As Thanksgiving shrinks in the rearview mirror, the goodie-focused holiday season continues with festive music playing on the radio, the scent of pumpkin spice tickling the nose and colorful lights dazzling the eyes. And the taste buds?
We’ve got those covered. When the first-ever Lifestyle Christmas Cookie and Treat Contest was revealed to readers, unanticipated interest came roaring in like an out-of-control freight train. Little did we know how many in the community were just waiting in the shadows for the moment when they could show off their baking skills.
And show off they did. Of the 40 or so folks who emailed for more information about the contest, a dozen came through, bringing in various treats—everything from Christmas Crackle Red Velvet Cookies and Jam Thumbprints for Hanukkah, to organic and gluten-free Peppermint Chocolate Chip Sugar Cookies. Participants included men, women and children, with the youngest—to our knowledge—being just 12 years old.
In order to fairly judge the treats—as everyone has individual preferences—we rounded up a panel of 12 enthusiastic cookie-loving folks. These fortunate few consisted of in-office employees, columnists and freelance writers who sampled every entry and offered their thoughts.
Every judge was given one vote for each of the following categories: Best decorated, best presentation and best use of nuts, and entries receiving the most votes were named winners.
To determine the overall winner, the judges rated each entry on a scale of one to 10.
Once all judges had tasted and rated each, the numbers were totaled and the highest scoring entry was named the grand prize winner.
So without further adieu, here are your winning recipes.
OVERALL GRAND PRIZE WINNER: Créme de Menthe Squares
By Sheri Russell, Gilroy
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Ingredients
-1 cup sugar
-1/2 cup butter
-4 eggs
-1 cup flour
-1/2 tsp. vanilla
-1 1/2 cup Hershey’s chocolate syrup
Mix all. Pour into greased 9×13 pan. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until done. Let cool completely.
-3 cups powdered sugar
-3 tbsp. créme de menthe
-1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
Mix well. Spread on top of first layer and let sit until a little firm before adding the final layer.
-1 cup chocolate chips
-6 tbsp. butter or margarine
Melt in microwave, stirring frequently. Cover second layer. Let sit until chocolate is firm before cutting into squares.
BEST USE OF NUTS: Scandinavian Almond Bars
By Karen Clinton, Gilroy
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Ingredients
-1 3/4 cups flour
-2 tsp. baking powder
-1/4 tsp. salt
-1/2 cup butter, softened
-1 cup granulated sugar
-1 large egg
-1 tsp. almond extract
-1/2 cup milk for basting
-2 cups sliced almonds
Almond icing
-1 cup sifted powdered sugar
-1/2 tsp. almond extract
-3 to 4 tsp. milk (should be drizzle consistency)
With mixer, beat butter, sugar and egg. Add almond extract. Mix flour, baking powder and salt. Add to the butter mixture and mix well. It will form a ball. Divide ball into six equal parts.
On an ungreased cookie sheet, make two strips 12-by-3-inches, keeping 4 to 5 inches between the two strips. Repeat the process on separate cookie sheets.
Brush the dough with milk and sprinkle with sliced almonds.
Bake at 325 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes, should be golden. While still warm cut crosswise at a diagonal into one-inch strips. Lay cookies on sheets of tin foil or wax paper. When cool, drizzle with almond icing.
When the cookies with icing are dry, store in an airtight container. These cookies will freeze well. Store flat with pieces of wax paper between the layers.
BEST PRESENTATION: Buon Natale Biscotti
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By Gina Girouard, Morgan Hill
In a large bowl, cream:
-1/2 cup butter, softened
-3/4 cup sugar
-1 tsp. vanilla extract
-1/2 tsp. pistachio or
almond extract
-2 eggs, room temperature
In a separate bowl, mix:
-2 cups flour
-1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
-1/4 tsp. salt
Add flour mixture to creamed mixture and stir until combined.
Fold in:
-1/2 cup chopped pistachios
-1/2 cup chopped candied cherries (or dried cherries if you prefer)
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Prepare a sheet pan with parchment paper or a silpat. Divide dough in half and shape into two, two-inch wide logs to fit pan. Bake for 30 minutes and rest on wire rack to cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing. Slice logs one inch thick on a bias to create three- to four-inch long cookies. Space cookies evenly on a sheet pan and bake again at 275 degrees for 30 minutes. Cool before drizzling chocolate or icing if desired. Makes approximately 18 biscotti.
BEST DECORATION: Lilly’s Christmas Reindeer Sugar Cookies
By Lilly Gillies
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Ingredients
-2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
-1/2 tsp. baking powder
-1/4 tsp. fine salt
-1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
-3/4 cup granulated sugar
-3/4 confectioners’ sugar
-2 large egg yolks
-1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
-1/2 tsp. coconut extract
-1/2 tsp. almond extract
-1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
-1/4 cup ground walnuts
Whisk flour, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl.
Beat butter and both sugars in another medium bowl with an electric mixer on high speed until light and fluffy (about 30 seconds). Add the egg yolks, extracts, cardamom and walnuts until fully incorporated. Slowly add the flour mixture and continue beating until the dough comes together, stopping and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
Divide dough in half. Pat into disks. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, at least two hours.
Roll dough 1/4 inch thick and cut dough with desired pattern. Re-refrigerate until firm, approximately 30 minutes.
Place cookies on an ungreased baking sheet, leaving about one-inch between cookies. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Bake cookies for 10 to 12 minutes until bottoms are lightly brown. Cool on sheets until firm enough to transfer to a rack to cool. Once cool, decorate and store in an air tight container.
Royal icing
-5 tbsp. Meringue powder (egg white powder)
-6 tbsp. water
-1 pound confectioners’ sugar (about 3 3/4 cups or one box)
-Food coloring if desired
Combine all ingredients except food coloring in a bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix slowly until stiff enough to form peaks. The icing should be pure white and thick, but not fluffy and bubbly. If the frosting is overbeaten, it will get aerated, which makes it harder to work with.
If desired, add one tablespoon of food coloring and mix with a rubber spatula.
If necessary, store extra icing covered in plastic, air tight.
Yields approximately 24 reindeer pattern cookies.
