Christmas Cookie Triple Threat: My Three Favorite Cookie Recipes for the Holiday Season

It's that time of year again...and I feel like I just came back from snorkeling in Mallorca.  This fall has zoomed by, however, and it's time to get ready for hot cocoa and all that accompanies such a holiday treat, i.e. COOKIES! So, don't judge, but I've spend most of November, and these past eight days of December picking a choosing among my all time favorite cookie recipes, and these are the three that made the cut.  Cookie number one is a chocolaty masterpiece, cookie number two is a somewhat savory version of the classic gingerbread cookie, and cookie number three is not JUST chocolate chip, but THE BEST chocolate chip cookie you will ever try. 

Cookie Number 1: Cocoa Fudge Cookies

This cookie has come to be one of my "go-tos" for any chocolate craving when I am trying to be careful about my caloric intake because eat cookie is jam packed with chocolaty goodness and only 78 calories a cookie.  They are the perfect chocolate craving quencher because they are simple to make and affordable for your calorie budget.  Enjoy with a glass of cold milk.

Ingredients (for 2 dozen cookies):

1 cup all-purpose flour 
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons butter 
7 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
2/3 cup granulated sugar 
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup plain low-fat yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

Preheat oven to 350 F or 176 C.

Combine flour, soda, and salt; set aside. Like my piggy whisk? Hehe

Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat.

Combine sugars and cocoa in a small bowl.

Measure out vanilla and yogurt.

Add your sugars and cocoa powder and stir softly until you reach a sandy texture like below.

Go ahead and mix in your yogurt and vanilla.

Add flour mixture, stirring until moist.

Stir in some walnuts if desired.

Drop by level tablespoons 2 inches apart onto baking sheets coated with cooking spray.  Bake at 350° for 8 to 10 minutes or until almost set. Cool on pans 2 to 3 minutes or until firm. Remove cookies from pans; cool on wire racks.

Cookie Number 2: Gingerbread Classic

This is a not-too-sweet version of the traditional gingerbread cookie.  Perfect for Christmas, and also low in calories.  I've whipped my dough up ahead of time for a Christmas party I'm throwing next weekend.  I've got it all ready to go...just take it out of the freezer the night before and you're good to go.

Ingredients (for 4 dozen cookies):

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground ginger 
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg 
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened 
3 tablespoons molasses
1 large egg 

 

To prepare cookies, weigh or lightly spoon flour into measuring cups; level with a knife.

Combine flour, ginger, and next 5 ingredients (through nutmeg) in a bowl; stir with a whisk.

Combine brown sugar, butter, and molasses in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed 2 minutes.

Add egg; beat well.

Add flour mixture to sugar mixture; beat at low speed until well blended.

Divide dough in half. Gently press dough into a 4-inch circle on heavy-duty plastic wrap. Cover with additional plastic wrap; chill 1 1/2 hours. 

Roll each portion of dough to a 1/8-inch thickness.

Cut with a 3-inch gingerbread man or woman cookie cutter (or other shape) to form cookies.

Place cookies 1 inch apart on a baking sheet. Bake at 350° for 8 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove cookies from baking sheet; cool completely on a wire rack.

Cookie Number Three: The PERFECT Chocolate Chip Cookie

You'll understand in a minute:

 

I know what you're thinking...yeah, yeah, my mom's chocolate chip cookies are better.  Well, I usually would say the same, and no offense whatsoever to the classic Nestle Toll House (*read with French accent*..."ugh, you Americans butcher the French language") recipe found on the back of Nestle Toll House chocolate chip bags, which I grew up enjoying...but the following chocolate chip cookie will blow your mind.  Disclaimer: you will find it IMPOSSIBLE just to eat one cookie and NO I am not exaggerating. I find that melting the butter and almost caramelizing the sugar together with the butter creates the perfect chewiness that every chocolate chip cookie should boast (in my opinion).  Try it out and let me know what you think.  I am always looking for ways to improve, or to alter my chocolate chip cookie recipe, so please share your wisdom.

Ingredients (for 2-3 dozen cookies):
2 1/8 cups all-purpose flour (about 10 1/2 ounces)
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 cup packed light brown sugar (7 ounces)
1/2 cup granulated sugar (3 1/2 ounces)
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups (12 ounces) semisweet or milk chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Make sure an oven rack is in the center of the oven.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, salt, and baking soda. Set aside.

Melt butter and let cool slightly.

Either by hand or with an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugars together until well mixed.

Add the egg, yolk, and vanilla.

Mix well until the batter has lightened slightly in color, about 2 minutes. Add the dry ingredients and chocolate chips at the same time. Mix until all the dry ingredients are incorporated.  Look how perfect that batter is...looks good enough to...but don't eat too much or you'll get a stomach ache and the recipe will yield less cookies (funny how that happens, isn't it?).

Form dough into tablespoonful-sized balls and place on parchment lined cookie sheets. Frozen cookie dough can be stored for up to 2 months in the freezer.

Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes until the edges are set and just lightly browned.

So here I am, with an assortment of cookie doughs in my freezer, all ready to bake at any given moment during this holiday season.  Put on your favorite Christmas movie, gather up your ingredients and get bakin'. Enjoy my favorite cookies with a glass of cold milk or hot cocoa.

Happy Holidays!