Gourmet Cookie Bouquets Recipe Blog

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Ring in the New Year with the festive bouquet overflowing with cookies to celebrate the season.

The 9 cookie version of the bouquet comes with 2 champagne flute, one clock, 4 celebration balloon, and one champagne bottle-shaped cookies.  The large cookies each measure about 5 to 6" tall and about 3/8" thick depending on the cookie design. We also add a center cookie where you can add a personal message. This stylish cookie gift is available in 5 different sizes with prices starting at just $29.

Buy the happy New Year's Cookie Bouquet today!

Then check out the Top New Year's Resolutions that People Make.

My Dad can eat a whole batch of this Christmas candy in one sitting, but that might be why he has a jolly tummy just like Santa.  Seriously, this peanut brittle is quite tasty and oh so easy to make. It's not quite the usual Christmas cookie, but it's close in shape.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups raw peanuts
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup light corn syrup
• pinch of salt
• 1 Tbsp. butter
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 tsp. baking soda

In a glass bowl, stir together the salt, corn syrup and sugar.  Place the bowl in the microwave and heat on 100% Power for 9 minutes. Remove from microwave and stir in the butter and vanilla.

Then microwave on 100% power for an additional 3 minutes.

Remove from microwave and stir in the baking soda stirring really well...note the mixture should be foamy.  Stir in the peanuts. Then pour the mixture onto a well-greased cookie sheet (or on a cookie sheet lined with Sil-pat).

Cool the mixture completely and then break into edible-sized pieces.

If you're looking to just make a traditional Christmas cookie batch, look no farther. Try this recipe for Easy Christmas cookies - 1 Dough Made 5 Ways!

I know what you are thinking - date balls for Christmas - yuck.  Well maybe that is just what I thought.  At any rate, these classic Christmas cookies are now one of my favorites.  The melted dates are blended with butter to create a scrumptious almost caramel like texture that is infused with rice krispies for a bit of crunch.  My mouth is watering just thinking about them!

1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup white sugar
1 lb. pitted dates, cut fine
1 beaten egg
1 Tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup chopped nuts
2 cups Rice Krispies®
extra fine flake coconut

In a medium-size heavy saucepan, melt the dates, sugar and butter together over medium heat (stirring constantly) until it is smooth (almost like caramel).  Remove from the heat. Then add the eggs, milk, vanilla and salt stirring well.  Be sure to cool the date mixture slightly before adding the eggs so they don't get scrambled.

Put the mixture back on the stove over low heat stirring until thickened.  Again remove from heat and mix in the nuts and the rice krispies until well distributed.  Cool completely.  Place the coconut in a small bowl. Butter your hands to keep the mixture from sticking and form the mixture into 1" diameter size balls and then roll the balls of cookies in coconut.

Place on wax paper until the cookie balls are set.  Store in an airtight container.

If you're a big fan of coconut, then you have to try this recipe for Coconut Macadamia Nut Brownies.

Milk chocolate & peanut butter cookies are one of my favorites because I just love the smooth melty texture and taste of this sweet combination.  These cookies are a childhood favorite and my kids love them too! In my house we usually end up doubling or tripling this recipe because they disappear so fast.

Ingredients:

• ½ cup butter
• ½ cup brown sugar
• ½ cup white sugar
• 1 egg
• ½ cup peanut butter
• 1 ¼ cups flour
• ¾ tsp. baking soda
• 1 bag of miniature peanut butter cups (unwrapped)
• Christmas themed miniature paper baking cups

To make the cookie batter, cream together the sugars and the butter until fluffy.  Then mix in the egg and peanut butter stirring well.  Finally add the baking so and then the flour mixing until you get a well-blended dough.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill the dough in the refrigerator for an hour.

Meanwhile, line a mini-muffin pan with the mini paper baking cups. Remove and form into about 24 - 3/4" round dough balls.  Place each dough ball in a mini baking cup. Bake dough balls in the oven at 375 degF for about 9 minutes.

Remove from oven and immediately press a mini peanut butter cup into the center of each cookie pressing down until the top of the peanut butter cup lines up with the top of the cookie.

Leave the cookies sit in the muffin tins for 10 minutes and then remove them cooling the rest of the way on a cooling rack.

In my family, we pop these little bite size morsels in the microwave for maybe 10 seconds so the chocolate gets a little melty when we want to have a real Christmas cookie treat!

Did you see my previous Christmas recipes? They're delicious! You can find them below:

• Christmas Peanut Brittle
• Date Balls Covered in Coconut Flakes

Spritz cookies have been a Christmas staple in our family for at least 30 years.  My Mom has a really old-fashioned cookie press that you have to twist to extract the cookies....personally I like the trigger version, but mine has been replaced several times (because the plastic broke) while her old one just keeps going and going.  On the plate below, you can see some snowflake design cookies that we made and then just added green and red sugar.  You can also color the dough with food coloring (this is what we do to make green Christmas tree shaped cookies).

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
2 tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla
½ tsp almond extract
3 ½ cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder

In a large mixing bowl (I use my Kitchen Aid Mixer with the white paddle), cream butter and sugar together. Then add the egg, milk, vanilla, almond extract beating well. Stir together flour and baking powder in a separate bowl or on a piece of wax paper (to make it easy to add to wet ingredients). Gradually add flour mixture to creamed mixture, mixing to a smooth dough. If you are going to add food coloring to the dough, I recommend doing it when you have about half of the flour mixture added so that it is easier to mix in.  Do NOT chill the dough! Shape dough in small logs and place in a cookie press (see the video below for great tips). Choose the press die to create the cookie shape that you want.  Then press cookies onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degF for 10 to 12 minutes or until cookies are lightly browned around edges. Remove cookies from sheet and cool on a rack. Makes 7 to 8 dozen Spritz cookies.

My Tips - If you are making Christmas trees or wreaths, you will likely want to color the dough green. I recommend using the paste type food coloring so that it doesn't change the consistency of the dough. No matter what the cookie shape, you can decorate them with colored sugars prior to baking in the oven.

Here is a great video that I found at YouTube.  It shows how to load and use a cookie press to make Christmas designs.  It also details how you can take those shapes and arrange them to create a Christmas cookie wreath.

Are you a little lost when it comes to these spritz cookies? That's okay! Here are some Tips for Buying a Cookie Press.