We’re in the thick of the holiday season, but for my family, December is full of celebrations from the jump.
We have four birthdays by the ninth (two of which are on the same day) and shortly after, we have the biggest December holiday aside from Christmas: Cookie Day.
The annual Petrovia Family Cookie Day falls on the same Saturday of December as the Army-Navy football game.
Cookie Day is quite a production, when many of the women in my family gather at my aunt’s house to bake dozens and dozens of Christmas cookies for our friends, churches and coworkers.
My two aunts have done this for many years and they really have it down to a science.
Usually, my Aunt Ang is on one station, mixing up doughs. I’m in the middle, measuring out and rolling dough. My Aunt Dawn is at the final station, watching the oven and rotating baking sheets in and out while she moves the finished cookies to cooling racks.
My grandma used to sit at the counter and chat with us, usually joined by her older sister and sister-in-law (who always help unwrap all the Hershey’s kisses).
We listen to Christmas music and talk throughout the morning, before my dad (and whichever other boys) join to watch and cheer on Army, his alma mater, while we finish up.
Aunt Ang has gathered up a really amazing assortment of all kinds of cookie recipes over the years, taken from old church cookbooks, family recipes and newspaper and magazine clippings.
We have a few go-to cookies we make every year (my great-grandma’s recipe for “fork cookies” – chocolate chip or m&m cookies that you stamp with a fork before baking), but Aunt Ang will pick out one or two new recipes to try each year. If they’re popular enough, they stay in the rotation.
Our line-up as of now includes: fork cookies, peanut butter kiss cookies, s’mores cookies, pistachio pecan party (or “Grinch”) cookies, malted milk ball cookies, minty chocolate crinkle cookies, tea cookies (“snowballs”) and cranberry white chocolate oatmeal cookies. We also throw in Aunt Dawn’s homemade Buckeyes and Aunt Ang’s caramel pecan candy.
Below are recipes for my favorite cookie, a newer cookie that’s stayed in the line-up and a candy.
I’d love to know if you try them out or have your own favorite Christmas cookie recipe.
Pistachio Pecan Party Cookies
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 to 3 drops of green food coloring
2 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 (3 3/4 ounce) package pistachio flavored instant pudding
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 cup chopped pecans
In a large mixer, combine sugar, margarine, oil, extract and food coloring. Beat at low speed, scraping bowl often, until well mixed. Beat in eggs until well mixed. Add flour, pudding mix, baking soda and cream of tartar. Beat at low speed until well mixed. Stir in pecans. Refrigerate dough until firm enough to handle (one to two hours). Heat oven to 375 degrees. Shape rounded teaspoonfuls of dough into one-inch balls; roll balls in sugar. Place two inches apart on cookie sheets. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until lightly browned. Yields four dozen cookies.
Malted Milk Ball Cookies
1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/4 cups flour
2 tablespoons instant chocolate drink mix (such as Nestle Quik)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups malted milk balls, crushed
Preheat oven to 375 degrees and grease baking sheets. Cream butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar together. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine flour, drink mix, soda and salt. Gradually add to butter mixture. Stir in milk balls. Drop dough by tablespoonfuls onto prepared sheets, leaving two to three inches between each. Bake until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Yields three dozen cookies.
Caramel pecan candy
1/3 cup plus 1/2 cup butter, divided
20 Oreos, crushed
1 package (14 ounces) caramels
3 cups chopped pecans, toasted
Topping:
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
3 tablespoons light corn syrup
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
In a large saucepan, melt 1/3 cup butter over medium heat; stir in the Oreo crumbs. Press into an ungreased 9-inch square baking dish. Bake at 325 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until set. While cooling, in a small saucepan, melt caramels and remaining butter over low heat. Stir in the pecans. Pour over crust and cool. For topping, in a small saucepan, combine the chocolate chips, butter, cream and corn syrup. Cook and stir over low heat until smooth. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla. Pour over caramel layer. Cool, then refrigerate until chocolate hardens. Let candy sit at room temperature for five to 10 minutes before cutting into one-inch squares.
-Kayleen Petrovia is a reporter at the Journal-Tribune. She can be contacted at kayleen@marysvillejt.com.