For as long as I can remember, my mom and I made the yummiest Christmas cut-out cookies year after year. We used the same reindeer, snowman, bell, and Christmas tree cookie cutters every time. We colored and mixed the icing ourselves, coordinating predictable colors with the shapes. The reindeer were always red, the bells yellow, the snowman blue, and the tree, green, of course. I have two favorite ingredients that make these cookies extra special: cream cheese and almond flavoring. When mixing up the batter, mom always made sure to cut an extra chunk of cream cheese off for us to snack on, and the almond flavor prominent in the icing is a taste that I've come to associate only with Christmas.
We merrily iced the cookies to the soundtrack of Burl Ives and other Christmas hits. We dedicated an entire weekend to baking confections we would festively package and deliver to neighbors and friends.
Curious, I asked my mom one year about the origins of the recipe. She wasn't sure. She remembered it being her mother's and believed her grandmother made them as well, meaning it had been passed down at least a couple of generations. As someone (who regretfully) has only begun learning about my family's foreign origins, I was excited to consider that the recipe had come along with my great-grandma's parents from their homeland in Germany. How enchanting to believe, that I would one day be baking those same cookies in my kitchen in Germany! Sitting with my daughter at our table icing away in Germany, maybe just as my great-great-grandmother had done.
I had to know, so I called my grandma.
Who (sounding confused) shared with me that she had found the recipe in a women's magazine and shared it with my mother.
She might as well have told me Santa isn't real.
Then I remembered, Santa isn't real. It's always been moms making the magic.
Maybe one day Olive will be able to tell her children exactly where the cookie recipe came from as they ice snowmen in her kitchen, in a land hopefully not so far away.
So without further adieu, we're sharing our very special recipe with you!
P.S. Despite being our favorite Christmas cookie, these cut-outs can be individualized to your specific cookie cutter and devoured year-round. Hearts for Valentine’s Day, eggs on Easter, or a cute little pumpkin for fall, the sky’s the limit!
Xmas Cut-out Cookies
Dough
1 cup (200 g) sugar
1/2 tsp (3 g) salt
1 cup (227 g) margarine (soft) - I use REAL butter though
3 ounces (80 g) cream cheese soft
1 tsp (5 mL) almond
One egg yolk
2 3/4 cup (352 g) flour
Mix well and chill for at least 30 minutes. Roll out onto a floured surface. Cut out and place on a cookie sheet. Bake at 375 (190 Celsius) degrees for 7-10 minutes.
Icing
2 TB (28 g) butter
1/2 (3 mL) tsp almond
boiling water (not a lot! but you have to guess
powered sugar (to desired consistency)
food coloring
