Peppermint Tea Cookies

Well, it's officially that  "not enough hours in the day" time of year. {Is there ever a time when it isn't?} My To Do list keeps on getting longer and the hours of sleep keep getting shorter, which must mean we're getting closer to Christmas day. {Or, you know, that I'm an adult.}

Though it seems like it isn't possible to get everything done in time, I know that somehow it always comes together at the last minute and all is well. But until that moment comes, I'm the type that gets a little... well, panicky.

How many more gift baskets do I need to make? When should I bake the cookies for maximum freshness? What am I wearing to that Christmas party? And, for Pete's sake, where the heck is that roll of Scotch tape?!?!? Aaaagghhhhhhhhhhhh!

The madness must be stopped.

Sometimes you just need a timeout: A deep breath, some soft Christmas music playing in the background and a hot cup of tea.

These scene at my house yesterday afternoon.

Earlier this week I posted an elaborate Nutcracker-themed tea party complete with tea-infused goodies on the menu. While I don't suggest adding "host a tea party" to your list if you're already stressed, I highly recommend taking a breather with one of these tasty little cookies.

The base of these cookies is the simple recipe that I used whenever I bake classic sugar cookie cutouts. To add a special touch, I steeped some of Bigelow's soothing herbal Peppermint Tea and added it to both the batter and the glaze for a hint of festive flavor. I cut out the cookies to look like tea bags to match the theme of my party, but they taste just as good in any shape you choose to make them -- no need to stress!

If you want your cookies to have more of a peppermint punch, you can also add a 1/2 teaspoon of peppermint extract and even replace the sparkling sugar with crushed up candy canes to suit them up for a Christmas party.

So, put down the rolls of wrapping paper and step away from the DIY reindeer-shape wreath... they'll be there waiting in an hour. When you find that you need to relax and recharge, put on some tea and nibble on a cookie or two. Even Santa takes a cookie break on his busiest night of the year!

Peppermint Tea Cookies

2 sticks butter, slightly softened to room temp
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup strong brewed Bigelow Peppermint Tea, cooled completely, divided
3 cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add egg, vanilla extract and 2 tablespoons brewed tea; beat until well combined.

2. Meanwhile, sift together flour and salt together in a medium bowl, . With the mixer on low speed, add flour mixture until it just comes together. Do not overmix.

3. Scoop dough out onto a large sheet of plastic wrap and shape into a disc. {You may want to make 2 discs to make it more manageable.}

4. Fold plastic wrap over the dough and, using a rolling pin, flatten to about ¼ inch thickness. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes or until chilled and a bit more firm.

5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove dough from refrigerator. Using cookie cutters of your choice, cut out cookie shapes and place on a sheet pan, leaving at least 1 to 1 ½ inches between cookies. {For tea bag shaped cookies, use a tag-shaped cutter. You can also use a small, rectangular cutter and clip off 2 of the corners on an angle to create the tea bag shape. Use a straw to create a small hold for the string.}

6. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until the bottom edges just start to turn golden. {Don’t let them get too brown!}

Let the cookies cool completely before threading each with a piece of string and tying to create the string for the tea tag. I used tags that I repurposed from the used tea bags, but you can also create your own personalized tags with scrapbook paper.

For Icing & Decorating:

1 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons strong brewed Bigelow Peppermint Tea, cooled completely
Sparkling sanding sugar

Mix together powdered sugar and tea until completely smooth, adding the liquid just a little bit a time until you reach a thick "dipping" consistency.

Dip the end of each cooled cookie into the icing, scraping off the excess that drips off. Place on a parchment-lined baking pan and sprinkle with sparkling sanding sugar while the icing is still wet so that the sugar adheres to the icing. Allow to set and dry completely before removing.

Hazelnut Bow Tie Cookies | The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap

The older I get, the more I agree with the old adage: "Tis better to give than to receive." But for the past 3 years, I've participated in an event that brings the absolute best of both worlds straight to my mailbox: The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap!

This event -- the brain {tummy?} child of food bloggers Julie Deily and Lindsay Landis -- celebrated its 5th season of giving this year and I couldn't wait to get in on the cookie clamor.

Not only does FBCS contribute to spreading holiday cheer in the form of a national cookie exchange between food bloggers, but it also serves up a healthy donation to Cookies for Kids Cancer , helping to fund new therapies used to fight pediatric cancer raising over $35,000 in the last for years! I mean, total win-win.

I shipped out 3 dozen homemade cookies this year to three bloggers whose names are randomly selected from the bunch, then waited {im}patiently for my 3 dozen cookies to arrive from those who were matched with my name. Time sure does move slowly when you're waiting for cookie mail...

This year, I received some amazing Chocolate Chunk & Peanut Butter Pretzel Stuffed Cookies from Stark Raving Delicious, fantastic Hot Cocoa and Marshmallow Cookies from Annie One Can Cook, and finally, superb Chocolate Ganache Filled Gingerbread Cups The Suburban Soapbox.

Back in my kitchen, I was a busy little elf baking and packaging cookies to send out to my matches.

The key to choosing a cookie recipe for FBCS is to create something that will survive a trip through the mail. Nothing too gooey or crumbly. You don't want your recipients to end up with a box of cookie dust, after all. After much consideration, I came up with these Hazelnut Bow Tie Cookies.

Made up of a cream cheese-based dough, they're very much like traditional Hungarian Kiffles. I actually used the same dough recipe that I make Rugelach out of, and it worked out perfectly. The dough forms a fantastic base for the addition of a filling {I chose Chocolate Hazelnut Spread, but you can fill them with anything really} -- sturdy enough to hold up during travel, yet tender to bite into.

A sprinkle of chopped hazelnuts emphasized that roasted hazelnut flavor in the filling, and a dusting of powdered sugar over the top gives these pretty bites just the right amount of adornment.

Confession: I made these THREE separate times and forgot to photograph them. Every. Single. Time. On the final batch that I did photograph, I forgot to dust them with powdered sugar, hence my "naked" cookies in these photos. Sigh... welcome to the hectic holidays!

Anyway, enough yammering. If you're planning on baking {or mailing!} Christmas cookies this year, give these bow ties a try. They make a present anyone would love to unwrap and devour!

A great big thank you to my matches, to Julie & Lindsay, and to our wonderful sponsors who sent us goodies -- Dixie Crystals, OXO, and Land O'Lakes! Here's to another year of goodies and giving!

Hazelnut Bow Tie Cookies

1 {8 oz.} block of cream cheese
2 sticks butter {8 oz. total}
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/4 to 2 1/2 cups flour*
Pinch of salt
1/2 - 3/4 cup Chocolate Hazelnut Spread
1/2 cup roasted hazelnuts, chopped
Powdered Sugar for dusting

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add sugar and vanilla and mix to incorporate fully.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Slowly add the flour to the butter mixture until it forms a dough that begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl. {*I usually add just 2 cups of flour and then sprinkle in an extra 1/4 to 1/2 cup while the mixer goes until the dough is no longer super sticky.} Try not to over mix.

2. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and, with floured hands, gently knead it together to form a ball -- divide it in half. Place each half on a sheet of plastic wrap. Pat dough into 2 square-ish shapes and wrap well. Refrigerate until the dough is firm, several hours or overnight.**

3. When the dough is firm, place one square onto a lightly floured surface and roll out to a rectangle or square, about 1/4 inch thick. Using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, cut as many 2 inch-wide strips across as you are able to, then repeat vertically to end up with 2x2 inch squares of dough. If you have scraps left over, re-roll the scraps and repeat the process.

4. Place the dough squares on a baking pan -- the corners should be facing each other so that you have a tray full of  "diamond" shapes.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

5. Fill a zip top plastic bag or small piping bag with chocolate hazelnut spread, then snip the tip. Pipe a straight line down the center of each diamond from tip to tip -- I estimate I used about a teaspoon of spread in each cookie. Sprinkle each cookie with chopped hazelnuts, pressing lightly to adhere to the spread.

6. Wet your fingertips with a little bit of water and lightly swab one side of the cookie dough to moisten -- this will make it slightly sticky so that it adheres to the other side and stays closed. Carefully fold the outer edges of the diamond in toward the center {like its hugging itself}, making sure to fold the sticky side over the non-sticky side so that it helps to seal the cookie. Repeat until all cookies are sealed into bow ties.

5. Bake for about 12 minutes until they're just slightly golden at the edges. They'll be a little soft when you take them out of the oven, but they'll firm up slightly. Remove from baking pan and place on a cooling rack.

When the cookies are completely cooled, dust with powdered sugar to decorate.

The yield depends on the size you cut your squares. Mine were about 2x2 inch squares and I got about 3 dozen cookies out of one batch.

**This dough is best after a rest and some chilling, but I will admit that I've used it without much of a rest and they turn out just fine. Chilling the dough does make it easier to roll out.

Chocolate Dipped Maraschino Cherry Cookies

I wasn't sure if I'd be able to take part in this year's Food Blogger Cookie Swap with a tiny one in tow, but I'm sure glad I signed up despite my initial doubtfulness. I mean, who wouldn't want to be part of something where you get cookies in the mail??? AND help out a great cause, to boot!

I have to admit, finding time to bake with a baby who is just a few weeks old was a challenge. But after some browsing through holiday baking magazines, I found a great, easy recipe that was totally doable... even between feedings, diaper changes and all those other baby odds and ends that need to be constantly tended to.

Chocolate Dipped Maraschino Cherry Cookies

These simple cookies get a festive look from chopped maraschino cherries {an ingredient I almost never have, but happened to find from another project in my pantry}. The red speckles give the cookies a decorative touch without much effort. To fancy them up, a little dip in a melted chocolate bath give them a luxurious feel that makes them gift-worthy!

If you're short on time but need pretty cookies for a holiday gathering or for gift giving, these are the perfect solution.

I was a lucky girl to be matched with Plating Pixels, The Housewife in Training Files and Authentic Suburban Gourmet as my cookie-sending pals.

From Plating Pixels, I received these amazing Almond Tangerine Butter Cookies. They were pure citrusy perfection!

From The Housewife in Training Files, I got these incredible Flourless Peanut Butter Chocolate Cookies. So rich and chocolatey, it's hard to believe they're made without any flour!

And from The Authentic Suburban Gourmet, these Cranberry & Orange Shortbread Cookies arrived on my doorstep. The combination of zesty orange and chewy, tart cranberries tastes like a holiday, for sure.

A big thank you to these three bloggers for making my mailbox a little merrier!

It's officially time to crank up those ovens and get to baking for the holiday, and now you have a few great recipes to get you started!

If you're a food blogger and you'd like to participate in next year's Food Blogger Cookie Swap, make sure to sign up on their website to receive info about how to get in on the fun next time around!

Chocolate Dipped Maraschino Cherry Cookies
Adapted from Land O Lakes Recipe Collection Holiday Cookies Magazine

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup chopped maraschino cherries {rinse and drain before chopping}

3.5 ounces dark chocolate, melted

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Set aside.

2. Cream together butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer until light and fluffy.

3. Add egg and vanilla. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix again until well-combined.

4. Slowly add flour, baking powder and salt, mixing at low speed until just incorporated. Stir in cherries until well distributed throughout the dough-- if you mix too much your cookies will be completely pink.

5. With a cookie scoop or a tablespoon measure, scoop dough and drop onto prepared baking pan leaving about 1 1/2 to 2 inches between cookies. Bake for about 9 to 11 minutes or until cookies are set and edges just begin to brown.

6. Remove from oven and cool completely.

7. When ready to dip, prepare a baking pan with a piece of parchment or silicone baking mat. Dip each cookie half way into chocolate, allowing excess to drip off. Place on prepared baking pan and allow chocolate to set -- you can do this even quicker by placing it in the fridge or freezer for a few minutes.

When chocolate is set, they're ready to package!

White Chocolate Almond Rugelach with Vanilla Raspberry Sauce

Christmastime may as well be synonymous with the word "cookie." It seems like every baker, every family and every culture has its own special cookie that the holidays would just not be complete without.

My mother-in-law makes her Italian pizzelles every year. She makes oodles of them, so we freeze them and eat them straight out of the freezer for months! Steve's grandma and great aunt both make amazing cookie trays with all kinds of Italian delicacies like knot cookies and strufoli. The ladies in my family join me in a small-scale cookie swap every year {and I'm not gonna lie, most of the time they buy their cookies, but it's still just as fun!}, and I usually get creative with trying out new recipes.

My cookie? Biscotti. I make tons and tons {and tons} of them, wrap them up and give them as gifts to family and friends. It's biscotti madness for, like, 3 days in my kitchen. We'll see how that works out this year with a tiny tot strapped to me.

Anyway, the point is, when it comes to cookies, we may have our favorites but we're open to letting new ones in on the holiday fun.We don't discriminate. If it's delicious, it's welcome.

These cookies might just have to make an appearance this year. So. Good.

They're Dorie Greenspan's Rugelach with a Dianna Muscari twist. I filled these beauties with chopped almonds, white chocolate and a sprinkle of brown sugar. And because it never hurts to go over the top, I made a delightful Vanilla Raspberry Sauce to go along with them.

Rugelach dough is shockingly simple. Made with butter, cream cheese, flour and salt, it comes together to make the flakiest yumminess you can imagine. You can fill rugelach with whatever your heart desires, though I highly recommend trying this white chocolate almond combo because it worked really, really well.

What are you favorite kinds of cookies for the holidays? Does your family have a special kind of cookie that makes an appearance this time of year?

Be sure to give these cookies a try... they may just become a new family favorite! 

Disclosure: I received a copy of Dorie Greenspan's new cookbook, Baking Chez Moi: Recipes from My Paris Home to Your Home Anywhere as well as product coupons and compensation for this post. As always, the opinions expressed here are all my own!

White Chocolate Almond Rugelach with Vanilla Raspberry Sauce
Adapted from Dorie Greenspan's Baking Chez Moi: Recipes from My Paris Home to Your Home Anywhere

4 oz. cream cheese
8 tablespoons {1 stick} butter
1 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup almonds, roughly chopped
Heaping 1/3 cup white chocolate chips or white chocolate bar, chopped
Pinch of cinnamon

1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon water
{Optional} Sanding sugar or granulated sugar

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer {or alternatively in a blender equipped to make dough}, combine cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add flour and salt and mix {or pulse} until a pebbly, clumpy mixture begins to form.

2. Scrape dough from bowl and press together to form a ball -- divide it in half. Place each half on a sheet of plastic wrap. Pat dough into 2 square shapes and wrap well. Refrigerate until the dough is firm, several hours or overnight.

3. When the dough is firm, place one square onto a well-floured surface and roll out to about 12 inches square. Cut square in half -- you should have approximately a 12x6 inch piece. Brush all over with melted butter. Sprinkle evenly with brown sugar.

4. Carefully sprinkle with 1/4 of the chopped almonds, white chocolate and cinnamon leaving a small border around the dough. Press down lightly to help it stick.

5. Starting from the non-cut side, carefully roll {jellyroll style} up the dough, then flip seam side {the side with the neat cut edge} down. {Some of the filling may fall out the ends. Just do your best!} Wrap rolled up log in plastic wrap and place in freezer until firmed up a bit {30 minutes to an hour}. Meanwhile, repeat the process with rest of the dough and filling.

6. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking pan with parchment or a silicone baking sheet. Set aside. Using a sharp or serrated knife, cut approximately 1 inch pieces from roll and place {seam side down} onto baking sheet.

7. Whisk together egg and water in a small bowl. Brush egg wash over each piece and sprinkle tops with sugar.

8. Bake for 15-17 minutes or until golden brown on the tops. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly {about 15 minutes} before removing from pan.


For Vanilla Raspberry Sauce

1 pint Driscoll's Raspberries
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Blend berries in a blender or food processor until smooth.

2. Combine berry puree and sugar in a small saucepan over medium high heat. Simmer until slightly thickened and darkened, about 8-10 minutes.

3. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract.

Serve alongside rugelach.