A Hard Day's Work

Christmas cookies are a huge tradition in this house. I grew up with dozens of different kinds of cookies at the holidays. I grew up in the north, where it actually gets cold in the winter, and I remember my Mom used to keep the cookie tins on a table in the garage so they would stay cold and fresh. I used to sit out in the garage and assemble big platters of cookies to deliver to all our friends and neighbors. I also remember eating my weight in cookies in that garage - ugh!

There were several kinds of cookies that my Mom only made at Christmas time, and those recipes still make the holidays feel special for me. Every year I try to pare down the list and vow to bake less. But once I get going, I can't seem to stop. I've been busy in the kitchen this week, and we now have plenty for Santa's plate on Christmas Eve.

Oh, and I've graduated from sneaking cookies in the garage. I now stand at the counter and eat them directly out of the oven, the way God intended all bakers to do. Here's this year's stash...

Powdered sugar chocolate chip (recipe here)

Lemon poppyseed

Fudge puddles (Paula Deen)

Cream Wafers

Sugar Cookies

Christmas shortbread (recipe here)

Gingersnaps

Aunt Carol's shortbread

Peanut butter Buckeyes

Meringue Kisses

Fanny Farmer Fudge

Chocolate Thinsies

...and this year's new favorite...Brown Butter Cardamom Cookies

Brown Butter and Cardamom Dream Cookies

2 sticks butter

1 cup sugar

1 t vanilla extract

2 cups flour

1/2 t baking soda

1/2 t salt

1 rounded teaspoon ground cardamom

Preheat oven to 350. Bake these on parchment or a silpat. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, and let it brown, stirring constantly. (Watch it close! Butter goes from brown to black very quickly, and keep stirring!) Let butter cool and transfer to a large bowl. Add sugar and vanilla while beating on low speed. Mix flour, soda, salt and cardamom. Add to butter mixture in three additions; mixing well after each one. Roll into balls and place two inches apart on baking sheet. Bake 12-14 minutes, until cookies are golden on bottom and cracked a bit on top. (Note: Aunt Judy tried these and she liked them flattened slightly before baking them.)

If you have never baked with cardamom before, it has a warm, gentle spice flavor. It is delicious!

Packing the cookies away brings back memories, because I still have some of Mom's old tins from when I was a kid. These tins have seen many batches of Christmas goodness through the years. Now I'll set my kids to work assembling trays, and the delivering will begin!

My Mom came to help me bake yesterday. She commented on the unavoidable mess in the kitchen when you have five recipes going at once. I noted that I didn't think the mess was too terrible. She astutely pointed out that was because she had washed every single dish of the day. I spent more time baking (and dirtying pots!) and she spent more time washing and cleaning the kitchen! Come to think of it, that did seem to make baking a whole lot more fun! :) Thanks, Mom, for a great day and loads of help with cookie season.