This year, my brilliant mother and I decided to nix gift-giving in our family. We were briefly concerned that Christmas might suck without presents, but it quickly became apparent to both of us that it was a good move. Without the insanity of gift pressure, this has been the best Christmas season I've had in a loooong time. I've actually had time to craft holiday projects (instead of stressing about making gifts, and feeling like a failure when I didn't), bake and decorate (instead of hating humankind out at the stores), and even enjoy many a moment listening to Christmas carols and gazing at our monster Christmas tree. Plus, it feels good to take a vacation from all the commercialism and greediness that always creeps up this time of year.

Anyway. This weekend, I used my new-found holiday free time to bake, bake, bake. Most years I just fantasize about trying lots of new cookie recipes, but this year I did it. Even came to work this morning armed with boxes of prettily-packaged treats to give to my work friends. I got some of this free at an industry event:



It came in so handy for sealing up my cookie boxes. Really cute, and super easy at the end of the day when I was ready to get the heck out of the kitchen, and just didn't have a lot of creativity or desire left to spend on wrapping. Love ya, Martha!

Here's what I made:

Hershey Kiss Cookies - a perennial favorite, and A's favorite. The recipe is on the back of the Hershey Kiss bag.

Peanut Butter Balls - also A's favorite. I'm not gonna lie, mine are the creamiest this side of the Mississippi. The secret is to WHIP that filling till it begs for mercy. This is the only recipe I used this year that I actually have written on an old-school index card, so no link, sorry.

Cut-out Cookies - Feeling a little over it by the time I got to these, I kept it simple with sprinkled trees. This decorator icing is great. Easy to work with, and dries nicely so the cookies don't get messed up when boxed up.

Spiced cut-out cookies - these are a new recipe I tried this year, and it was the big winner of the weekend. The recipe contains dry mustard, which is why I tried it - I love dessert recipes that use savory components. They're not as spicey-tasting as you'd expect. I might try adding more spice next time, because I like the bite.

Rosemary Shortbread - see what I mean about the savory? This was also a new recipe, and these are the ones I keep snatching off the cookie plate. Soooooo good, I will definitely be making them again, and often. This would be a fantastic addition to a cheese course any time of year. Lord knows, we can put down the cheese at our house. (Who could resist with this around the corner?)

Pignoli cookies - also a new recipe. I made these for my mom. I brought them home for her once from an Italian bakery here in NYC, and she fell in love with them. She asked me like a zillion times to try to get the recipe from the bakery, and being a bad daughter, I never got around to it. So when I came across the recipe, I knew this was my chance to redeem myself. They're yummy, but you kind of have to love them because that darn almond paste is kinda pricey.

Lemon curd sandwiches - also a new recipe. The lemon curd is great, but the sandwiches were a bit eh in the end. Probably won't make these again, but the curd is a keeper. I have a big bowl of it left over, what can I whip up this week to use it up?

Chocolate Salty Truffles - this is one of my trademark dishes. Some friends ask for these every year, which makes me so happy. I just don't think there's anything better than salt and chocolate.

Pics coming soon. Happy Cookie Time!