I’m kind of sad that we’re done making all these yummy cookies.  While I did, in fact, bake every single recipe, I must confess that I only have 5 or 6 batches in the freezer awaiting Christmas morning.  My goal was a double batch of all 12 recipes and then heaping cornucopias of cookies on Christmas day.

Are you done laughing yet?

I’m not sure why I thought all those cookies would last in my house, freezer or not. I even put some in the basement freezer, hoping that would deter me or my husband from eating them. Nope.

Posting will probably be a bit spotty for the next week, so I wanted to give you  some tasty treats. Consider it my gift to you, my dear readers. I am thrilled and humbled by the love Mindfully Frugal Mom has received this year, and I hope to bring all sorts of fun in the new year!

The Twelve Days of Cookies:

Day One: Lemon Coconut Squares

Day Two: Chocolate Oatmeal Bars

Day Three: Chocolate Orange Truffles

Day Four: Peanut Butter Kisses

Day Five: Blondies in a Jar

Day Six: Cinnamon Stars

Day Seven: Springerle

Day Eight: Snickerdoodles

Day Nine: Mint Chocolate Crackles

Day Ten: Grandma’s Favorite Cut-Outs

Day Eleven: Spritz Cookies

Day Twelve:  Raspberry Pinwheels

The final installment of the Twelve Days of Cookies is Raspberry Pinwheels. Impressive to look at, but fairly easy (though time-consuming) to make, these will make a great addition to your holiday cookie tray.

Raspberry Pinwheels
(adapted from Real Simple Magazine)

3/4 cup room temperature butter
1 8-oz bar room temperature cream cheese
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups flour (plus more for rolling)
1 cup seedless raspberry jam
1 large egg, beaten
2 tbs turbinado sugar

1. Beat butter, cream cheese, and sugar until fluffy. Add vanilla, and slowly, add flour.

2. Gently knead the dough on a floured work surface. Divide it into 2 balls.

3. Roll each dough ball into a thin rectangle, like this: 3. Spread the jam thinly over the dough.4. Carefully roll the dough into a log.5. Refrigerate the finished logs for about an hour. Take out of the refrigerator and slice into 3/8″ pieces.

6. Place each slice on an ungreased cookie sheet and brush with the beaten egg. Top each cookie with a sprinkle of the turbinado sugar.

7. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes.

Spritz Cookies are one of those family favorites that I only ever make at Christmas-time.  I don’t know why either, because they’re not prohibitively difficult to make.  A cross between shortbread and a sugar cookie, I love Spritz flavored with a little extra almond extract.

Spritz Cookies
(Can be doubled, Makes 2 doz)

1 cup butter
2/3 cup sugar
3 beaten egg yolks (save the whites for tomorrow’s omelet)
2 1/2 cup flour + 1/8 tsp salt
1/2 tsp almond extract
colored sugars for decorating

1. Cream the butter and sugar.  Mix in the egg yolks and almond extract.

2. Slowly add the flour (with salt mixed in) into the wet ingredients. Beat until combined, but do not overmix.

3. Load the dough into a cookie press. One looks like this:

4. Place cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 375° for 10 minutes.  If you want to decorate your Spritz cookies, give them a quick swipe of egg wash and sprinkle with colored sugar before you bake them. You will want to err on the side of less done as these overbake easily and will get too dry.

There is just something about traditional cut-outs that say Christmas (or Hanukkah, or Solstice, for that matter).  I know I rarely make them outside the month of December, so there is something special about eating cut-outs that just make me want to dunk them in my steaming Hot Toddy.

The recipe I use — the only recipe I will use — for cut-outs is one that has been in my family for generations. It is for a single batch, but trust me, you’re going to want to double it.

Grandma’s Favorite Cut-Outs
(makes 2 dozen)

2 1/2 cups flour
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/4 tsp almond extract
1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp milk mixed with 1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda

1. Cream the butter and sugar together. Add the egg, almond extract, and vanilla extract.  Beat well until smooth, then add the milk/baking powder mixture.

2. Sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda, and slowly add to other ingredients.  When all the flour is incorporated, refrigerate the dough for about an hour.  Note: You can refrigerate the dough up to 2 days before working with it.

3. Roll out the dough with a rolling pin, using a generous amount of white flour to prevent it from sticking.  Cut it out using the cookie cutters of your choice. This part is fun to do with a helper.

4. Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet at 350° for 10 minutes.  The edges should be just barely browned.  Cool on the sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack.

Decorating Tips:  You can do this one of two ways (which I like to refer to the easy way and the fun way):  First,  you can decorate with colored sugar and non-pareils.  Just brush some beaten egg white on the cookies before they are baked and sprinkle on the sugar.

Or, you can choose to ice your cookies. I use a simple icing made of confectioner’s sugar and milk.  This is definitely a messier option, but kids love it.

Either way, sometimes this happens: 

I’ll be honest — I’m not a huge Martha fan. There, I said it. Scandalized?

I’m enough of a perfectionist on my own without having to try to live up to some crazy WWMD? mentality. In fact, this recipe (of course it would be a baked good!) is the only Martha Stewart recipe I have every made. And of course, it is amazing. Delectable.  Exquisite. And, of course, I have tweaked it.

Mint Chocolate Crackles 
(adapted from Martha Stewart Living Magazine, makes 4 dozen))

6 oz bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled
1 1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup dutch cocoa powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup milk
1 cup confectioners sugar
1/2 tsp peppermint extract

1. Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt.

2. Beat butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla. Add melted chocolate and peppermint extract.

3. Alternate adding the dry ingredients and the milk to the butter and sugar mixture.

4. Divide dough into quarters, wrap in plastic wrap, and chill for at least 2 hours. It should look like this:

5. Roll each quarter of dough into a log 16″x1″, using an ample amount of confectioner’s sugar to prevent sticking. Cut log into 1″ pieces, roll into balls, and coat with the confectioner’s sugar. Here is my accurate, if completely unartful, rendition:

6. Bake at 350° for 12-15 minutes.

Wait, you say! Snickerdoodles aren’t a traditional holiday cookie! Well, for many New England families, snickerdoodles are traditional.  And either way, does it matter? They’re delicious!

The recipe I use was “stolen” from the family I babysat for in college.  The two girls I watched loved making cookies, and this was one of their family’s favorite recipes.

Snickerdoodles
(makes 2-3 dozen)

1 cup butter
1 1/2 cup white sugar
2 tbsp turbinado sugar
2 eggs
2 3/4 cup flour, sifted
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp + 2 tsp cinnamon

1. Mix together the butter, sugar, and eggs until light and fluffy.

2. In another large bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, salt, and 1/4 tsp cinnamon. If you don’t have cream of tartar on hand, omit both the cream of tartar AND the baking soda, and use 3 tsp baking powder instead.

3. Slowly but thoroughly mix the dry ingredients with the creamed mixture. Chill dough  at least 2 hours.

4. Roll the dough into 1″ balls. Roll each ball in a mixture of 2 tbsp turbinado sugar and 2 tsp cinnamon.

5. Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet at 400° for 7-8 minutes.