We all have our own unique holiday traditions that make this time of year so special. It might not seem like much, but baking Christmas cookies is what my family is known for. We bake anything from peanut butter blossoms to comfort balls; you name it and we’ll make it. I have such fond memories of decorating the treats with my father and taste testing with my mother. Now, I’ve taken on the small but time consuming task of baking sugar cookies each year and have decided to share the process with all of you!
Since my family isn’t too picky and I’d rather spend my time decorating, I don’t make my sugar cookie dough from scratch. I find rolling out the dough to be almost therapeutic and really enjoy choosing my 3-4 different cookie cutter shapes for the year. This year I’ve gone with tree, mitten, and snowflake shapes. Don’t forget, flour is crucial at this stage (and it’s an added bonus that it resembles snow)!
Once I’ve finished baking my cookies, I let them cool for at least 30 minutes. This is extremely important for decorating with icing so that it hardens rather than melts. While my cookies are cooling, I decide on the different icing colors I’ll need. I always create a white icing and from there make several small batches of different accent colors. This year I’ve only used white, green, and red.
Now comes the fun part, decorating! I usually put on some Christmas music, light a candle, and zone out. You can be as creative as you’d like but you certainly don’t need to be a pastry chef. The important thing is to enjoy yourself and make memories with your loved ones! I tend to set my standards high and layer the icing to create detailed designs then finish them off with little candies.
Baking a standard sugar cookie isn’t anything special, but I wanted to share a little bit of my Christmas tradition with all of you. I hope you’ve enjoyed going through this process with me and that I’ve inspired you as you begin baking your treats soon! I won’t be posting next week since I’ll be traveling for the holidays and I’d like to enjoy my time with family. However, I have a BIG surprise once I’m back that I can’t wait to share with all of you. Happy holidays!
What is your favorite type of Christmas cookie? Share in the comments!
These look delicious!!! How long did it take to ice those? Especially that tree with all the snow!! OMG
Thanks, Walter! It took about 3 hours to decorate them all since you have to wait for the icing to dry between layers 🙂
These are so cute, I love them
xo
http://www.laurajaneatelier.com
Thank you so much, Laura!
Looks yummy! Love the cookies!
Xoxo,
Love from http://www.trangscorner.com {a lifestyle, fashion, beauty, and food blog}
Thanks, they were delicious! 😉
What a special family memory. These turned out beautifully. My family always used homemade frosting but it’s not as smooth. Thanks for the royal icing link. I’ve been looking for one that doesn’t ask for egg whites. #blogboost
Thank you, Leilani! Make sure to sift your confectionary sugar when you make the icing and have a toothpick handy for any air bubbles!
those look so god, i think i need to make our house some cookies tonight. just need to buy some coloring stuff.
Awesome, Nicole! Hope they turn out great and enjoy baking!
I do these every year! It’s a holiday tradition in our house!
Isn’t it such a wonderful tradition?!
love the textured snowflakes!
XO JNESS
jenessasheffield
Thank you! 🙂
These look adorable and delicious! Happy Holidays!
Thank you so much, Alice! Happy holidays to you as well 🙂
I love the gloves-shaped cookies! They look really yummy. I doubt that they would look like this if I’d bake them 😀
Thank you, Kathrin! Practice definitely makes perfect, it’s taken me years to get my icing to this level and I still want to refine it! 🙂
These look really lovely! I am always decorating with kids now and the results are far less clean, ha!
Thanks, Stephanie! I’m sure you’re making really great memories 😀
Michelle,
My favorite cookie is peanut butter with a hershey kiss. I can’t wait to see what your surprise is when you return. Have a wonderful holiday with your family.
Jenn
That’s another one of my favorite types of cookies as well, Jenn! Hope you and your family enjoyed the holiday 🙂
I only eat sugar cookies at Christmas. Yours are so pretty! I’m usually not a fan of regular sugar cookie icing, so ours are a bit messy to eat with regular icing!
Thank you so much, Tara! Hope you had a wonderful Christmas 🙂
I too love making sugar cutout cookies during the holidays. Yours look very cute and beautiful 🙂
Looks so beautiful and delicious!