It’s cookie season, aka obligatory to eat your weight in cookies season. I’ve been wanting to up my cookie game and make full cookie boxes to gift away for a good couple of years now, but being previously semi-nomadic, I haven’t had the time or freezer space to. But as I’m now an old married lady, settling down with a kitchen to call my own, I’ve been slowly stocking up my teeny freezer with as many cookie doughs as it could fit.
This box is basically a very (very) heavily edited down list and of all the cookies and other treats I’ve keep bookmarking to make for christmas. It’s a mix of some classic holiday cookies, plus other cookies and treats with extra christmas flavours added, because I’m guilty of adding spices and orange zest to just about everything at this time of year.
If you’re making a cookie box of your own you can make it a one day affair and turn your kitchen into a version of the bake off tent, or you can spread out your baking as I did. And I highly recommend having friends and family round to help you in the baking process, because friends who bake together stay together
All the doughs can be made ahead of time and frozen and the same goes for the undecorated cookies so you have them ready for any final icing and decoration. The meringues and marshmallows need to be made more last minute, but they certainly keep well for a few days.
Here’s a rundown of the cookies in my cookie box…
My favourite sugar cookie recipe that I made last year. They’re buttery, sweet and just on the right side of flaky vs crumbly. I added in some orange zest and a hint of spice to give it a more christmas flavour.
I used my favourite gingerbread cookies recipe that I adapted using gluten free flours for my gluten free friend!
Playing favourites here and saying this is my favourite cookie of all of them. A soft chocolate cookie rolled with a thick layer of nutella, a layer of sprinkled hazelnuts and an added hint of orange zest making my christmas cookie dreams come true!
Mocha cookie with a creamy mocha ganache topped with roasted hazelnuts.
A super easy slice and bake festive cookie. I added some cardamom and a little candied ginger to mine to up the festive flavours.
When I saw these I just had to add them to the box. It’s a little more love and care to make the spiced praline for these meringues, but worth every ounce of effort. Plus the recipe made me far much more spiced praline mix than the meringues needed so I now have a store of spiced praline ready to be added to all future christmas baking!
I made a basic marshmallow recipe, I’m a fan of egg white meringues as I like the added fluffiness it adds. I then just added a few drops of hazelnut extract and chopped them into mini marshmallows because that’s how I like my hot chocolate!
