HOLIDAY COOKIE SWAP

Food is my love language, especially at holiday time. It’s how I make an extra effort for those I love. It’s how I celebrate. It’s how I show support. It’s how I relax. It’s how I let the people in my life know I care. There’s a magic that happens when you gather with family and friends for a meal. There’s a deeper meaning in sharing what nourishes are bodies and our souls. Call me food-obsessed, but there really is nothing else quite like it.

Most of my favorite holiday memories have something to do with this magic; like the Christmas my grandmother taught me to bake an apple pie from scratch, my Nana eating steamed squid out of a bowl of hot water (which I realize sounds gross, but if you’re Italian you get it!), the Thanksgiving my Aunt dropped the baked yams all over the floor (still makes me laugh), my mother’s baked brie on the table every Christmas, or the countless cherished family recipes prepared and shared every single year.

And half the fun in making this magic is in the preparation- specifically when it comes to baking Christmas cookies. Year after year, my Mom and I roll up our sleeves, blast Christmas music, sing at the top of our lungs, and whip up batches of tasty treats for those we love most. Nothing makes my heart happier…except for maybe getting new friends involved.

I’ve teamed up with some of my fellow Boston bloggers- Boston Chic Party, It’s Kristin, Threads N Breads, What’s For Dinner Esq, Brunch on Sunday, The Boston Day Book, and Peachfully Chic – to share our favorite holiday cookie recipes via a virtual cookie swap. And you are cordially invited to join us for a little bit of magic and a whole lot of baking.

 

Chocolate Mint Snow-Top Cookies

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

6 TBSP butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 1.2 tsp. vanilla

2 eggs

Confectioner’s sugar

10 oz (1 1/2 cups) mini chocolate chips

1 bag of Hershey’s Holiday Candy Cane Kisses

 

DIRECTIONS

Combine flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Set aside. Melt 1 cup of chocolate chips. Stir until smooth.

Beat butter and sugar until creamy. Add melted chips and vanilla. Beat in eggs. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in remaining 1/2 cup of chocolate chips. Wrap dough in plastic wrap. Freeze until firm.

Preheat over to 350 degrees. Shape dough into 1 inch balls. Roll in confectioner’s sugar. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes. After one minute, transfer to a cooling rack and place one Hershey’s Holiday Candy Cane Kiss on top of each cookie.

 

Molasses Cookies from Boston Chic Party

 

 

 

 

Creme de Menthe Brownies from It’s Kristin

 

 

 

 

Coconut Ginger Chocolat Chip Oatmeal Cookies from Boston Day Book

 

 

 

 

Ooey Gooey Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookie by Threads N Breads

 

 

 

 

 

Holiday Compost Cookie from What’s For Dinner Esq.

 

 

 

 

Rocky Road Fudge from Brunch on Sunday

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

No Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies from Peachfully Chic

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Get baked. Wear you are now.

xx

Natalie