Ahhh, it's finally December! It's now socially acceptable to put up Christmas decorations, listen to Christmas music, and take part in one of my favorite holiday activities: baking. My family loves, loves, loves making cookies during this season, especially if there's music in the background, we're laughing, and it's just a good time. It's what I think the holidays should be all about. But you didn't come here for seasonal normalities, you came for cookies!! Since we've made a lot of cookies over the years, I have a few favorites I want to share with you.
Jam Thumbprints. These cookies are pretty easy to make and my favorite ones to make during this season. They're sugar cookies at their core, but they're special to me because 1) you don't roll them out, you keep the batter rolled into balls and 2) there's jam! Once rolled, you simply stick your thumb into them to make a little dent and put a small bit of the jam of your choice inside (not a lot though, otherwise, it will flow over when cooking). You could do whatever kind of jam tickles your fancy, but I have always made them with either grape, raspberry, or strawberry jam, which are heavenly. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes and you're done!
Sugar Cookies. Okay, this seems really basic for the season, but hear me out. Sugar cookies are one of, if not, the most, versatile cookie someone could bake. You make them into different holiday shapes, decorate them how you want, etc. I actually made sugar cookies the other day with one of my friends and she puts almond extract into her batter, which gave the cookies a boost of flavor. See, versatile! I believe that sugar cookies are just a blank slate to make it how you want, so maybe that's why they're so popular in this time.
Snickerdoodles. I'm going to be honest: snickerdoodles are my favorite flavor of cookie. I don't know, there's just something about the buttery cookie, the cinnamon-sugar topping...they're just amazing! Snuggling up on the couch with a fuzzy blanket, snickerdoodle cookies, and a cup of hot chocolate is the way I would like to spend my holiday nights. They're also super easy to make, and that's a good quality for a cookie to have. Snickerdoodles for the win!
Well, since there's only two weeks until break, that means that there's a lot of time for baking all of this fun cookies, and even some favorites of your own. Happy holidays and happy baking Kilbourne!