The habit of making Christmas cookies is traditional in many cultures. Not only is it a well-known dish, but it is also part of the holiday spirit that adds cheer and joy to Christmas celebrations.
Christmas cookies can range from classic butter dough recipes to fantastic creations with icing and filling. Here are a few popular Christmas cookie recipes.
Citrus lemon cracked lemon cookies
Это печенье с цитрусовым ароматом, обычно имеет легкую кислинку и приятную свежесть. Готовится на основе масла, сахара, яиц, муки и лимонной цедры. После выпечки печенье можно залить сахарной глазурью для большего вкусового удовольствия.
Ingredients for making lemon cookies:
- 250 g soft butter (natural butter is best)
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla sugar
- 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
- 3 cups wheat flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder (baking soda)
- Juice of half a lemon
How do you make citrus lemon crackle cookies?
- Ingredient Preparation: Remove the butter from the refrigerator an hour before cooking to allow it to soften. Strain the lemon juice and grate the lemon zest.
- Dough preparation: In a large bowl, combine the soft butter and sugar, beating with an electric mixer or by hand until the cream is loose and airy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating until smooth after each addition. Add vanilla extract or vanilla sugar, grated lemon zest and the juice of half a lemon. Mix well.
- Adding flour: Gradually add the wheat flour and baking powder (baking soda) to the bowl with the dough. Mix until the mixture is homogeneous and a soft, elastic dough is formed.
- Shaping and baking: Divide the dough into several pieces. Use your hands to form them into small balls or use cookie cutters with different shapes (Christmas trees, stars, etc.). Arrange the cookies on baking trays covered with baking paper. Leave some space between each cookie as it may enlarge during baking.
- Baking: preheat the oven to 180°C. Place the trays of cookies in the oven for about 10-12 minutes or until the cookies are golden around the edges.
- Cookies ready: Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool slightly before transferring them to a rack for final cooling.
This way, you’ll have a great lemon Christmas cookie that is perfect for the holiday table. Bon appetit!
Gingerbread: Christmas recipe
These gingerbread men are often prepared in the shape of different symbols that are associated with Christmas. The main ingredients are honey, butter, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, flour and baking soda. They can be decorated with icing or colored sugar.
Ingredients for making gingerbread gingerbread:
- 125 g butter (it is better to use natural butter)
- 1 cup honey
- 1 egg
- 4 cups wheat flour
- 1 teaspoon of baking soda
- 1 teaspoon of ginger powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
- additional flour for sprinkling on the work surface
How to make Christmas gingerbread:
- Ingredient Preparation: Remove the butter from the refrigerator an hour before cooking to allow it to soften and come to room temperature.
- Preparing the batter: In a large bowl, melt the butter along with the honey over low heat. Stirring constantly, add the baking soda, ground ginger, cinnamon and cloves. Allow the mixture to cool.
- Add flour: Gradually add the whole wheat flour to the bowl with the butter-honey mixture. Mix until you have a smooth dough. If the dough remains very sticky, add a little extra flour.
- Shape the gingerbread: preheat the oven to 180°C. Roll out the dough on a flat surface previously sprinkled with flour to a thickness of about 0.5 cm. Use the cut-out molds to make gingerbread in the shape of trees, hearts, stars or other Christmas symbols.
- Baking: place the gingerbread men on baking trays covered with baking paper. Bake them in the preheated oven for about 10-12 minutes or until golden.
- Decoration: after baking and cooling, gingerbread can be decorated with icing, colored sugar or other fillings as desired.
With this recipe, you’ll get flavorful spicy Christmas gingerbread that’s perfect for creating a festive mood and special atmosphere on Christmas night!
French macaroons: a recipe for Christmas
Small airy cookies based on protein, almonds or hazelnuts and powdered sugar. They often have a variety of fillings such as cream or cooked condensed milk. Here’s a detailed recipe for French macaroons.
Ingredients for making French macaroons for Christmas:
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For the dough itself, you will need:
- 110 g almond flour or almond powder
- 200 g powdered sugar
- 90 g whites (about 3 egg whites)
- 50 g sugar
- Other ingredients for different flavor fillings (ganache, cream, cooked condensed milk, etc.)
Tools for making French macaroons
- whipping bowl
- Electric mixer or food processor with whipping attachment
- cooking bag with nozzle for forming macaroons
- Parchment-covered baking sheets
How to make French macarons for the Christmas table:
- Ingredient Preparation: Make sure all ingredients (especially the proteins) are at room temperature before you start cooking.
- Sift the almond flour and powdered sugar through a strainer for a fine powder.
- Dough preparation: In a large bowl, beat the egg whites with a mixer until stiff and frothy. Add the sugar gradually, continuing to beat until the whites are elastic and glossy.
- Add dry ingredients: Gradually pour the almond flour and powdered sugar into the whipped egg whites mixture. Gently mix with a spatula or spatula until smooth and thick. This is called “macaron butter”.
- Making macaroons: Fill a cooking bag with the nozzle for making macaroons. Place in small rings on the prepared parchment-lined baking trays, leaving some space between them.
- Before baking, leave the macaroons on the baking trays for 20-30 minutes at room temperature. This will allow them to form an outer film which will become crispy during baking.
- Baking: preheat the oven to 140-150°C. Bake the macaroons for 15-18 minutes. After baking, leave them to cool on the baking trays until you can easily remove them from the parchment.
- Filling: after the macaroons have cooled, add the flavor filling inside a paired macaron half and stack in pairs to create interesting flavor combinations.
So, here’s how you can make French macaroons that can wow your taste buds with variety and flavor!
How to make Christmas cookies:
Cooking Christmas cookies is a great way to spend time with family and friends, especially in the days before Christmas when everyone is focused on creating a festive atmosphere and exchanging gifts. Together with this delicious treat, your holiday table will be filled with more holiday cheer and joy!”
Cookies are a great way to spend time together with family and friends, especially during the days before Christmas when everyone is focused on creating a festive atmosphere and exchanging gifts.