The holiday season is upon us! And there is no better way to get into the spirit than by baking some desserts to enjoy with hot cocoa on a cold winter evening. Here are three sweet, short and easy recipes to kick off the season of holiday cheer.
Gingerbread Men
Gingerbread houses and gingerbread men are staples of the holiday season. They’re super cute, super simple and something you can decorate with your personal touch.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 (3.5 ounce) package cook and serve butterscotch pudding mix
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
PREPARATION:
1. In a bowl, mix together the dry butterscotch pudding mix, the butter and the brown sugar until it is nice and even, then stir in the egg. After this add in the flour, baking soda, ginger and cinnamon.
2. Once you’ve got a nice dough, cover and chill until firm for around an hour.
3. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease baking sheets.
4. Roll your dough out and get to cutting with your gingerbread man templates and place them about two inches apart on the baking sheet.
5. Bake ten to twelve minutes, cool and decorate them with icing as you please!
Recipe courtesy of allrecipes.com
Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies
The holiday season can be a tough time for our vegan family members and friends as a lot of those delicious family recipes aren’t so friendly. Luckily there’s a wealth of delicious vegan holiday recipes so a new tradition can begin, and why not start off with gorgeous crinkle cookies.
INGREDIENTS
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1 tbsp. baking powder
- 1/4 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 3/4 cup vegan butter
- 1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup applesauce
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp. red food coloring
- 1 cup vegan white chocolate chips, optional
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar, for coating
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar, for coating
PREPARATION
1. Put the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl and put that to the side.
2. Using a whisk, or a mixer if you prefer, beat the butter and sugar until it’s nice and fluffy and add the applesauce ¼ cup at a time. When that is mixed add in the vanilla extract, apple cider vinegar and the food coloring. It’s going to look a little curdled, but that’s okay.
3. Slowly add the dry ingredients until it’s well combined, then cover the dough and leave it in the fridge for at least two hours.
4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and place the granulated sugar in a dish. Put the powdered sugar in a separate one. Roll your cookie dough into balls and then generously coat in the granulated sugar first, then the powdered sugar. Place on the baking tray then cook for 10 minutes.
5. Take them out while slightly underdone (don’t worry, it’s safe), then let them cool.
Courtesy of mydarlingvegan.com
Buttered Snowflakes
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...even in the kitchen with these simple sugar cookies.
INGREDIENTS
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup butter
1 (3 ounces) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon orange zest
PREPARATION
1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees and sift the flour, salt and cinnamon and put it to the side.
2. In a bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter, add the egg yolk and sugar, and beat them until they are nice and fluffy. Stir in the vanilla, orange zest and very slowly add in the dry ingredients.
3. Spread the dough on the cookie sheet and cut out the snowflakes then bake for 10-15 minutes.
4. When they’ve got a nice brown center, remove them and let them cool before adding a nice dusting of sugar.
Courtesy of allrecipes.com
The final step of each of these recipes is to enjoy the cookies! Finals time is coming and life can be stressful, but remember to take a step back and have a little fun. Keep these in mind when you get a little bored and need something fun to do in the kitchen.
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