Want To Impress Your Friends With Your Incredible Baking Skills? Check Out These 3 AWESOME Holiday Cookie Recipes
When it comes to our love for cookies, Santa’s elves have nothing on us. It’s that time of year when our ovens get even more love than our stoves — nothing feels more Christmas-y than biting into a fudgy, homemade confection.
Despite our eternal devotion to the good ol’ chocolate-chip variety, the season really calls for more imaginative creations. Who better to ask for inspiration than Christina Tosi, the woman who brought us the incredibly addictive compost cookie? The Momofuku Milk Bar lady-in-charge has created three exclusive recipes that put a holiday spin on our favorite complement to a glass of milk. If you’re somehow on the fence about the idea of a candy-cane pretzel crumble, the less-than-20-minutes hands-on time will surely win you over. Check out the recipes below as Tosi walks us through the step-by-step to the sweetest stocking stuffers ever.
Recipe #1: Pretzel, Chocolate Chip & Candy-Cane Squares
Makes about 2 dozen squares
Ingredients
11 tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp peppermint extract
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp kosher salt
2 cups mini pretzels
18 candy canes, crushed
2 cups mini chocolate chips
Instructions
1. Heat oven to 325°F and grease and flour a 9 x 13-inch pan.
2. Combine the butter, light brown sugar and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and cream together on medium-high for 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the egg and vanilla and peppermint extracts, then beat for another 2 to 3 minutes.
3. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour, baking powder and salt. Mix just until the dough comes together, no longer than 1 minute. (Keep your eye on the mixer, or you will risk overmixing the dough.) Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.
4. Still on low speed, add the mini pretzels, crushed candy canes and mini chocolate chips and mix just until incorporated, about 30 seconds.
5. Press the dough into the prepared baking dish, using the spatula to even out the surface. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or just until top is a golden brown. The center will still be soft and fudgy.
6. Cool the bars completely in the baking dish before cutting into squares and transferring to a plate or airtight container for storage.
At room temperature, the squares will keep for 5 days; in the freezer, they will keep for 1 month.
Recipe #2: Malted Chocolate Mocha Cookie
Makes about 1 dozen cookies
Ingredients
16 tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cup Ovaltine, malt flavor
1 egg
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
2 oz 55% chocolate, melted
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup cocoa powder, preferably Valrhona
3 tsp ground coffee
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 3/4 tsp kosher salt
1. Combine the butter, sugar, and Ovaltine in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and cream together on medium-high for 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the egg, vanilla, and melted chocolate, and beat for 7 to 8 minutes.
2. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour, cocoa powder, ground coffee, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Mix just until the dough comes together, no longer than 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.
3. Using a 1/3 cup measure, portion out the dough onto a parchment-lined sheet pan. Pat the tops of the cookie dough domes flat. Wrap the sheet pan tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or up to 1 week. Do not bake your cookies from room temperature — they will not bake properly.
4. Heat the oven to 375°F. Arrange the chilled dough a minimum of 4 inches apartment on parchment- or Silpat-lined sheet pans. Bake for 18 minutes. The cookies will puff, crackle, and spread.
5. If, after 18 minutes, the cookies still seem doughy in the center, give them another minute in the oven, but not more.
6. Cool the cookies completely on the sheet pans before transferring to a plate or airtight container for storage.
At room temperature, the cookies will keep for 5 days; in the freezer, they will keep for 1 month.
Recipe #3: Cranberry Pie Cookies
Makes about 1 dozen cookies
Ingredients (Cinnamon Streusel)
3/4 cup flour
3/4 cup old-fashioned oats
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp kosher salt
6 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions (Cinnamon Streusel)
1. Heat the oven to 325°F.
2. Combine the flour, oats, light brown sugar, salt and cinnamon in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and paddle on low speed until well mixed.
3. Add the butter and vanilla and paddle on low speed until the mixture starts to come together in small clusters.
4. Spread the clusters on a parchment- or Silpat-lined sheet pan. Bake for 25 minutes, breaking them up occasionally. The streusel should be auburn brown and still slightly moist to the touch at that point; they will dry and harden as they cool.
Ingredients (Cookies)
16 tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
light brown sugar
1/4 cup glucose (can substitute half the volume with corn syrup)
2 eggs
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
cinnamon streusel
1 1/2 cups dried cranberries
Instructions (Cookies)
1. Combine the butter, sugars, and glucose in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and cream on medium-high for 2 to 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the eggs, and beat for 7 to 8 minutes.
2. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix just until the dough comes together, no longer than 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.
3. Still on low speed, add the cinnamon streusel and mix until they’re incorporated, no more than 30 seconds. Chase the cinnamon streusel with the dried cranberries, mixing them in for 30 seconds.
4. Using a 1/3-cup measure, portion out the dough onto a parchment-lined sheet pan. Pat the tops of the cookie dough domes flat. Wrap the sheet pan tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or up to 1 week. Do not bake your cookies from room temperature — they will not bake properly. 5. Heat the oven to 350°F. Arrange the chilled dough a minimum of 4 inches apart on parchment- or Silpat-lined sheets pans. Bake for 18 minutes.
6. After 18 minutes, they should be very faintly browned on the edges yet still bright yellow in the center; give them an extra minute or so if that’s not the case.
7. Cool the cookies completely on the sheet pans before transferring to a plate or to an airtight container for storage. Garnish plate with fresh cranberries to serve.
At room temperature, the cookies will keep fresh for 5 days; in the freezer, they will keep for 1 month.
Hope you enjoy these three AH-mazing holiday recipes!
Source: Venus Wong via Refinery29
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