Best Holiday Spice Cookies Recipes

HOLIDAY LEBKUCHEN (GERMAN SPICE COOKIES)

Steps:

• Cover almonds with boiling water in a bowl. Let stand for 1 to 2 minutes and drain. Rinse with cold water and drain again. Pat almonds dry and remove skin. Allow almonds to dry on paper towels.
• Place half the almonds in a food processor; pulse until finely chopped. Add apricots and dates; pulse until fruit is chopped. Reserve remaining 1 cup almonds.
• Combine flour, cinnamon, ginger, baking powder, cloves, cardamom, and salt in bowl. Beat eggs, brown sugar, honey, molasses, water, almond extract, orange zest, and 1 teaspoon lemon zest in a large bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Add apricot mixture, blending until evenly distributed. Gradually stir in flour mixture on medium speed until dough comes together. Cover dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 8 hours to overnight.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll out to about 1/2-inch thick. Cut out cookies with a 2 1/2 to 3-inch diameter cookie cutter. Arrange cookies about 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets.
• Lightly press 3 almonds into each cookie with tips towards the center to create a star pattern.
• Bake in preheated oven until cookies begin to brown, about 12 minutes. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes before removing to cool on a wire rack.
• Meanwhile, whisk confectioners' sugar, milk, and 1 teaspoon lemon zest in a bowl until glaze is smooth. Brush warm cookies with glaze and allow cookies to cool completely.

RON'S HOLIDAY SPICE COOKIES

Steps:

• Combine the butter and brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, 4 to 5 minutes.
• In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, ginger, baking soda, cloves, cardamom and salt to combine.
• Add the molasses, egg, and vanilla to the creamed butter mixture and beat on low/medium speed until smooth and combined.
• On low speed, add the flour mixture in few additions. The dough will be soft and a bit sticky.
• Refrigerate in a covered bowl for a minimum of two hours or overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line three baking sheets with parchment paper or use nonstick baking sheets.
• Use an ice-cream scooper or a slightly heaping tablespoon to portion the dough. Roll each cookie into a 1-inch ball between your hands, then roll lightly in the white granulated sugar and place on the prepared baking sheets. Make sure to leave enough space between the balls, as they'll flatten out to twice their size.
• Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. The dough balls would flatten and develop a crinkly crust, but will still be flexible. Gently remove to rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container up to 3 days.

HOLIDAY SPICE CUT-OUT COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.Beat the butter blend using a mixer until softened. Add sugar and beat until smooth. Add molasses and orange juice and blend. Mix the flour with the spices and then add to wet mixture. Stir until dough is formed.You may roll out dough at this point, but the whole wheat flour will absorb the liquid from the orange juice and blend the flavors better if let to chill for 30 minutes.Divide the dough in half and roll one half to 1/8 inch thickness. Flour the cutter and cut out the cookies. Place on cookie sheet that has been lined with parchment paper or use silicone baking sheet liners. These will not spread much so they can be placed about 1/2 inch apart. In order to assure a more evenly baked cookie, place one cookie sheet on the upper third of the oven rack and the other cookie sheet on the lower third oven rack. Bake for 5 minutes and then shift positions, and turn cookie sheets front to back. Bake another 5 minutes. Cool on rack. Be sure to cool completely before decorating.Yield: 5 dozen 2-2/2 inch cut-out cookiesFor the frosting:Mix all ingredients in small bowl until the mixture is smooth and easy to spread. Add more milk if needed.

HOLIDAY SPICE COOKIES

Steps:

• 1. Heat oven to 375º. Line several baking sheets w/parchment paper or liners. 2. Beat 12 T. butter w/sugar, molasses, and egg until fluffy, about 2 min. Slowly beat in flour, baking soda, spices, and salt. 3. Shape dough into walnut-size balls; place 2" apart. Bake until firm, about 10-12 min. Cool on wire racks. 4. Beat remaining 4 T. butter w/confectioners' sugar until smooth. Beat in vanilla and enough cream and whiskey/rum to make a spreadable icing. Yield: 36 cookies