My mom used to spend the weeks before Christmas baking cookies by the dozen. She’d then store them in tins in our basement freezer, taking them out for holiday meals or when friends stopped by for a cup of coffee. I have so many wonderful memories of our house smelling like a baker’s dream, and I loved spending time in the kitchen helping my mom and liberally sampling the results of our work.
Here are two of my mom’s best cookie recipes.
Swedish Tea Balls
- 1 cup of butter, softened
- ¼ cup sifted confectioner’s sugar (icing sugar)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1 tablespoon water
- 2 cups flour
- 1 cup finely chopped pecans
Cream the butter, sugar, and vanilla together. Stir in the water and then add the flour. Mix till blended then stir in the pecans. Roll into one inch balls. Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet for 15-20 minutes, at 300 degrees F. Cool before removing from sheet, then roll the balls in the frosting. Refrigerate or freeze until just ready to serve.
Frosting: 4 cups of confectioner’s sugar mixed with ½ cup of milk. Adjust with sugar or milk to get the consistency that is best for icing.
Oatmeal Macaroons
- ½ cup Spry or Crisco
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon molasses
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 egg, unbeaten
- 1 cup sifted flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup oats
- 1/3 cup raisins
- ½ cup nuts
Combine first seven ingredients and mix. Add the sifted flour and baking soda to mix. Add remaining ingredients and blend well. Drop by teaspoons on greased baking sheet. Press slightly with a fork coated in sugar, or the bottom of a small glass coated in sugar (just press the glass in a dish of sugar – enough will stick to do the trick). Bake at 350 degrees F for 12-13 minutes, checking to make sure the cookies don’t scorch on the bottom.
And what goes better with tea and cookies then a nice book to read? As it’s the holiday season, I’d like to give away some books to celebrate Christmas. The first of two is Countess of Scandal, a lovely historical romance by Laurel McKee. The second book is Lord of the Isles, a fab Scottish paranormal romance by Debbie Mazzuca. Just tell me what your favorite cookie recipe is to be eligible. Two people will each win a book!
Note!!! I’ve had to disable the comments temporarily because my blog is getting flooded with spam. My webmistress is working to correct the problem, and we should have comments back up shortly. Check back tonight or tomorrow, and thanks for your patience! And I WILL be awarding those two books by tomorrow evening!