Cookies don't inspire me. Honestly, they don't. Whenever I think about new things to bake, new flavors to try, or an experimental whatever; cookies aren't the blank canvas of my dreams. I don't know what it is about them but I get caught in a loop of chocolate chip, snickerdoodle, sugar, oatmea.... sorry fell asleep there for a minute.
Maybe I am being dramatic but nothing about the promise of a new cookie excites me. Sorry, can I even consider myself a baker anymore if I don't get thrilled over cookies?
Now, let me be clear here. None of this is to say I don't like cookies, because as a functioning human adult of course I like cookies! But there is a distinction; cookies, in my humble opinion, fall into a category of food that yes, of course, I will eat that food (as to be sane). But it doesn't rock my world or really have any effect on me whatsoever. It satisfies that craving for something sweet, sure, but doesn't draw you close to tears with perfection (which is absolutely what I expect from my baked goods). BUT, yes BUT, there is every so often a cookie that surpasses all preconceived notions of cookies and completely shakes me. It is the cookie fresh out of the oven, warm and gooey, a healthy balance between sweet and salty, absolutely perfect. This cookie I must exclude from my previous words.
The problem is, THAT cookie only exists for a very short amount of time, and are rare and so good that they make their counterparts (the aforementioned cookies), feel like the potato chip crumbs at the bottom of the bag. Good, but nothing to write home about.
In short, the way I feel about cookies is the same feelings I have towards french toast and Kate Hudson movies. When they are good, they are dang near the best thing in the whole world (here's looking at you How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days), and when they aren't that good; you'll still take them but you won't be thrilled about it.
Okay, I feel better after getting that out. If you are still with me, thank you. All that to say, I am absolutely going to be baking cookies for Christmas because that is simply what we do. However, I am taking a stand against traditional cookie ideals of the world and making cookies that just make me happy (what a concept). Nothing gimmicky, or over the top, and I assure you nothing highly decorated because who really enjoys that? If you do, I have promoted you to the position of "My Personal Hero".
My first round of cookie goodness will be my version of an incredibly simple shortbread cookie, dipped in chocolate, rolled in peppermint pieces. Why? Because I believe that shortbread is the ultimate cookie form, it takes away the possibility of that stale chocolate chip cookie that still carries the ghost of its once fluffy past. Shortbread is exactly what it sounds like; short. They are crumbly and buttery and remain crumbly and buttery no matter how many days they spend in a Tupperware on your counter, which is what I am looking for in my perfect Christmas cookie. Consistency is sexy people!
Here's what to do:
- Take 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons of salted butter (you can use unsalted and just make sure to add salt to your dough) softened, and add to an electric mixer with 1/2 cup of granulated sugar, 1/4 cup of brown sugar, and a splash and a scootch of vanilla.
- Mix on medium/high until it gets super super light and fluffy, about 5 minutes
- Slowly add in 2 1/4 cups of flour until dough comes together, don't overmix.
- Roll into two logs (about 2 inches in diameter), cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
- Preheat oven to 350, cut dough into little slices and bake for 14ish minutes, the edges should just be browning.
- While the cookies cool, put a bunch of candy canes in a bag and take out a weeks worth of anger on them (a.k.a. smash the heck out of them).
- Melt 6 ounces of dark chocolate with 1/4 of coconut oil and dip half of each cookie in the chocolate spread.
- Before the chocolate hardens, roll in the peppermint pieces and leave to set on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
See what I'm talking about, ease is the name of the game this Christmas and these cookies tick every box. Now watch me make a seamless transition from cookies to life, it's going to be flawless.
If you find yourself trying to be as cheerful and jolly this Christmas as Christmases past, (be the highly decorated cookie version of yourself), and it feels wrong this year, that is okay. If you simply make it through this holiday season, that is enough. I think this year has taken too much, and it doesn't deserve our guilt too. Your families, your children, your spouses, your animals will understand if this Christmas you need to be a shortbread. If you need to simplify the holiday, not erase it, and find the jolly spirit in the mundane; I'm right there with you.
Whatever you need to do to find joy in this season, do it! If that means, bake ridiculously elaborate cookies; do it! If that means baking no cookies; do it! (or rather, don't do it). If that means screaming All I Want for Christmas by Mariah Carey in your cars until you lose your voice; do it! I'll be doing it all too. Please give yourself the space to see that this year will look different, and you will probably feel different, and that is okay. Who knows what you'll discover when you let go of the expectations, you may find you have been a shortbread all along!
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