12 Days of Holiday Cookies
Our 2022 Holiday Cookie Collection was curated, styled and shot entirely by the awesome team behind our cooking and baking classes. We hope you’ll bake up one or all of our favorite edible gifts; ready to swap, share and nibble this season. Thanks to Karrie, our retail manager, for the ginger maple bars, Katie’s awesome triple chocolate cookie, Sierra’s miso apple crumble bars and Joshua and Carrie for their camera work. Before we get baking, here are a few tips from some of our dearest friends & bakers.
From our amazing Chef Carol
1) Plan ahead. Nobody wants cookies from an angry elf
2) Make, shape & freeze cookie balls. Use a portion scoop.
3) Include a bar cookie & a diamond shape thick shortbread, for variation. Freeze, freeze, freeze!
4) Include a delicate slice and bake cookie that can be stacked sideways.
5) I always top cookie plate with a few bright iced rich rolls for color.
6) People feel the love & effort you bake into your homemade cookies
And usually bring them all year in hopes of keeping on your cookie list
From Nan Kohler of Grist & Toll:
The freezer is your friend! I gave up trying to do all of my holiday cookie baking in one long weekend many years ago. Now, I make several batches of dough as it fits into my busy schedule, freezing the dough scooped or shaped (on small sheet pans, between parchment), then bake to order as I begin assembling gift boxes or party trays.Also, I will never forget a tip I received from a professional caterer when I began baking professionally: never forget the importance of “curb appeal”. Translation: baked goods, when grouped together in a case or in a box, frequently just look monochromatic – everything golden brown. Don’t forget to think about pops of color when planning your cookie assortment: chocolate drizzles, sprinkles, bright colored jam fillings etc. Even one type of cookie dough dressed up with different toppings or fillings can look like many different, enticing cookies.
From Pastry Chef Clemence – Tips for Cookie Decorating!
It’s time to decorate! Relax, make your cookies ahead of time and follow these easy steps to cookie perfection.
1. Use a cookie recipe that doesn’t include leaveners (such as baking soda and baking powder) for cookies that lay perfectly flat.
2. Roll the cookie dough flat between two sheets of parchment paper, then freeze the dough on a cookie sheet for 1 hour or a few weeks if you’re planning ahead. Peel back the top piece of parchment when you’re ready to cut out the cookies with your favorite cookie cutters.
3. Cool before icing. Let your cookies cool completely.
4. Icing is made for cookies and frosting goes on cakes. Icing dries hard and is made with egg whites and powdered sugar. Place a couple of egg whites in a mixer with a whisk attachment, add 3 cups of powdered sugar and let it rip, adding water and a touch of lemon juice to thin it out to your desired consistency.
5. Layer it! Spoon a think layer of icing on top of the cookie, then drop in other colors and swirl for a paisley effect, or let them dry to pipe borders, buttons and more details. Let the cookies dry for a couple of hours before you pack them up.
