Here is how the parade works. I research cookie recipes that look yummy and sometimes unique. I often tweak the recipes as well. I bake and bake and bake. I bake around 5-6 different kinds of cookies in the month of December. As I bake a new batch we taste and give our personal opinions. On the Eve of Christmas Eve we vote. The voters are anyone who have tasted all of the cookies.
After the vote is in we name our family champion cookie, that cookie gets left for Santa as well as the top two cookies. We leave Santa a voting slip and he votes on his favorite. I have learned through the years to vote on the Eve of Christmas Eve, because the last thing I want to do is start mixing up a couple of batches of cookies before bedtime on Christmas Eve. Chances are, if the cookie is the winner it also means we are out of the winning cookie. Yum, Yum!
If you do decide to host your own Parade of Cookies, let me just give a few tips.
1. Share, Share, Share it's a lot of cookies.
2. Get a couple of really good cookie sheets. I like the insulated ones they cook evenly and a little faster. * If you have these adjust your cooking times.
3. Get the family involved in the baking. We have a great time making the cookies. We had some beautiful Ginger Bread Men last year.
*Please post your family traditions, it would be fun to read what other families do, maybe I will add another tradition to our Christmas Season!
Here is our starting line up this year!
1. Classic Sugar Cookie
2. Oatmeal Supreme
Below you will find the recipes. I have Pictures posted on Facebook if you want to see the finished product.
Sugar Cookies
½ cup butter
softened
½ cup
shortening
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon
baking soda
1 teaspoon
cream of tartar
1/8 teaspoon
of salt
3 egg yolks
½ teaspoon
vanilla
1 ¾ cups of
flour
Preheat oven
to 325. In a large mixing bowl beat butter and shortening on medium to high
speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt. Beat
until combined, scraping sides of the bowl occasionally. Beat in egg yolks and
vanilla until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer.
Stir in any remaining flour.
Shape dough
into 1-inch balls. Place balls 2 inches apart of an ungreased cookie sheet.
Bake for 12-14 minutes or until edges are set. (Do not let edges brown.) Let
stand 1 minute on cookie sheet. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool.
*I always
check them at 10 minutes. My oven cooks a little faster than some.
* This year a put a little frosting and sprinkled little red and green sprinkles on top. The frosting is just confectioners sugar and a little bit of milk
Oatmeal Supreme
1 cup
butter, softened
1 cup creamy
peanut butter
2 cups
packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon
baking soda
1 teaspoon
baking powder
½ teaspoon
salt
2 eggs
2 teaspoons
vanilla
2 ¼ cups of
flour
2 cups of
rolled oats
1 cup mini
chocolate chips
1 cup peanut
butter chips
Preheat oven
to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl beat butter and peanut butter with an
electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add brown sugar, baking
soda, baking powder, and salt. Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl
occasionally. Beat in eggs and vanilla until combined. Beat in the flour. Stir
in the oats, chocolate chips and peanut butter chips.
Drop dough
by rounded teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 9-12 minutes or
until golden brown. Let stand for 1 minute then transfer to a wire rack to
cool.
