In my family, baking has always been our favorite way to celebrate the holidays. Baking not only brings us together to bond and make memories, but it also yields delicious results! Here are some baking recipes we can’t go a Christmas without that have been passed down from my great-grandma, to my grandma, to my mom, to me and my siblings and now, to you!
Chocolate chip dipped
This recipe is what my mom is famous for. Her chocolate chip cookies are perfect (and, in my opinion, necessary for any occasion), and for Christmas, we dip them in an extra coating of chocolate and add festive sprinkles. When you follow this recipe, I highly recommend sticking to dark chocolate, even if it’s not what you usually prefer. It’s what makes them special!
Ingredients:
- 1 cup butter flavored Crisco
- Âľ cup granulated sugar
- Âľ cup brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 Âľ cups flour
- 2 bags Ghirardelli dark chocolate chips
- Christmas sprinkles
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Beat the butter Crisco, white sugar and brown sugar in a bowl.
Add the eggs and mix until combined.
Next, add the salt, baking soda and vanilla and mix.
Slowly add the flour until the dough is fairly thick and stiff.
Add one bag of the dark chocolate chips and mix until they are dispersed evenly throughout the dough.
Using a one-inch leveled-off cookie scoop, place the dough on a baking sheet. Make sure it’s spaced evenly so they have room when they spread.
Bake for 10-12 minutes until the edges are slightly golden.
Once the cookies are cooled, melt about five ounces of dark chocolate chips using your preferred method.Â
Carefully dip each cookie into the chocolate so that half of each surface is covered.Â
Sprinkle Christmas sprinkles over the chocolate while it’s still wet.
Black and Whites
The subtle, unique lemon flavor of this cookie topped with the sweet vanilla and rich chocolate icing come together to make my personal favorite cookie for the holidays. Even though this recipe might get a little messy, it’s well worth it!
Ingredients:
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- Âľ teaspoon salt
- ÂĽ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 â…“ cups sugar
- â…” cup unsalted butter
- ½ cup white Crisco
- 2 eggs
- 2 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons light corn syrup
- Âľ teaspoon lemon extract
- â…“ cup sour cream
Icing:
- ÂĽ cup light corn syrup
- 5 cups powdered sugar
- Âľ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup water
- 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Mix the flour, salt and baking soda in a bowl and set aside.
In a separate bowl, beat together the sugar, butter and Crisco until fluffy.
Add the eggs, vanilla, corn syrup and lemon extract until well-combined.
Mix half of the flour mixture into the wet ingredients until fully incorporated.
Carefully beat in the sour cream.
Add the rest of the flour mixture until smooth.
Using a one-inch, leveled-off cookie scoop, place the dough on a baking sheet. Make sure it is spaced evenly so the cookies have room when they spread. Using your fingers, gently pat down each ball of dough so they have a flatter surface after baking.
Bake the dough for 10 to 14 minutes until the edges are slightly browned. After they are done, let them cool while you make the icing.
In a saucepan, bring the water and corn syrup to a boil over medium heat.Â
Remove from heat and mix in the powdered sugar and vanilla extract until fully incorporated.Â
Add the chocolate to a separate bowl, then pour â…” cup of the hot vanilla mixture over it.Â
Stir until the mixture is fluid. Gradually add three or four teaspoons of water to achieve the desired consistency and fully melt the chocolate.
To make the process of frosting the cookies as easy to clean up as possible, lay tin foil or parchment paper on your work surface, then set a wired rack to hold the cookies on top.
Using a spoon, coat half of each cookie with the vanilla frosting, then the other half with the chocolate frosting.Â
Allow to cool while the frosting hardens.
Sugar cookies
Say goodbye to the hard, bland sugar cookies of Christmas past and make this recipe instead! Not only are these cookies soft and chewy, but the almond icing ensures that these sugar cookies are more than just for decorating.Â
Ingredients:
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup white Crisco
- 3 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 4 ½ cups flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
Icing:
- 1 cup white Crisco
- 8 cups powdered sugar
- â…” cup water
- 2 teaspoons almond extract
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a mixing bowl, cream together the sugar and Crisco until smooth.
Add the eggs and vanilla, then mix until combined.
In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
Alternate between adding ÂĽ cup of the buttermilk and ÂĽ cup of the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until both of those are gone. The dough will be sticky when it is finished.
Using a one-inch, leveled-off cookie scoop, place the dough on a baking sheet. Make sure it is spaced evenly so the cookies have room when they spread. Using your fingers, gently pat down each ball of dough so they have a flatter surface after baking.
Bake for 12-13 minutes until the edges are slightly browned.
While the cookies are baking, slowly mix together the white Crisco, powdered sugar and almond extract while adding the water.
When the cookies are done baking, allow them to cool completely. Then frost them with the icing using your desired method.Â
Top with Christmas sprinkles and enjoy! I recommend storing them in the fridge — they taste amazing when they’re chilled.
merry cherry cheesecake
I didn’t actually try these cheesecake bars until a few years ago, and I was missing out! If you need a break from cookies this holiday season, this recipe is for you.
Ingredients:
- â…“ cup butter
- â…“ cup brown sugar
- 1 cup flour
- 8 ounces cream cheese
- ÂĽ cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ÂĽ cup red and green glazed cherries
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Combine the flour, brown sugar and butter in a bowl. Cut and blend until the mixture becomes fine crumbles.
Save one cup of this mixture in a separate bowl for later use.
Pack the rest of the mixture into a 13×9” glass baking pan, making sure to cover the whole bottom of the pan.
Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes.
In a separate bowl, use an electric mixer to blend the cream cheese, granulated sugar, egg and lemon juice together until fluffy and smooth.
Chop the cherries in half, then fold them into the mixture before pouring over the top of the baked crust. Save about a dozen cherries for later.
Use the cup of crumble from earlier to cover the top of the cheesecake filling, then sprinkle the rest of the cherries on top.
Bake for 25 minutes.
Let cool and then refrigerate before cutting into squares and serving.
ho ho cake
This recipe is so special in my family because my mom makes it once a year every Christmas Eve. It’s called “Ho Ho Cake” because it resembles Hostess’ Ho Ho cakes, but it also perfectly fits the Christmas theme.Â
Ingredients:
- 1 box devil’s food cake mix
- 1 ½ cups milk
- 5 tablespoons flour
- 1 cup Crisco
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 ounces unsweetened baker’s chocolate
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup water
- 4 cups powdered sugar
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Prepare the devil’s food cake according to the directions on the box and split the mixture into two 9×13” glass baking pans. Bake for the amount of time that the box recommends.
Combine the milk and flour in a container with a lid. Cap the container and shake until the ingredients are mixed.
Remove the lid and microwave the mixture for two minutes, letting the milk boil.Â
Take the container out of the microwave and let it cool.Â
Using an electric mixer, whip together the Crisco, butter and sugar.
Once the milk mixture is cooled, gradually add it to the butter and sugar mixture while whipping until it is fluffy.Â
Split the mixture and spread evenly over the two cooled chocolate cakes.Â
In a separate microwave-safe dish, heat the chocolate and water until melted and runny.Â
Add the vanilla and powdered sugar and mix until smooth.
Pour over the cakes. Make sure it’s runny enough to spread over the tops of the cakes on its own, but not watery. If it’s too thick, add water until it’s the desired consistency.Â
Refrigerate until cooled.Â
Enjoy!
I hope you enjoy these recipes as much as my family does! Have a merry (cherry) Christmas!