who already know the joy a truly good fruitcake can bring to your lives, these simple cookies are going to rock your socks. (Christmas stocking, of course!)

First, the base is shortbread. And who in their right mind doesn’t love shortbread above all other cookies. And then you add some glazed and candied fruit and sliced almonds just for the heck of it, and you have fruitcake heaven in every bite.

So, enough said today. I’ve got packages to get to UPS. Plus, attend one of Mr. C’s gigs this evening.

So, as always, peace and love to all. (Take a good deep breath Patti, and all will be just fine.)    

1 c. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temp.

1 c. powdered sugar

¾ tsp. vanilla

¼ tsp. almond extract

½ tsp. kosher salt

2 c. unbleached all-purpose flour, fluffed

½ c. red and green glazed maraschino cherries, roughly chopped  

¼ c. candied orange peel (the kind you use for fruitcake)

¼ c. sliced almonds

Beat the butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and almond extract together until smooth. In a separate bowl, mix the flour and salt together. Add the chopped glazed fruit, candied orange peel, and almonds to the flour and mix until all the fruit has been coated with flour. (I do this with my fingers.) With mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture, mixing just until the dough forms.

Divide dough in half. Place the first half on a long piece of plastic wrap. Using your hands, wrap the dough into the plastic wrap gently shaping it into a round log about 1¼-inch wide.  Do the same with the second half of the dough. Refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350-degrees. Un-wrap log and using a very sharp knife, slice dough 3/8-inch thick. (If dough feels really hard, leave at room temperature for 5 to 10 minutes before slicing).

Arrange slices, about 1-inch apart, on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake until lightly golden around the edges, 15 to 20 minutes. (Do not under-bake.) Cool on baking sheets for 1 to 2 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before storing in an airtight container.