We are BIG advent calendar people, but this year I couldn’t find anything for myself. So during one of my bouts of insomnia, I had an idea to bake a different batch of cookies every day, instead! You heard me, 24 days of cookies! I wanted to share all the recipes I’m trying, so I’ll be updating this post daily during the month of December.
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Day 1: Grinch Cookies
This recipe is from Simplistically Living. While the cookies are yummy they were slightly annoying to make, because the recipe didn’t include any measurements for the ingredients! After reading the comments on the recipe, it seems like there’s a glitch on her recipe application. I didn’t have heart sprinkles, so I used edible red glitter gel for the hearts!
Day 2. Peppermint Candy Cane Cookies
This recipe from No. 2 Pencil takes a little pre-planning, because the dough needs to chill before it’s baked! I found the recipe to be very detailed, and easy to follow. I’m a lover of all things peppermint, and these did not disappoint.
Day 3. Peanut Butter Reindeer Cookies
These reindeer cookies from BakerGirl are SO CUTE, and very easy to make. I couldn’t find mini chocolate covered pretzels, so I just made each reindeer a little bigger and used regular sized chocolate covered pretzels! I had hoped the girls would be able to help me put all the “pieces” on, but they were being way too slow and eventually were fired from the job LOL. The pieces have to go on the cookies while they’re still hot, so that as they cool they “stick” to the cookie.
Day 4: Hot Chocolate Cookies
I found this recipe on Love from the Oven. I have to say that mine look nothing like hers LOL. I’m curious what hot chocolate mix she used, because I’m sure that’s the color difference. And obviously I used rainbow mallow bits while she used white. I will say that my dough came out really dry, and I’d probably reduce the amount of flour next time. But they taste great and I’m sure they’ll be good dunked in a glass of milk!
Day 5: German Chocolate Cookie Cups
I love that these look super fancy and complicated, but they’re actually SUPER easy to make! I found this recipe via The Domestic Rebel, who has some great shortcuts in her recipe!
Day 6: Cherry Thumbprint Cookies
Alright, so far these are my FAVORITE cookie! No, I did not master the beautiful lines on the top (mine pooled in the thumbprint, whoops!), but the taste is still on point! This recipe from Moms Need to Know is super easy to follow.
Day 7: Chocolate Andes Mint Cookies
You guuuuuys, these are possibly the best cookies that I’ve ever made! The chocolate cookie is perfection, and could have so many different toppings! I found this recipes from Bread, Booze & Bacon.
Day 8: Stained Glass Cookies
These are SO CUTE, but kind of a PIA to make – just being honest, LOL. I will say that the cookie dough is delicious, and makes great cutout cookies for any decorating purposes! In fact, I only used 1/3 to make the stained glass stars (gave me like 2.5 dozen) and then let the girls use the other 2/3 for cutout cookies that they can decorate themselves. This recipe from Cooking Classy was precise and easy to follow!
Day 9: Christmas Lights Cookies
If you want to make these, START EARLY. There is a lot of cooling/setting that needs to happen between steps, and if you wait until after dinner you’ll be finishing at midnight or the next morning LOL. That said, these are so adorable, easy to make (they just take time), and delicious! The recipe is from Dessert for Two.
Day 10: Ginger Molasses Cookies Dipped in White Chocolate
I know these aren’t everyone’s favorite cookie, but I definitely think they HAVE to be on a Christmas cookie list! The smell as they were cooking just screamed “CHRISTMAS!”. This recipe from I Heart Naptime is super easy to follow, and delicious!
Day 11: Red Velvet Chocolate Chip Cookies
I just LOVE the decorations she chose for these! Super easy to make, and the decorations were things that were easy to find, too. Check out this delicious recipe over at Deliciously Sprinkled.
Day 12: Hot Chocolate Marshmallow Linzer Cookies
This recipe from FREUTCAKE is yummy. I mean, anything filled with marshmallow fluff is worth a try in my book! I thought her recipe was straight forward and easy to follow. Just make sure you REALLY let these cool all the way before adding the fluff! I got too excited to eat one and it got messy LOL.
Day 13: Gingerbread Men
I couldn’t NOT bake gingerbread men! They’re a Christmas classic! I liked this recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction, but the dough requires three hours to chill – so this is definitely something you need to start early if you want to have them decorated in the same day!
Day 14: Christmas Cheesecake Cookies
Ok, this was the first recipe that I truly screwed up! I used baking power, instead of soda, and that caused all kind of problems when they baked. HOWEVER, I think these would have been delicious if I’d used all the right ingredients LOL. Check out the recipe from Yellow Bliss Road.
Day 15: Chocolate Dipped Italian Butter Cookies
You’ll notice that I deviated on the shape of these, but I didn’t have the right piping tip and didn’t feel like buying one just for this…and guess what? Doesn’t change the delicious taste! In the words of Tim G, sometimes you just have to “make it work”. I really enjoyed this recipe from The Kitchen Mccabe!
Day 16: Dulce De Leche Sandwich Cookies
You guys, I’m not going to sugar coat it (had to do it), these were a PAIN to make. But even more annoying is that they are sooooo freggin’ delicious! If I could have found dulce de leche at my store, I would have saved myself a days worth of work, but that wasn’t in my cards! So between the chilling time needed, and the time it takes to make dulce de leche – these are a two day project. But they are seriously worth every minute. Check out the Better Homes & Gardens recipe to make them yourself!
Day 17: Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
So I know that these look the part, but I’m sad to report that they just weren’t as chocolatey as I’d hoped! So after complaining about it, a friend offered to share her recipe with me! And I think this will be the choclately version that I’d hoped for, because instead of cocoa power in the recipe that I used, this one has melted chocolate! She’s being super generous and letting me share it with you all, so YAY!
Day 18: Chocolate Kiss Powder Puff Cookies
This recipe from Averie Cookies could not be more simple! Perfect if baking intimidates you. It’s only three ingredients: Hershey’s kisses, store bought pie crust, and powdered sugar!
Day 19: Christmas Tree Meringues
These turned out SO cute, and were pretty easy to make! You just need to set aside some time, because they cook on a low heat for a couple of hours; then they have to cool slowly at the end, too. The worst part was how messy it was to get the meringue in the piping bag LOL. Check out this recipe from Inquiring Chef! The only change I made was adding 1 tsp of Almond extract – YUM!
Day 20: Peppermint Crunch Sugar Cookies
I’ll never turn down anything that’s peppermint flavored, and these cookies are no different! My husband hates peppermint, which means more for me – HA! I swapped the andes peppermint crunch for crushed up candy canes, because it’s what I could find! Overall a straightforward and delicious recipe from Beyond Frosting.
Day 21: Polar Bear Oreos
I’m going to give it to you straight – I’ll never make these again lol. The Oreos crumbled any time I tried to work with them, and it made the whole ordeal very frustrating. If you want to give them a try, check out the recipe HERE.
Day 22: Christmas Pinwheel Cookies
After the polar bear cookie debacle, these were really satisfying to make! They are a simple sugar cookie, but the colors in the wheel mean no decorating is necessary afterwards! Check out Bread, Booze and Bacon’s recipe to make them yourself! P.S. I skipped the second too coolings and mine didn’t suffer because of it 😉
Day 23: Orange Cranberry Swirl Cookies
These are DELICIOUS. And the fun thing about them is that they look super fancy and complicated, when they’re actually really easy to make! You need to set aside a few hours for chilling, but other than that the recipe is really easy to follow!
Day 24: Wreath Cookies
These are a great no-bake option if you want something quick and easy! And, they’re super yummy! Check out the recipe HERE.
I can’t believe that I was able to keep up with this all month! I’ll definitely be repeating it with new recipes next year 🙂
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