Holiday Cookie Extraordinaire

About author / Christine Gable

Culinary enthusiast; kids cuisine and slow cooking; magazine recipe developer; professional writer. Her simple recipes are great for family dinners.

The year I turned sixteen, a friend and I were inspired to dig into baking some Christmas cookies. My mom was all for it—and even gave us the money to go to the store and buy the ingredients. So we made a list of what we needed, and traveled out to find everything (it was so exciting to be driving!). I remember the challenge of making that list and wondering how much flour, sugar and butter to buy. I remember feeling unsure as to exactly how much was needed—all the more reason to give your kids the valuable experience of regularly cooking and shopping with you. Often it’s the little things that we don’t think about—like how much flour or sugar is in that 5-lb. bag—that can throw any beginning cook for a loop.

We zoomed back home to descend upon the kitchen in a sweet baking fury, and proceeded to measure, mix—and laugh—those cookies into being. It was even more fun with the company of a friend. It wasn’t drudgery or a “have to do it” task at all. And that’s the way I like to bake cookies. No matter if it’s the holiday season or not, cookies are not drudgery. Not only does everyone love to eat cookies, they’re just downright fun to bake. And best of all, they make the house smell divine.

In my case, I do adore Christmas cookies—the different varieties, the sprinkles, the icing .... Of course I usually end up eating way too many, but it sure is sweet oblivion while it lasts, especially with a cup of hot, freshly brewed coffee.

My favorite cookies are two that I grew up with—in fact, I think they originally came from the Betty Crocker Cookie Book: Chocolate Drops and Jubilee Jumbles. Both are drop cookies and both are iced with a not-too-sweet glaze that is sheer and utter perfection.

And yes, there are many individual tasks that can be shared with little (or bigger) fingers, from measuring the sugar and unwrapping the butter, to spreading each cooled cookie with a dollop of icing. If you have toddlers, gather them together to stir and mix by hand while you do the hot oven duty.

If you have elementary kids at hand, it’s another ideal way to learn measurement. What better way to bring those lessons home than to scoop out flour, sugar and butter by ¼ or ½ cup, and determine the difference between teaspoons and tablespoons? And if you’ve got junior or senior high kids, you’re in luck. You can set them loose with a favorite recipe (or two!) and just be available to answer questions.

Cookies are the perfect complement to your family’s holiday celebration—be it Kwanzaa, Hanukkah or Christmas. With the only caveat being not to down too many in one sitting—lest it lead to packing on too many holiday pounds. But cookies really are one of the best ways to get kids into the kitchen. After all, who really doesn’t like cookies?

What are your family’s favorite holiday cookies? Do you have a few kinds that you make every year? Is there a special recipe that has been passed down through your family for generations? Yes, no or maybe … it’s probably a safe bet to figure that sometime during this season of merriment and festivity that a cookie (or several ?!) will pass your lucky lips.

Serves/Makes: 72

• 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 3/4 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup evaporated milk*
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup chocolate chips

***Glaze***

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 cups confectioner's sugar (10X sugar)
• 1/4 cup (more or less) evaporated milk