This weekend, I was pleased to see the first three batches of my mother's Christmas cookies. Two perennial favorites were joined by a new recipe this year.
One of our favorites are French Butter Cookies. These are made from a dough that is mostly butter and brown sugar. The dough is rolled into a log which is dusted with colorful sanding and turbinado sugar and then chilled. The cookies are sliced and indented with four holes to make them look like giant buttons.
Another old favorite are the lovely Chocolate Icebox Cookies. These are made from a rich chocolate dough formed into a log which is rolled in chopped walnuts. After baking and cooling, they are adorned with a thick layer of melted dark chocolate.
The newcomer this year, thus far, has been Pfeffernussen which are German spice cookies with a distinct peppery flavor. Ground pepper, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg and clove create a delightful sharp note which contrasts with the confectioners' sugar with which they are snowily dusted.
All were served with hot chocolate topped by whipped cream in some of the nifty mugs which are available in the Stalking the Belle Époque shop which can be accessed on the right side of this site.
Look forward to many more cookies from my mother's kitchen in the next couple of weeks.
5 comments:
My Christmas cookies come from the refrigerated section. I would love to have homemade cookies like these just once more before I die. When I was a child, my mother made cookies like those chocolate ones. Maybe I should learn to make them myself. Thank you for the inspiration.
I can't wait to see what other treasures are coming! These look scrummylicious!!!
I adore pffeffernoosen. I never knew anyo ne could make them at home. I impressed.
Your mom sets the bar high.
Santa can bring me those and I'd be grinning like Rudolph at his glowing feedbag.
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