Mi Huerta Market
By: Sarah Chovanetz
CHRISTMAS IS HERE!
And that means, CHRISTMAS COOKIES are also here!
We felt like sharing an easy and festive recipe this time around. Christmas cookies are a HUGE staple during the holiday season so we had to make sure this recipe stood out compared to the rest. The ingredients alone will get you excited and feeling all warm and cozy. Then of course there’s the cookie cutter part. How fun is cookie cutting? Have you actually ever done it before? IT IS SO FUN! And once your cookies are done baking and you put the icing on with little decorations it is so fulfilling. Believe it or not creating these adorable pieces of heaven can give you quite a sense of accomplishment. And then you get to eat them, with a big glass of ice cold milk, hot cocoa or eggnog! Grab some marshmallows while you are at it, better go all out for this one!
Also, do not get put off by the title of the recipe. I don’t like eggnog myself but I am telling you these cookies are not like all the other kind of “Christmas” cookies. If Christmas could be a dessert, it would be this one!! They are so soft, sweet and tasty. The scent of eggnog just brings everything together so magically. It may sound a bit silly but it is kind of unexplainable you just have to try it for yourself and see why this recipe is seriously SO good. It is like biting into a soft, buttery wonderland of Christmas flavors and will definitely become a family hit, especially with the little ones. Hints of vanilla, and sugar, finished off by a slight crunch from the sprinkles and yummy icing make for a ‘once in a lifetime’ bite.
Recipe: Eggnog Christmas Cookies with Snow White Vanilla Icing.
**To quickly bring your eggs to room temperature, place them in a large bowl with their shells on. Cover them with warm water and let them sit 5 minutes.
***The cookie dough can also be stored in the freezer for up to 1 month. To bake remove from the freezer and let sit on the counter for 5 minutes prior to baking. Bake As directed.
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes
Servings: Makes 3-4 dozen cookies (depending on the size of your shapes)
INGREDIENTS
• 3 sticks (1 1/2 cups) unsalted butter softened
• 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Mi Huerta Vanilla Extract ONLY – do not sell yourself short with any other extract I am telling you this is the way to go for the vanilla extract portion.
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract* optional but highly recommended to give an additional flavor that makes these that much more special and rare!
• 1 egg at room temperature*(reason why room temp is so important is explained below)
• 1/3 cup high quality eggnog – emphasis on the HIGH QUALITY!
• 4 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
EASY VANILLA ICING
• 4 cups powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons meringue powder
• 6-8 tablespoons water
• 1 vanilla bean seeds removed
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• assorted food coloring, holiday sprinkles and or candies, to decorate (optional)
INSTRUCTIONS
To make the cookies, cream the butter, sugar, our Mi Huerta Vanilla extract*** and almond extract in a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer until light and fluffy, about a full 3-5 minutes.
Add the egg and eggnog and mix until evenly combined. Add half the flour, baking soda and salt, beating until combined. Then add the remaining flour and beat until the dough forms a ball.
Generously flour your work surface. Divide the dough in half and flatten each half into a disk.
Roll out the dough to 1/4 inch thickness. Make sure you are using enough flour or your dough will stick. You can also roll the dough out between two piece of wax paper. Cut out the cookies into your desired shapes. Carefully transfer the cookies to a parchment line baking sheet. Cover the baking sheet and place the baking sheet in the freezer, freeze until very firm, about 25 minutes. Roll out the leftover scraps, and repeat with the remaining disk of dough.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Bake the cookies on the middle rack of the oven for 12-15 minutes or until just lightly golden brown. Do not over bake. Cool on the baking sheet five minutes and then transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
To make the icing, combine the sugar and meringue powder in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mixing on low speed, add 6 tablespoons water. Mix until icing holds a ribbonlike trail on the surface of the mixture for 5 seconds when you raise the paddle. Add the vanilla bean seeds and nutmeg, mix until just combined.
You can also use food coloring and color the frosting red, green or whatever colors you like. To pipe the icing onto the cookies, add the icing to a gallon size ziploc bag (or a piping bag), then snip of a small portion of the corner off. Add the icing to the cookies and then top them off with the sprinkles and other holiday decorations (that are edible)!